Accessible Web Site for the Deaf Community

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Toronto-based non-profit expands its services to the Deaf community with the help of Yfactor's multi-site management solution

Yfactor, a leading provider of multi-site content management solutions (CMS) for the non-profit sector, announced the June 4, 2008 launch of an accessible Web site for the Deaf Culture Center of Toronto.

Celebrating Deaf culture, creativity and expression, the Deaf Culture Center is a symbol for the Deaf community. The Toronto-based location is an exciting and informative gathering place for education, culture, and visual and performing arts.

To work towards achieving their goal of building a broader and stronger community, the organization had a vision for a Web site that would make a strong visual statement, meet stringent accessibility guidelines, and yet be easily maintained by staff or volunteers from within the Deaf community.

When visiting the new site, www.deafculturecentre.ca, community members can view all content in their native language - whether that is American Sign Language (ASL), English, langue des signes quebecoise (LSQ) or French. They can also share video stories through a v-log, view collections and complete transactions online.

The Deaf community can now easily find the newest information, see the latest classes and events, purchase items directly from the gift shop, make a donation, or become a member - all online. The new site serves as an accessible and welcoming virtual home, while being a powerful resource for the online Deaf community.

Yfactor worked closely with Joanne Cripps and Anita Small of the Deaf Culture Center to help bring their vision to life. The skills of the Deaf community were well utilized to create videos in ASL and LSQ and to populate the site with content. Joanne Cripps, Co-Director, states, "The goal is to have centralized online access to all systems to help cut down administrative overhead costs and make us more efficient. This system allows the flexibility for the four languages, which is what we are aiming for. Canada is a multilingual country. For us to be able to provide this to sign language users to access in their own language and to truly enjoy with ease is what supersedes everything." Anita Small, Co-Director, adds, "This site will provide access to illuminating Deaf heritage collections for all users - it's time!"

The Deaf Culture Center's Web site was designed to meet stringent accessibility standards set out by the Department of Canadian Heritage's Canadian Culture Online. To meet these standards, Deaf Culture Center utilized a Web-based multi-site CMS, a customized version of Yfactor's flagship iCMS Acclaim CMS that has nine integrated modules for Center administration. The modules are used for managing research documents, newsletters, press releases, and other literature; managing and receiving donations online; managing an online art gallery; and managing a video chat room. Modules for managing members online and the e-store will soon be added to the system. All modules are fully integrated into the system and provide flexible user access management and workflow approval processes.

"We're very pleased and proud to be able to develop this exciting project with the Deaf Culture Center," said Anya Codack, founder and CEO of Yfactor. "This tool will help the Deaf Culture Center become an even more integral resource for the Deaf community as they are now able to update their site in minutes, encourage the sharing of stories through the v-log and manage transactions online instantly instead of manually, all with a small number of volunteers and staff that can work effectively from any location."

Reference: Yfactor, a Toronto, Ontario-based provider specializing in Web sites with integrated content management systems for non-profits, municipalities and business, takes a collaborative approach with its clients to deliver "solutions that fit." Yfactor, founded in 1996, has delivered thousands of creative and innovative solutions to over 350 clients. Yfactor's solutions feature powerful Web 2.0 functionalities designed to provide a high degree of flexibility, ease of use, and cost control. The company's flagship CMS suites include iCMS Acclaim for multi-site implementations, and Power Site Factory for smaller organizations. For more information, please visit Yfactor on the Web at www.yfactor.com

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