Inclusivity on a Budget

June 30, 2024

“I had no experience but a lot of enthusiasm,” she told attendees of “Library for All: Programming Ideas for Adults with Disabilities on a $0 Budget,” a June 29 program at the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Diego. Thanks to her efforts, MPL has hosted 150 programs for adults … Continue reading Inclusivity on a Budget


Headshot of column author Amy Holland

Beyond ADA Compliance

March 1, 2024

In 2020, staff members at Irondequoit Public Library (IPL) in Rochester, New York, began rethinking our approach to accessibility and inclusion. With reduced hours and services during the COVID- 19 pandemic, we had an opportunity to reenvision how we wanted to welcome patrons back. ADA guidelines provide for a minimum standard of service, but we … Continue reading Beyond ADA Compliance


Comedian, actor, and disability advocate Maysoon Zayid speaks at the American Library Association's 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 24.

The Power of One

June 24, 2023

“I am Palestinian, I’m Muslim, I’m a woman of color, I am divorced, I am disabled, and I live in New Jersey,” she said. “But I don’t want anyone in this room to feel bad for me, because I got 99 problems and palsy is just one.” Zayid appeared at the American Library Association’s 2023 … Continue reading The Power of One


Mayra Castrejón-Hernandez performs at Milwaukee Public Library’s first Deaf StorySlam event in September 2019. Photo: Pat A. Robinson Photos/Milwaukee Public Library

Signing Stories

November 2, 2020

In September 2019, Milwaukee Public Library (MPL) hosted its first Deaf StorySlam, a storytelling event intended to highlight Deaf voices of color and their lived experiences and bring together the city’s Deaf and hearing communities. Out of 112 applications, the project was selected to receive the inaugural Libraries Transform Communities Engagement Grant, a $2,000 prize … Continue reading Signing Stories




Screen reader software synthesizes web content into speech for people with visual impairments.

Library Websites for All

June 1, 2017

Providing this support in user-centered and responsive ways fulfills the librarian’s obligation to offer service to all users. However, paying attention to accessibility for visually impaired patrons is not just the right thing to do. It may also protect your library from legal trouble. Legal precedents for access In 2012 the National Federation of the … Continue reading Library Websites for All


Creating Inclusive Library Environments: A Planning Guide for Serving Patrons with Disabilities by Michelle Kowalsky and John Woodruff (ALA Editions, 2017).

A Conversation with Authors Michelle Kowalsky and John Woodruff

April 6, 2017

Kowalsky is a librarian and professor at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, where she teaches and supervises undergraduate learners and graduate students in their research endeavors. Woodruff is director of the Academic Success Center and Disability Resources at Rowan University. He coordinates campus services for students with disabilities and manages transitions for students entering … Continue reading A Conversation with Authors Michelle Kowalsky and John Woodruff


Creating Inclusive Library Environments

March 1, 2017

Providing information regularly to employees will help create a responsive organizational culture and a reiterative process that helps veteran staffers onboard new staff members with accurate information. Details about serving people with disabilities should become an ongoing part of this training. Disability awareness training Professional organizations are an excellent place to start for staff training … Continue reading Creating Inclusive Library Environments


A Bedford, Indiana, student reads on pajama day at school to Bridget, a therapy dog owned by Mary Hall of Bedford Public Library. Photo: Mary Hall/Bedford (Ind.) Public Library

Library Waggin’ Train

March 1, 2017

Thankfully, Hall, assistant director of the Bedford (Ind.) Public Library, had an ally she knew could come to the rescue: Bridget, a beautiful Golden Retriever therapy dog waiting in her office. “When she told him [about the dog], he stopped crying immediately and got up from the floor where he had been lying face down,” … Continue reading Library Waggin’ Train


In Practice by Meredith Farkas

Accessibility Matters

September 1, 2016

I’d been aware of screen readers, which read what is on a computer screen to a visually impaired user, but this was the first time I’d actually seen one in action. While the platform we were testing was deemed accessible because it was compatible with screen readers and its videos contained closed captions, multiple design … Continue reading Accessibility Matters


Library of Congress Reading Room for the Blind

The ADA and Inclusion in Libraries

October 5, 2015

The history of libraries serving people with disabilities is long and distinguished. Libraries were often the first social or government institutions in many communities across the nation to recognize the humanity of people with disabilities and provide services to promote their rights and equality. Long a symbol of inclusion, diversity, and opportunity, libraries were at … Continue reading The ADA and Inclusion in Libraries