News
January-March 1998, Vol. 29, No. 1

ISSN 1046-1663

National Library Service 
for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
The Library of Congress

Educational reading services to be topic of major NLS study

A benchmark study to define and explore the provision of
educational and professional reading services to individuals
with print disabilities is the latest initiative launched by
NLS to further improve its sixty-six-year history of
reaching out to eligible populations unable to read standard
print material. The study will consider services at the
elementary, secondary, college, and postgraduate levels.
     NLS has a long history of upgrading its library
services to the nation and periodically expanding the
populations served since the program was established by an
act of Congress in 1931 for blind adults. Congress extended
the program in 1952 to include children, in 1962 to provide
instructional music materials, and again in 1966 to include
individuals with other physical disabilities that prevent
the reading of standard print. 

The need
"What we have nationally in this area is a decentralized and
sometimes duplicative effort," says NLS director Frank Kurt
Cylke. "No one knows in a detailed, collective way
specifically what organizations exist and who is serving
whom with what. What is needed is the identification of the
number of organizations, the variety of materials provided,
and other details."
     "Clearly," he continues, "the American Printing House
for the Blind [APH] in Louisville, Kentucky, serves more
than 60,000 people with educational materials through a
federally subsidized program. Recording for the Blind and
Dyslexic [RFB&D] in Princeton, New Jersey, serves
approximately 38,000 to 40,000 students and professionals
with recorded reading matter. But there are many more people
requiring service, and many more groups providing programs
and materials." 
     "Indeed, there is a national need to have this study
performed, and I commend NLS for taking this leadership
role," says Tuck Tinsley, president and chief executive
officer of the APH. "The study will provide a focus for all
of the organizations involved to better understand the
national infrastructure in this field." 

Scope of the study
"The study will be contracted this spring and is expected to
take approximately one year to complete," says Michael M.
Moodie, NLS research and development officer. It will have
two primary goals:
 to obtain data on the type and volume of services
provided, sources of funding, and populations served for the
various agencies producing or distributing alternative
format educational materials; and
 to determine how the various parts of the present
decentralized national system function. 
     Resource organizations could include the U.S.
Department of Education, Office of Special Education
Programs; Association of Instructional Resource Centers for
the Visually Handicapped; National Association of State
Directors of Special Education; AHEAD (Association on Higher
Education and Disability); American Printing House for the
Blind; Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, and others. In
addition, the study will draw upon consumer organizations
historically associated with NLS, including, but not limited
to, the American Council of the Blind and the National
Federation of the Blind.

Potential benefits
"The study data will create a base to allow NLS to identify
its possible future role. Not only will NLS develop through
this study a national understanding of needs of this
specific population, but we will also help coordinate any
national initiatives," Moodie says.
     Moodie notes that "NLS, with its cooperative network of
140 libraries throughout the United States, has matured in
its sixty-six years of existence to a level of
sophistication where together we believe we can extend our -

national program to assist those serving educational needs
of the eligible population. 
     "In addition, the Library of Congress is currently
embarked on the development of a digital talking-book
technical standard through the National Information
Standards Organization. We will ensure that this standard
will meet future scholastic and academic needs identified in
the study," Moodie says.
     The NLS network functions as the largest and frequently
sole source of public library materials and services for the
population who cannot readily use the print materials of
local libraries. The NLS network annually circulates more
than 23 million books and magazines in braille and recorded
formats to a readership in excess of 776,000 eligible U.S.
adults and children. The great majority of the network of
cooperating libraries operate within state library systems
that are committed to serving the informational,
educational, and recreational needs of individual readers.
(photo caption: Children share special-format books.)


