Thanks for visiting my website. Feel free to look around; you might find the “Blog Categories” section of the right sidebar a good place to start.

As a companion to my ALLA/AACRL Best Practices Mini-Session, I’ve compiled Access to Electronic Resources for Patrons with Disabilities, a collection of resources for those who would like to learn more about library services and people with disabilities. The list is hardly exhaustive, but I hope it will provide interested persons with a good start. The links are also available via the Delicious social bookmarking service: mbfortson’s alla_access Bookmarks on Delicious.

Those seeking additional information on library services and people with disabilities may also be interested in this Crash Course in Library Access & People with Disabilities.

Feel free to contact me via the “contact” link or the comments below, and thanks for visiting.

Library Day in the Life is an event in which library workers share the details of their work via blogs, Twitter, Flickr and/or YouTube. Read other Library Day in the Life meLISsa blog posts or, for more information about the project, visit the Library Day in the Life wiki.

You may also be interested in my (and other Twitter users’) tweets tagged #libday4.

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Aside from my initial post and a couple of tweets, I didn’t contribute to Library Day in the Life as much as I had planned. Oops.

In order to avert a total #libday4 fail, I would like to share a final thought. In June 2009, I found and bookmarked Bell & Shank’s definition of the blended librarian, which has become a professional philosophy of sorts:

An academic librarian who combines the traditional skill set of librarianship with the information technologist’s hardware/software skills, and the instructional or educational designer’s ability to apply technology appropriately in the teaching-learning process.

What does being blended mean to me? It means that, regardless of the setting- library, information center, school, university, private, non-profit, and beyond- I think I will be satisfied and effective in my work if I am facilitating access to information, using emerging technologies, and supporting teaching and learning.

Library Day in the Life is an event in which library workers share the details of their work via blogs, Twitter, Flickr and/or YouTube. Read other Library Day in the Life meLISsa blog posts or, for more information about the project, visit the Library Day in the Life wiki.

You may also be interested in my (and other Twitter users’) tweets tagged #libday4.

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In the interest of full disclosure: I don’t work in a library.

Why, then, participate in an blog event designed for “any one who works in a library”? I’m contributing to this Library Day in the Life Round 4 because:

a. I liked participating in Round 3.
b. I enjoy the sense of professional community that comes with participating in online events like this one, the Louisville Free Public Library Blogathon, the Young Librarian Series, and the 1st Annual Holiday Online Secret Santa Extravaganza.
c. I’m a librarian*, damn it.

*Or, as my website tagline states, an information professional.

How can one be a librarian without working in a library? I think the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Outlook Handbook says it well:

More and more, librarians apply their information management and research skills to arenas outside of libraries—for example, database development, reference tool development, information systems, publishing, Internet coordination, marketing, Web content management and design, and training of database users.

Jobs for librarians outside traditional settings will grow the fastest over the decade. Nontraditional librarian jobs include working as information brokers and working for private corporations, nonprofit organizations, and consulting firms. Many companies are turning to librarians because of their research and organizational skills and their knowledge of computer databases and library automation systems. Librarians can review vast amounts of information and analyze, evaluate, and organize it according to a company’s specific needs.

In my current role as an Academic Coordinator for the online division of a private, for-profit career college, I oversee virtual classroom operations. This isn’t a role I anticipated when I decided to pursue a career in librarianship, but my MLIS coursework led me to work with learning management systems and instructional design. This, combined with my education and professional experience, enables me to analyze, evaluate, and organize information to meet the needs of the institution’s faculty, staff, and students. To me, this facilitation of access to information is the essence of library work.

I’m looking forward to hearing about your Library Day(s) in the Life, both in and outside library walls.

“…My object in living is to unite
My avocation and my vocation…”
Frost, Two Tramps in Mud Time

Mission accomplished.

As a companion to my Young Librarian Series contribution, I compiled this set of links for those who would like to learn more about library services and people with disabilities.  This short list is hardly exhaustive, but I hope it will provide interested persons with a good start.  The links are also available via the Delicious social bookmarking service: mbfortson’s yl_crash Bookmarks on Delicious.

A Young Librarian’s Crash Course in Library Access & People with Disabilities

Association of Specialized & Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA)
From the site: “The Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA) enhances the effectiveness of library service by providing networking, enrichment and educational opportunities for its diverse members, who represent state library agencies, libraries serving special populations, multitype library organizations and independent librarians.” Recommended reading: ASCLA’s Issues, Libraries Serving Special Populations Section, and Publications pages; the Library Accessibility: What You Need to Know and Think Accessible toolkits; the ASCLA Wiki.

Other resources from the American Library Association:

ALA Connect
ALA’s online professional network offers several disability-related Member Communities, including ACRL’s Universal Accessibility Interest Group and communities associated with ASCLA’s Libraries Serving Special Populations Section.

Library Services for People with Disabilities Policy
From the policy: “Libraries should use strategies based upon the principles of universal design to ensure that library policy, resources and services meet the needs of all people.”

Schneider Family Book Award
From the site: “The Schneider Family Book Awards honor an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.” Recommended reading: listing of past winners and the Select Bibliography of Children’s Books about the Disability Experience.

Services to Persons with Disabilities: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights
Applies principles of the Library Bill of Rights to library services and people with disabilities.

Other sites:

AccessLibraries | DO-IT
DO-IT = “Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology.”

Awareness & Etiquette resources from Easter Seals, United Cerebral Palsy, and VSA arts.
From the UCP site: “The rules of etiquette and good manners for dealing with people with disabilities are generally the same as the rules for good etiquette in society. These guidelines address specific issues which frequently arise for people with disabilities in terms of those issues related to disability.” Recommended reading: UCP’s Interaction & Etiquette Tips and “suggestions on how to relate and communicate with and about people with disabilities”; Disability Etiquette, Myths and Facts About People With Disabilities, and Understanding Disability from Easter Seals.

Disability.gov, a federal web site whose mission is “to connect people with disabilities, their family members, veterans, caregivers, employers, service providers and others with the resources they need to ensure that people with disabilities can fully participate in the workplace and in their communities.” Recommended reading: the Assistive Devices & Equipment and Laws & Recommendations sections. Visitors can use the Information by State feature to locate information and resources close to home.

The Disability History Museum and Museum of disABILITY History both offer collections whose focus is the history of people with disabilities. The latter also offers resources for educators.

Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
From the site: “The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) works with organizations around the world to develop strategies, guidelines, and resources to help make the Web accessible to people with disabilities.” Recommended reading: the Introducing Accessibility section and its Introduction to Web Accessibilityand Introduction to How People with Disabilities Use the Web.

Looking for a particular kind of resource? Have a favorite site or publication to share? Please post a comment below.