A low-vision workstation for online catalog access: empowering persons with visual disabilities.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted in 1990, has had wide-ranging ramifications for public institutions, including libraries. The legislation requires that facilities, programs, and services be accessible to people with disabilities. Denison Memorial Library of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (UCHSC) has made a commitment to be proactive in serving patrons with special needs. Our first project was the creation of a low-vision workstation, which provides access to the library's online catalog and linkages to other libraries nationwide. This article describes the library's experience with this initiative and suggests how other health sciences libraries might approach similar projects. The use of computers has dramatically improved the ability of sight-impaired persons to communicate and to access information. The key tool is software that can magnify text or scan it and read it aloud. Many sight-impaired persons now have computer skills that allow them to use a wide range of applications software, join listservs, and navigate the Internet. A basic issue for these users is access to library collections. The widespread use of online catalogs can be either an obstacle or an opportunity for persons with visual disabilities. It is incumbent upon libraries to make it an opportunity. The UCHSC is separated physically from the three other campuses of the university. The UCHSC has no central services office to satisfy the needs of people with disabilities. The library, therefore, had an opportunity to play a leading role in providing these services. Campus funding was not available to carry out the project, so the library had to look elsewhere for support. This was necessary in spite of the fact that in November 1993, the University of Colorado Board of Regents passed a resolution asserting the university's commitment to serving the educational needs of persons with disabilities. The resolution stresses removal of physical and programmatic barriers along with the development of plans to ensure that academic needs of students are met, specifically through access to library materials and computer facilities. Yet, no funding mechanism was provided to implement this resolution, and it is unlikely that the library could have fulfilled this mandate without the help of outside funding. The library applied for and in June 1993 received Library Services and Construction Act (LCSA) funding of approximately $12,000 through the Colorado State Library. These funds normally are reserved for public library projects, so a strong case had to be made that Denison Memorial Library provides significant service to the public. Although unaffiliated persons do not have borrowing privileges, they make extensive use of library collections and information services on site. As a member of the Colorado Alliance Research Libraries (CARL), the library uses CARL's online catalog software. The project proposal committed the library to developing a product that could be replicated by the many libraries using CARL software across the United States, another strong argument for the use of LSCA funds.