Topics Map > Programming Policy & Guidance
Topics Map > Operational Support Resources > 4.1 Access, Inclusion, and Compliance
Topics Map > Employee Handbook > 1.2 Policy Statements & Employee Guidance > 1.2.1 Accessibility
Topics Map > Operational Support Resources > 4.3 Communications & Stakeholder Engagement > 4.3.5 Video & Photography
Topics Map > Operational Support Resources > 4.5 Office of Digital Solutions > 4.5.3 YouTube

Compliance - Accessibility (ADA) - Video Captioning - Divisional Policy

Videos used in Division of Extension need to meet ADA compliance for captioning and accommodation. The Division of Extension requires that all external, public facing pre-recorded video content meet or exceed ADA requirements for captioning.

Captioning and Extension

Pre-recorded videos (any non-live video) used by Extension are subject to ADA compliance regulations. At the most basic level, we are legally required to caption any public facing video content which contains information which is not already available in an accessible text-based format elsewhere, and is clearly labeled as such.
Beyond our legal requirements, we recognize that only time-synced, verbatim captions are capable of providing full and equitable access to video content for those who would benefit from such an accommodation. Captions are meant to be non audio, text based representation of the audio content provided as part of a video. For this reason, the Division of Extension requires that all external, public facing pre-recorded video content meet or exceed ADA requirements for captioning. 
For video content designed solely for internal consumption (training, updates, professional development, announcements), Extension recognizes that while having all video content captioned is our goal, it may not always be possible or feasible due to economic or time constraints. For these internal videos, a determination on how to caption should be made based on ‘severity of need’ and the following guidelines:
  • Video Audience
  • Time sensitivity
  • Video shelf life
  • Availability of identical information via text-based alternative
Automatically generated captions are not acceptable at this time as they do not meet quality standards.

Captioning Goals

The goal for captions and transcripts is 99% or greater accuracy. Captions must be:
  • Accurate
    • Error-less captions are the goal for each production.
  • Consistent
    • Uniformity in style and presentation of all captioning features is crucial for viewer and listener understanding.
  • Clear
    • Complete textual representation of the audio, including speaker identification and non-speech information, provides clarity.
  • Readable
    • For captions only, it is important that they are displayed with enough time to be read completely, are in synchronization with the audio, and are not obscured by (nor do they obscure) the visual content.
  • Equal
    • Equal access requires that the meaning and intention of the material is completely preserved.

Captioning Options

When captioning, you have two primary options, using one of our contracted vendors, or taking a DIY approach.

Professional Captioning Services

Current 3rd party vendors for captioning can be found at Media captioning, transcription, and audio description vendor pricing
Captioning is billed at a per-minute rate. While these rates may seem daunting at first, it is important to recognize that the process of creating and reviewing captions is labor intensive. For many projects, having video content professionally captioned is a more effective use of Extension resources than devoting hours of staff time to the DIY process.
Vendors should provide captions containing embedded timestamps in the .srt file format. This format can be used with a variety of accessible media players including cloud based ones such as YouTube, FaceBook, Kaltura and others.
At this time, content creators are responsible for any costs associated with captioning their videos. Please work with your program or institute to secure funding.

DIY Captioning Options

Updated resources related to DIY Captioning can be found on the Extension Office of Digital Solutions SharePoint site. As of 02/2026, these resource include instructions on how to use Adobe and Microsoft tools for DIY Captioning. 

Extension Office of Digital Solutions DIY Captioning Resources:https://uwprod.sharepoint.com/sites/EXT-DigitalSolutions/SitePages/No-Cost-Captions.aspx#adobe-podcast


Adobe Podcast: https://podcast.adobe.com/en/studio

Additional Resources on Captions

For questions on captioning your video content, including options for captioning live events, please contact us at accessibility@extension.wisc.edu

Resources from Accessibility @ UW-Madison

UW Madison's central location for current accessibility and disability resources: https://accessible.wisc.edu/digital/content-guidelines/#multimedia

Guidance on making multimedia accessible: https://it.wisc.edu/learn/make-it-accessible/multimedia/


Keywords:
captioning,ada,compliance,youtube,video,audio 
Doc ID:
97872
Owned by:
Tony R. in Extension Handbook
Created:
2020-02-12
Updated:
2026-02-10
Sites:
Extension Handbook
Policies and Procedures for the Division of Extension Owners of policies and procedures Programming Policy & Guidance for educational staff & faculty.