Introduction
Rhode Island College Information Technology Services/User Support Services has standardized on technology guidelines and services for college sponsored and/or organized events that require any of the following:
- ADA accommodations in relation to CART (Communication Access Real-time Translation)
- Embedded captions to services such as Zoom Workplace and Microsoft Teams
- Open captioning for live events held at Rhode Island College
- Events Live streamed onto RIC's Vimeo
This document provides information on the following topics:
User Support Services will collaborate with departments, offices, and organizations when captioning and CART support is requested using the guidelines provided in this document. Support for other technology and services related to captioning and CART is available outside the scope of this document, support from ITS/USS may be limited or not available.
ITS/User Support Services acts as the implementer and integrator for Rhode Island College technology resources when accommodating CART and captioning requests. Event organizers are responsible for identifying when CART and captioning requirements are needed, and requesting these services from the college. If you are an event organizer and would like additional information on providing accommodation to your event participants, the following additional resources are available:
Disability Services Center (RIC Student Focused Events)
https://www.ric.edu/department-directory/office-president/office-diversity-equity-inclusion/disability-services-center
College Events and Engagement
https://www.ric.edu/department-directory/division-college-advancement/college-events-and-conference-services
Event organizers are responsible for the financial resources, procurement, and payment for captioning and CART services from vendors.
ITS/USS team has standardized on working with Caption Consulting for captioning and CART related services. As of 2024, they are on State of RI MPA 358 for state purchasing. Free testing is available for customers for CART/captioning testing before an event. In our experience, testing is extremely helpful in understanding the technical requirements needed for high-profile events. Caption Consulting contact information:
Caption Consulting, Inc.
https://www.captionconsulting.com/contact
If a different captioning vendor is selected, they must meet the following requirements to qualify for support from the ITS/USS team:
- Zoom Workplace video conferencing remote audio feed transmission from the room.
- StreamText caption delivery system.
StreamText is the software that has been standardized and implemented by the USS team for CART and captioning for live events. This software platform simultaneously drives a live CART web page, delivers captions to third-party platforms, and enables open captioning. Multi-language caption translation is also available. Standardizing on the StreamText platform enables the ITS/USS team to build out a reliable, well-tested integrated technology solution based on technology resources currently available to the college.
Additional information regarding multi-language translation:
https://support.streamtext.net/hc/en-us/articles/212999443-Using-Language-Translation-with-StreamText-Net
To deliver audio to the remote captioner, a microphone/audio feed of the room is required. This audio feed is selected in the Zoom Workplace meeting with the captioner. Please note that only audio is needed, not video.
In many larger meeting locations, microphones are already built into the audio-visual setup of the room, so it would not be any different to the end user who already wants their voice to be amplified in the room. The only requirement is that anyone in the room that wants to talk will need to use a microphone to be heard by the captioner.
As of September 2024, the following Rhode Island College locations have built-in CART/Captioning capabilities without the setup of additional equipment. This list will be continually updated as classroom and meeting space technology upgrades are completed.
Alger Hall
105
106
110 (Multi-Purpose Space)
202
Alex and Ani Hall
138
140
Clark Science Building
(Closed for Renovations)
Craig-Lee Hall
012
018
108
111
208
211
218
Donovan Dining Center
N/A
Fogarty Life Science Building
050 (Auditorium)
108
209
Gaige Hall
100
102
201
202
301
303
Guardo Hall
N/A
Horace Mann Hall
N/A
Murray Center
N/A
Nazarian Center
N/A
Roberts Hall
N/A
Student Union
N/A
Whipple Hall
N/A
USS also has the capability to setup up to two additional spaces with portable equipment to temporarily make a classroom, meeting space, or auditorium capable of connecting with remote CART/caption services as described below.
ADA Accommodations for CART
Leveraging CART with the StreamText mobile web page allows customers to customize the viewing window’s font size, font color, and background color from their own personal device. To easily access the mobile web pages from an audience perspective, a QR code is created that can be scanned and posted throughout the event. Below are the demo desktop and mobile web pages for CART.
