Accessibility

NVO aims to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, level AA (opens in a new tab). That is a step above the WCAG 2.0 AA level that Ontario's Integrated Accessibility Standards set for public websites under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

NVO is run by one person with no employees, so the AODA's website requirement doesn't legally apply to it. It follows the standard anyway, because a lot of the people using it are students and every one of them should be able to find their hours here.

• A "Skip to main content" link at the top of every page.
• Text and buttons meet the WCAG AA contrast ratios. The site's orange was darkened in September 2026 so white text on it passes.
• Every page can be used with a keyboard alone, with a clear focus outline.
• Every form field has a label, and errors are linked to the field they belong to and read out by screen readers.
• Animations stop when your device is set to reduce motion, and the moving logo strip on the home page has a pause button.
• Images that carry meaning have text descriptions. Decorative ones are hidden from screen readers.
• The site works when zoomed to 200% and on small phone screens.
• Pages use proper headings, landmarks and page titles so they can be navigated by structure.

The site was checked in September 2026 with automated testing (axe-core) and by reading through the code against the WCAG checklist.

• The printable hour log and the school poster are PDFs without full accessibility tagging. The same information is on the Student Hub and For schools pages as regular web text.
• Listing descriptions and photos are written by the organizations posting them. We ask for clear, plain descriptions, but we can't guarantee every one.
• Google sign-in and the NVO Facebook group are run by Google and Meta, and their accessibility is outside our control. Organizations can always sign in with an emailed link instead.
• The site hasn't yet been tested by people using every screen reader and assistive tool. If something doesn't work with what you use, we want to hear about it.

If any part of the site doesn't work for you, or you need information in another format (plain text, large print, a phone call), email dax@paragonmediacanada.ca or use the contact page. Tell us the page and what went wrong. Dax reads every message himself, replies as soon as he can, and gets you the information another way while the fix is being made.

If you're a student with a volunteer application to send and the form isn't working for you, email the same address and we'll pass your application to the organization directly.