Biennial conference set for May 

Librarians serving blind and physically handicapped persons
throughout the country are scheduled to meet in Burlington,
Vermont, May 3 7, 1998. The nineteenth biennial conference
of librarians will be held in the Radisson Hotel Burlington
situated on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain overlooking
the Adirondack Mountains. 
     The theme, "Freedom and Unity," emphasizes, "the unique
nature of the cooperative network of libraries with all
parties fully committed and working together harmoniously,"
according to Michael Moodie, NLS research and development
officer, who is coordinating the conference.
     A full-day workshop on reader advisor issues will be
offered prior to the conference on Saturday, May 2. The
workshop will focus on practical skills, such as conducting
reference interviews, tapping available resources to suggest
alternative titles, processing interlibrary loans, and
effectively using in-house circulation systems. 
     The conference will begin on Sunday afternoon, May 3,
with presentations of recent developments at NLS and
meetings of the four regional conferences. The next few days
will feature network and NLS presentations on a variety of
topics, including NISO digital talking-book standards
development, braille-related outreach efforts, provision of
educational reading services to people with print
disabilities, and DAISY digital talking-book systems
progress.
     Each region will offer presentations on topics of
interest to librarians serving blind and physically
handicapped persons. The Northern Region will sponsor a
presentation titled "We're All on the Same Team," which will
focus on how staff and volunteers can more effectively work
together to reach the goals of the organization. Sessions
hosted by the Midlands Region will consist of discussions on
services to children and young adults at network libraries
and a description of a project offering downloadable
tutorials for major software packages. Southern Region
libraries will lead a session on program evaluation measures
in network libraries. The Western Region plans a panel on
health risks and cleaning issues related to handling books
and machines as well as a discussion of subject code
standardization. On Tuesday, May 5, participants will travel
by bus to Montreal, Canada, for a presentation hosted by the
Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) on VISUNET
Canada, a vision of the "virtual library" for the blind. On
Wednesday, May 6, NLS will sponsor the National Automation
Conference. The conference will conclude with reports from
the regional conferences, and adjournment is scheduled for
noon.
(About Burlington

Burlington, the largest city in Vermont, is situated along
the eastern shore of the 136-mile-long freshwater Lake
Champlain. Backed by the Green Mountains to the east and
facing the Adirondacks across the lake, the city boasts
magnificent scenic panoramas. With direct and connecting
flights from many major cities, Burlington is easy to reach
through its international airport, the third busiest in New
England.
     A port city and year-round resort, Burlington is also
an educational, medical, and industrial center. The city is
the home of the University of Vermont, Trinity College, and
Champlain College. 
     The Lake Champlain region was first settled by
Algonquin and Iroquois Indians who camped and hunted in the
area's woodlands. In 1609, Samuel de Champlain, a French
explorer who established the settlement of Quebec, glided
south onto the body of water that he later named after
himself. Burlington was chartered in 1763 after Ira Allen,
brother of Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen, mapped out
the tract of land purchased from Edward Burling, for whom
Burlington is named.
     The Radisson Hotel, where the conference will take
place, is located in the heart of downtown Burlington
overlooking Lake Champlain. Built in 1976 and renovated in
1995, the hotel features 16,000 square feet of meeting and
banquet facilities. The hotel will accommodate conference
participants in its 255 guest rooms, and an onsite
restaurant and a cafe allow for dining from early in the
morning until late evening. 
     The surrounding downtown area features the Church
Street Marketplace, an open-air pedestrian area with
specialty shops, cafes, restaurants, and entertainment. The
adjacent Burlington Square Mall offers more than seventy
stores and services. Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, which was
founded in a renovated Burlington gas station, can be found
at several locations throughout the city.
     Nearby attractions include the Shelburne Museum, which
houses collections of American folk art; the Shelburne
Farms, an environmental education center; the Ethan Allen
Homestead; the Vermont Teddy Bear Company; and the Champlain
Mill.)
(photo caption: The Burlington boathouse. Photo by Carolyn
Bates.)


Mary C. Mohr becomes network consultant

A new network consultant, Mary C. Mohr, was appointed to the
Network Services Section effective December 22, 1997. Mohr
is responsible for coordinating activities with libraries in
the Southern and Midlands Regions of the NLS network. As a
former regional librarian in Oregon, she is well acquainted
with the personnel and operations at NLS.
     Mohr's duties will include consultant services through
visits and communication with libraries serving blind and
physically handicapped people. She will write reports,
collect statistics that will help identify service trends
throughout the network, and work collaboratively to improve
library services. In meeting these responsibilities, Mohr
will serve as a liaison at national and regional exhibits,
conferences, and meetings. 
     Mohr earned her master's degree in library science from
the University of Arizona in Tucson. She became a reference
librarian for the Flagstaff-Coconino County Public Library
System and coordinated the talking-book subregional library
for Coconino County, Arizona.
     In 1990 Mohr became the assistant administrator of the
Oregon State Library, Talking Book and Braille Services. In
1992 she became the regional library's operations
coordinator, responsible for maintaining, troubleshooting,
and updating the on-line automated circulation system. She
developed statistical and patron satisfaction survey reports
based on information she gathered and analyzed. She also
developed new recording procedures for the Oregon authors
collection, producing materials of local interest.
     Mohr became the acting administrator of the Talking
Book and Braille Services in 1994 and was named regional
librarian in July 1995. In addition to overseeing the daily
operations of the regional library, she wrote a collection
management plan to analyze long-term space needs and
alternatives. She also expanded her interaction with the
patron advisory council, which she had actively helped
develop.
(photo caption: Mary C. Mohr. Photo by Jim Higgins.)


