Accessibility Statement & ADA Notice

DECAL Website Accessibility Statement & ADA Notice

Last updated May 2026

Website Accessibility

This website is powered by the GovHub Digital Publishing Platform. GovHub is designed to reduce barriers to content for visitors with disabilities by implementing requirements that allow an inclusive, accessible online experience for users with assistive technology. Examples of the platform’s accessible design include:

Easy and logical navigation
Access to information in a clear and consistent manner for screen readers
Keyboard accessibility
Legible fonts and high-contrast colors for easier readability

The platform incorporates state and federal accessibility mandates, including updated  ADA Title II  requirements for state and local governments. Our systems align with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA technical standards, as well as best practices from the more recent  WCAG 2.2 recommendations. Some of these practices include:

Text alternative fields for every non-text element when appropriate.
Designed web pages so that all information conveyed with color can also be understood without color.
Designed web pages so that all content presented without an associated style sheet does not lose information or structure
Identified row and column headers in data tables.
Keyboard accessibility, where all functionality is available through the use of a keyboard and without the use of a mouse.
“Skip to main content” link at the top of each page permitting users to skip repetitive navigation links.
Mechanism for the user to pause, stop or hide moving or scrolling information that starts automatically, lasts more than 5 seconds and is presented in parallel with other content.
Online forms are designed allowing assistive technology to access the information, field elements and functionality required for completion and submission of the form, including all directions and cues.
Color-contrast accessible for those with low vision and color blindness.

Notice under the Americans with Disabilities Act

In accordance with the requirements of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (“DECAL”) will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities. 

DECAL ADA Coordinators

Sabrina Henry and/or Alethea Cicero-Brown ADA Coordinators Email to: HR@decal.ga.gov Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SE, Suite 754, East Tower, Atlanta, Georgia 30334

Employment:

DECAL does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations promulgated by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under title I of the ADA.

Effective Communication:

DECAL will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in DECAL programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or vision impairments.

Modifications to Policies and Procedures:

DECAL will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to enjoy all of its programs, services, and activities.  For example, individuals with service animals are welcomed in DECAL offices, even where pets are generally prohibited.

Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a program, service, or activity of DECAL, should contact a DECAL ADA Coordinator as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled event.

The ADA does not require DECAL to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services or impose an undue financial or administrative burden. 

Complaints that a program, service, or activity of DECAL is not accessible to persons with disabilities should be directed to a DECAL ADA Coordinator.

DECAL will not place a surcharge on a particular individual with a disability or any group of individuals with disabilities to cover the cost of providing auxiliary aids/services or reasonable modifications of policy, such as retrieving items from locations that are open to the public but are not accessible to persons who use wheelchairs.

ADA Grievance Procedure

This Grievance Procedure is established to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"). It may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (“DECAL”). The DECAL Employment Policy Manual governs employment-related complaints of disability discrimination.

The complaint should be in writing and contain information about the alleged discrimination such as name, address, phone number of complainant and location, date, and description of the problem. Alternative means of filing complaints, such as personal interviews or a tape recording of the complaint, will be made available for persons with disabilities upon request.

The complaint should be submitted by the grievant and/or his/her designee as soon as possible but no later than 60 calendar days after the alleged violation to:

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the complaint, Sabrina Henry and/or Alethea Cicero Brownor her designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days of the meeting, Sabrina Henry and/or Alethea Cicero Brownor her designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, such as large print, Braille, or audio tape. The response will explain the position of the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning and offer options for substantive resolution of the complaint.

If the response by Sabrina Henry and/or Alethea Cicero-Brown or her designee does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the complainant and/or his/her designee may appeal the decision within 15 calendar days after receipt of the response to Ira Sudman, General Counsel, or his designee.

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, Ira Sudman, General Counsel, or his designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days after the meeting, Ira Sudman, General Counsel, or his designee will respond in writing, and, where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, with a final resolution of the complaint. All written complaints received by Sabrina Henry and/or Alethea Cicero-Brown or her designee, appeals to Ira Sudman, General Counsel, or his designee, and responses from these two offices will be retained by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning for at least three years.