StreamText Demo Link:
https://streamtext.net/player/?event=ihaveadream
Embedded Captions in Zoom Workplace Support Documents
https://support.zoom.com/hc/en/article?id=zm_kb&sysparm_article=KB0060368
https://support.streamtext.net/hc/en-us/articles/115003258163-11-20-23-Updated-Zoom-caption-support-in-StreamText-net
Embedded Captions in Microsoft Teams Support Documents
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/use-cart-captions-in-a-microsoft-teams-meeting-human-generated-captions-2dd889e8-32a8-4582-98b8-6c96cf14eb47
https://support.streamtext.net/hc/en-us/articles/4409391780749-How-to-use-StreamText-with-Microsoft-Teams
Open Captioning for Live Events:
For open captioning in auditorium spaces on campus, where the captions are displayed over the in-room projector, StreamText is also used. This vendor has a software called StreamCast which offers a software download version. Once installed on the room’s Windows PC or Apple Macintosh computer, the captions will appear as an overlay on the monitor and projector and can be customized just like the web page.
For each event, the event name at the end of the QR code/CART web page link is added to the software on the computer installed in the room. Further reading for StreamCast can be found at the following link:
https://support.streamtext.net/hc/en-us/articles/209995746-StreamCast-instructions-and-overview
Additionally, customers can still access the CART web page simultaneously from their personal device via the provided QR code. Caption Consulting would still provide the method of remote captioning. Demos are available to review this process before an event.
Open Captioning for Large/Public Events:
For larger events attended by the public, we can offer open captioning in live time viewable on screen where we, on rare occasions, capture, and project the speakers onto a large projection screen. These occasions include (for example) Commencement, Admissions Open House, and Admissions Accepted Students Day which are hosted in large venues like the Murray Center or Recreation Center. In return, the audience could view the speaker while sitting far away from the stage or podium. An ASL (American Sign Language) interpreter is typically also PnP (Picture and Picture) on the projection screen in the room. (Please note this service is only offered on an extremely limited basis). A smaller and easier caption integration for projection screen overlay is the previously listed option using StreamCast on the computer in the room.
Depending on the captioning option chosen, the overall captioning workflow process will only slightly differ at step 4.
- Event organizers and the ITS Help Center coordinate to select the option that best fits the needs of the captioning/CART request.
- If Open Captioning is decided on: Event organizers will work with the ITS/USS to arrange a demonstration.
- CART and captioning requirements are documented for locations needed in applicable RICRooms/EMS reservations.
- Event organizers consult with Caption Consulting Inc. to secure and pay for a captioner at the needed date and time. Please note that the ITS Help Center requires a minimum of 1 hour before the event start time to work with the captioner in the event space, so the captioner would need to be hired for an extra hour.
- Optional: Event organizers work with Caption Consulting and the ITS/USS staff to arrange a captioning test.
- With a captioner secured by the event organizer, the ITS/USS will:
- If ADA Accommodations is decided on:
- Plan the physical setup needed to get the audio feed, and assist with providing the StreamText web page QR code/link to the event organizer.
- If Embedded Captions is decided on:
- Work with the event organizer to make sure their meeting has the correct captioning settings and that the captioner has the meeting’s caption link.
- If Open Captions is decided on:
- Work with event organizer to create the Zoom Workplace meeting link for the captioner.
- Plan the physical setup needed to get the audio feed, provide the StreamText web page QR code/link to the event organizer, and help get StreamCast installed and running.
- With a captioner secured by the event organizer, the event organizer will:
- Provide all prep materials to the captioner before the event. These include speeches, videos, audio files, vocabulary unique to the event (e.g., scientific terminology), and the full names of participants in the event.
- Provide the captioner’s contact information to the ITS/USS.
- Create the Zoom Workplace meeting for the captioner to get remote audio from and provide the meeting link to the captioner and the ITS/USS. ITS/USS can provide recommended meeting settings if needed, but having the event organizer provide their own scheduled meetings is preferred.
- Event organizer will ensure microphones are used by anyone speaking during the event so that the captioner can hear. For events including Q/A, this may mean setting up an area where audience members ask their questions or someone to hand audience members a microphone.
RI MPA 358
MPA 358 is an Open Enrollment. This MPA can be used for emergency response events. Provide American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting, Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), and Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) services to work with the Rhode Island State governmental agencies, departments, political subdivisions (Cities, Towns, Schools, Quasi-Public Agencies), as authorized by law.
Link to MPA Description (search for "MPA 358")
https://ridop.ri.gov/ocean-state-procures-osp/contract-board
Archived/Streaming Video Captioning
This document covers guidelines regarding live CART and open captioning. For information on closed captioning for archived streaming video procedures at Rhode Island College, please see this document:
https://servicecenter.ric.edu/TDClient/1794/Portal/KB/ArticleDet?ID=140756