Have you Noticed the Carrot Cuts on Posters Lately?
Have you noticed posters with notches — or carrot cuts — along their borders this semester? These are intentional and not a mistake. In fact, they are part of an accessibility initiative designed to provide electronic poster equivalents to include our entire diverse campus community.
While individuals with visual impairments may rely on braille or screen-reading technology to access information, the provision of braille presents its own barriers due to its length and adhesion requirements. In order to help eliminate these issues; Student Accessibility Services, the Office of College Communications, and the Print Shop have worked collaboratively on an innovative solution.
This semester, whenever the Office of College Communications receives a design request for an event poster — or something that’s not a highly publicized public service announcement — the graphic designers will place a QR code on the poster. The QR code would take the user to a plain-text webpage or existing page on our website that contains the same information as the poster. The Print Shop will be notified and cut out a notch in the shape of a carrot — or triangle — on the poster border near the QR code. Students registered with Student Accessibility Services know if they feel this notch on a poster’s border, there will be a QR code for them to scan. From there, they can use the screen-reading feature on their smartphone to access the poster information via sound.
Our campus colleagues are encouraged to log a College Communications Design Job Request online. Our graphic designers work to ensure all design requests fit the SUNY Brockport branding guidelines as well as meet design accessibility standards set forth by the college. Our design services are free.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Patrick Armstrong, graphic designer, in the Office of College Communications.