1. Creating Accessible PDF Documents with MS Word and Acrobat Pro XI
Jayme Johnson • director of accessibility and user experience
CCC Online Education initiative •

2. Resources
Here are the sample files I will use as part of today’s demonstration:
Mock Syllabus.docx
Mock Syllabus PDF.pdf
Mock Syllabus NOT accessible PDF.pdf
Here is a step-by-step breakdown of the basic process I will demonstrate of taking a document from MS Word to Acrobat Pro and making it accessible:
Creating Accessible PDF Document Resources.docx
Downloaded these files at:

3. Overview Basic terms and required technology
Create an accessible document in MS Word
Save an accessible MS Word document as a PDF document
Use Acrobat Pro to enhance a PDF document for accessibility
Finding the PDF Tags
Accessibility Tools
Touch Up Reading Order Tool
Reading Order Panel
Accessibility Checker

4. Terms and Technology Acrobat, PDF, Adobe, Tags:
Acrobat is the name of a software application.
PDF stands for Portable Document Format, it is a type of digital document.
Adobe is a company, they make Acrobat and Acrobat Pro.
Mac OS users be warned: You must have Acrobat Pro in order to create an accessible PDF from a MS Word document on Mac OS. The Mac OS version of MS Office does not support exporting to accessible PDF.

5. Demonstration Time
Let’s go to MS Word and enhance a document for accessibility…

6. Going to Acrobat Pro
At this point, we’ve enhanced accessibility with our document by:
Adding heading styles
Providing descriptions for the images
Providing headers for table columns.
Now let’s open the PDF in Acrobat Pro and see what we created…

7. Summary
In order to create an accessible PDF document, it is best to start with an accessible document from another program, such as MS Word.
Adding heading styles, image descriptions, and table headers will greatly enhance the accessibility of any digital document.
Acrobat Pro features the tools necessary to create an accessible PDF document, even on the Mac OS.
A PDF document must be tagged in order to be 100% accessible.
Use the “Make Accessible” Action Wizard in Acrobat Pro XI.
Visit for step-by-step instructions and resources.

8. Thank You!
Contact me at: