Aaaand We’re back!
We hope everyone had relaxing and rejuvenating holiday and break. We had our first team meeting of the year this morning and look forward to a busy and productive 2017. We have a number of new client sites preparing to go live early this year. We’ll hold off on the big reveal for now but stay tuned for the new look of Materials Management, Policies, Rules & Regulations, and more!
Alternate Locations for January Office Hours
In case you’re not aware, OIT Design has open office hours every Friday morning from 9am until noon. Anyone who has WordPress questions can come by and talk with us, no appointment necessary. We’ll be able to take time one-on-one to offer advice, walk you through a process, or look for the right solution for your problem.
We’re typically in the Avent Ferry Technology Center, but for the month of January we’ll be holding our office hours in the following alternate locations in Talley Student Center:
- January 13th, 2017 – Talley, Room 4270
- January 20th, 2017 – Talley, Room 5101
- January 27th, 2017 – Talley, Room 3221
The times will remain the same, Fridays from 9 till noon.
Section 508 Refresh
In 2008, the United States Access Board—which sets IT accessibility rules at public institutions under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act—announced that it would begin the process of updating its rules to reflect changes in technology. The results of the long-awaited “Section 508 refresh” were announced this week.
OIT Design staff are still reviewing the changes announced, but the updates mostly bring federal rules into alignment with the WCAG 2.0 level AA and AAA standards that we already follow. We may be making some minor changes to the WordPress themes and plugins in the coming months in anticipation of the new rules taking effect.
But it’s always a good idea for everyone to review accessibility best practices! We’ve collected a few common issues (and how to avoid them) at: go.ncsu.edu/wp-a11y
Welcome Miles!
We’d like to take this opportunity to welcome our new hire, Miles Elliott!. Miles will be filling the Chris-sized hole in our lives that was left after Mr. Deaton’s departure to the furthest reaches of the suite down the hall. In fact, we’ll let Miles introduce himself by taking an excerpt from his recent post to our blog:
I’m a long time user and developer in the WordPress environment but my formal education is in Graphic Design and I love a well-maintained brand. Previously I have worked in advertising but I’m excited to be working in the world of higher education.
I love to be at the place where art, technology, and design intersect. In my free time I like to have fun coding and building electronic projects.
I’m looking forward to working with and supporting the NC State community.
That’s all for now, stay tuned for more updates and don’t hesitate to contact us for any and all of your WordPress needs!