FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 17, 2026

WCAG 2.1 Level AA-aligned document access now helps Putnam County families find school information faster, on any device, and in the language they understand best.

Cookeville, TN — June 17, 2026 — Putnam County School System today announced that it has made its public documents more accessible to students, parents, staff, and community members through DocAccess by CivicPlus. The district’s launch includes 223 documents totaling 2,775 pages, with archived and legacy content included, so families can more easily review school board agendas, minutes, budgets, strategic plans, and other important information.

With growing awareness of digital accessibility and as more residents expect to interact with their schools online, Putnam County School System chose to act now rather than wait. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act has already required equal access to public information from state and local governments for decades, and the district said this step reflects a clear commitment to residents who need information in different formats — including people using screen readers, families reading on a phone, and caregivers helping an aging parent find answers quickly.

Using DocAccess, the district’s documents are now published in WCAG 2.1 Level AA-aligned HTML that supports full keyboard navigation and compatibility with assistive technologies such as screen readers. Families can use an interactive document outline to jump to the sections they need, ask plain-language questions through the “Ask a Question” feature, and search content with AI-powered tools that make long documents easier to understand. Documents can also be translated into 250+ languages, including the ability to ask questions about documents in any language, and they are mobile-friendly even when the original file was older, handwritten, or scanned.

“We wanted this to be about real people, not just files,” said Johnny Sloan, Administrator for Putnam County School System. “If a parent is trying to read a meeting agenda on their phone after work, or if someone uses a screen reader, they shouldn’t have to fight through a PDF to get the information they need. This felt like the right thing to do for our community.”

The district also emphasized that accessibility is paired with human support. DocAccess includes 24/7 live visual interpretation through Aira.io at no cost to the public, and both internal human-in-the-loop review and external accessibility experts provide support in English and Spanish. Complimentary assistance is available to any member of the public who needs help navigating documents, filling out forms, or understanding content — because even with fully remediated files, the district said, it is impossible to predict every question or need that may arise.

New analytics tools will also help Putnam County School System see which documents draw the most interest, which questions are asked most often, and which languages are used, giving staff a stronger basis for data-informed transparency. Privacy protections are built in: no AI model training is permitted on the district’s content, and only aggregated, de-identified usage data is collected.

About Putnam County School System
Putnam County School System serves families across Putnam County, Tennessee, with a commitment to student success, transparent communication, and community trust. The district is focused on making information more accessible and useful for every resident it serves.

About DocAccess
DocAccess, a CivicPlus solution, transforms PDF documents into WCAG-aligned, searchable, and translatable formats, helping public-sector organizations meet ADA compliance requirements while improving transparency and access for all residents. Learn more at docaccess.com.

About CivicPlus
Thousands of high-performing civic leaders rely on CivicPlus® as their trusted partner for impact-led government. With CivicPlus, leaders can finally overcome the perpetual tradeoff between the demand for better services and the realities of operational resources, leveraging the unique Civic Impact Platform to deliver both unmatched end-to-end automated efficiency and truly unified, delightful resident experiences. Backed by over 25 years of experience and leveraging the insights of more than 950 team members, our solutions are chosen by over 13,000 organizations and are used daily by over 340 million people in the U.S. and Canada. For more information, please visit civicplus.com.

“At CivicPlus, we believe access to information is essential to building trust with residents. By implementing DocAccess, Putnam County School System is taking a meaningful step toward helping residents easily access and understand important documents. This partnership reflects a shared commitment to accessibility, transparency, and more equitable digital experiences in local government.”