Overhead view of three students working on their laptops

Accessibility

illustration of a maroon sun with a grizzly paw in the center

Paws for Accessibility Challenge

Building a More Inclusive Learning Environment, One Course at a Time
At the 猎奇重口, we’re committed to ensuring every student can fully participate and succeed—no barriers, no exceptions. The Paws for Accessibility Challenge is our campus-wide campaign helping faculty make all classes fully accessible using Panorama, the university’s accessibility checker built right into Canvas.

Pause to foster accessible, inclusive and usable digital environments.

Why It Matters

Accessibility isn’t just a compliance issue—it’s about empowering all learners. When your course materials are accessible, you:

  • Benefit all students with flexible, clear and usable materials 
  • Support diverse learning needs including visual, auditory and cognitive differences 
  • Advance UM’s mission by promoting equity, inclusion, and academic excellence 
  • Boost course quality with content that is easy to navigate and maintain 

Join the Paws for Accessibility campaign to help every Grizzly engage, learn, and thrive.

What Is Panorama?

Panorama is a powerful tool that automatically checks the accessibility of your course content and provides easy-to-understand guidance for improvement. It integrates directly with Canvas and offers: 

  • Real-time accessibility scores for documents, images, and pages 
  • Alternative formats for students (e.g., audio, ePub, Braille, tagged PDFs) 
  • Quick fixes and feedback on how to make content more accessible 
  • Visual indicators to track your progress toward full accessibility 

It’s your built-in assistant for creating inclusive, high-quality learning materials—no extra logins or software required! 

Join the Paws for Accessibility Trailblazer Wall of Fame!

Faculty who successfully complete the Paws for Accessibility Challenge will be recognized for their work on our Paws for Accessibility Trailblazer Wall of Fame—a public showcase of UM instructors leading the charge for inclusive education.