Stone County Schools
Website Accessibility Policy

{Download approved PDF version.}

The Stone County School District is committed to ensuring accessibility of its website(s) for students, parents, and members of the community with disabilities. All pages on all District websites will conform to the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative's (WAI) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level AA conformance, or updated equivalents of these guidelines.

The District will also maintain compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 and Title II, on all of its websites. The District will do this by conducting regular compliance scans of District and School websites in order to stay knowledgeable about the content posted on those sites and the compliance of all pages within those sites. All District staff responsible for updating or adding site content will be made aware of the requirements of the regulations listed above and will be trained as necessary so they can maintain compliance with those requirements when making site modifications.

The District Director of Technology will establish a means whereby staff, students, parents, and members of the public may present a complaint regarding a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 and Title II related to the accessibility of any official District web presence which is developed by, maintained by, or offered through the District or third party vendors and/or open sources.

Third-Party Sites

Throughout the District, staff and students make use of different third-party websites such as Google, lnstagram, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook to share news and information about District groups, clubs and events. These sites may present challenges for individuals with disabilities and contain accessibility issues that we are not able to control or remedy. Please know that these sites are not used as the sole source of (or sole vehicle for communicating) important information.

As made publicly available, here are the Accessibility Policies provided from some of these third-party sites:

  • Facebook Accessibility Policy
  • YouTube Accessibility Policy
  • Google Accessibility for Chrome Browser

Website Accessibility

With regard to the Stone County School District websites and any official District web presence which is developed by, maintained by, or offered through District staff, third party vendors and/or open sources, the Stone County School District is committed to compliance with the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 and Title II so that staff, students, parents and members of the public with disabilities are able to independently acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same benefits and services within the same timeframe as those without disabilities, with substantially equivalent ease of use; and that they are not excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or otherwise subjected to discrimination in any school district programs, services, or activities delivered online.

All new and existing web content produced by third-party developers, will conform to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level AA conformance, or updated equivalents, by April 1, 2020. This Regulation applies to all new, updated, and existing web pages, as well as web content produced or updated by Stone County School District or provided by third-party developers.

Website Accessibility Concerns, Complaints and Grievances

A staff member, student, parent or member of the public who wishes to submit a complaint or grievance regarding a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 or Title II, related to the accessibility of any official District web presence that is developed by, maintained by, or offered through the Stone County School District, third party vendors and/or open sources may complain directly to the District Director of Technology or the school webmaster. The school webmaster responsibility is typically assigned to the support technician located at each of the Districts four campuses. For purposes of clarity, it is recommended that the initial complaint or grievance be made using Website Accessibility Complaint/Request Form located via a link on the bottom of each District\School site homepage, however, a verbal complaint or grievance may be made. When an accessibility complaint is received it should be immediately forwarded to the Director of Technology who will initiate an investigation into the complaint.

Whether or not a formal complaint or grievance is made, once the District has been notified of inaccessible content, effective communication shall be established with the Complainant as soon as possible. Additional details concerning Complainant notification are listed below.

Complaints may be submitted in writing, via email, or by completing the Website Accessibility Complaint Request Form. To file a complaint or grievance regarding the inaccessibility of District School public website content, it is highly recommended the Complainant complete the website accessibility feedback form mentioned above. The submission and response of each complaint will then be better documented and can be managed more efficiently.

The formal ADA non-compliance complaint should include the following:

  • Name
  • Address (Optional)
  • Date of the Complaint
  • Detailed description of the problem encountered
  • Web address or location of the problem page(s)
  • Solution desired
  • Contact information in case more details are needed (email and phone number)

The complaint or grievance will be investigated by the District Technology Director. The District staff member, student, parent, or member of the public shall be contacted no later than three (3) working days following the date the website accessibility complaint\request is received by the District Director of Technology.

The procedures to be followed are:

  • An investigation of the complaint shall be completed within ten (10) working days. Extension of the timeline may only be approved by the Superintendent.
  • The investigator shall prepare a written report of the findings and conclusions within seven (7) working days of the completion of the investigation.
  • The investigator shall make initial contact with the Complainant to let them know their complaint\request has been officially received. Upon conclusion of the investigation the investigator will again contact the Complainant to discuss the findings and conclusions as well as actions to be taken as a result of the investigation.
  • A written record of each complaint\request made pursuant to board adoption of this policy shall be maintained at the Stone County Schools District office. The record shall include a copy of the complaint\request or grievance filed, a description of findings from the investigation and the disposition of the matter.


Ryan Bush
Director of Technology
Stone County School District
601-928-7247 Ext 1110
[email protected]