Network libraries undergo renovation

Several regional network libraries have undertaken or
completed major building construction projects or
renovations in 1997. Florida, Southern Ohio, Western
Pennsylvania, and Washington are featured in this story, and
several other regional libraries will be mentioned in future
News issues as they renovate or move into new quarters.

Florida. The Florida Bureau of Braille and Talking Book
Services added nearly 20,000 square feet of floor space in
October 1997 with the construction of its new annex. The
addition houses a braille production unit, a machine repair
unit, and a large book-collection storage area, all with
ample space for future expansion.
     The 4,355-square-foot braille production unit includes
a large embossing room and private offices for the head of
materials production and a volunteer braille proofreader.
The machine-repair unit, also roughly 4,355 square feet,
houses a work area and offices for the head of circulation
services, computer wiring, machine storage, and cleaning and
battery charging. The 10,530-square-foot collection storage
area will have compact shelving installed in the future. The
Florida regional library is also enlarging its annex at the
Tomoka Correctional Institute.

Pennsylvania. Western Pennsylvania's Carnegie Library for
the Blind and Physically Handicapped is embarking on a major
construction project involving the renovation of its present
quarters in the Leonard C. Staisey Building on Baum
Boulevard in Pittsburgh. The city's well-known architect
Tasso Katselas provided the design for the renovated
building. Library staff and volunteers raised funds for the
construction in 1997. The project will be completed in two
phases--exterior renovations will be done first, and
interior renovations will follow further fund-raising
efforts. 
     Once completed, the building will sport new windows and
a climate-controlled environment. The first-floor Library
for the Blind will be reorganized to include a large public
browsing area, an expanded collection storage area, enlarged
office space, and new furniture. Separate workrooms will be
set aside for volunteer projects and for the regional
library's publication of Three Rivers News. Shipping
operations will be centered on the second and third floors
of the building. Public gifts and donations toward the
$3-million-plus renovation project are being recognized in
the Three Rivers News.

Southern Ohio. Southern Ohio's regional Library for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped celebrated its move into a
new 156,000-square-foot addition to the Public Library of
Cincinnati and Hamilton County in early 1997. The Library
for the Blind is on the first floor "in a highly visible,
barrier-free environment," reports regional librarian Donna
Foust. Its new location is closer to public transportation
lines and has easier access from the street than the former
quarters. The new rooms include an expanded browsing area
and large floor collection that allow patrons to choose
their own reading material easily.
     The most popular adaptive equipment in the library's
new home is a closed-circuit television that enlarges print
up to sixty-five times. Patrons use the system to peruse
library materials and to read other printed documents--even
their own personal mail--if they wish.
     Patrons also have access to an Internet terminal,
connected to a monitor that enlarges print up to 18-point
type size. A Perkins Brailler is available for patrons who
know braille, and a specially adapted keyboard translates
typewritten messages into braille. An Arkenstone reader
provides voice output for printed materials. Three private
listening booths are available for patrons to work with a
tutor or simply to use adaptive equipment in private.
Three-dimensional maps and globes are available, and other
technological advances are planned for the future.

Washington. A year-long renovation project has brought
numerous improvements to the Washington Talking Book and
Braille Library in Seattle. Staff and volunteers operated in
crowded temporary quarters during the year, but the effort
paid off with a 27,000-square-foot library space; a more -

accessible entryway for physically disabled patrons; new
heating and air conditioning systems; better lighting; more
efficiently designed floor space; an improved lobby with
space for staff, readers, and advisors to meet with
borrowers; an expanded browsing area; compact shelving;
computer innovations; and a new phone system. "The renovated
building definitely is more functional and inviting," says
Jan Ames, director of the Washington Talking Book and
Braille Library.

Others. The Wisconsin and New Jersey regional libraries also
completed renovations in 1997. Improvements in Louisiana's
State Library, due to be completed in 1998, will include the
Section for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, reports
section head Leola Walker. Utah regional librarian Gerald
Buttars says that Utah's Program for the Blind and
Physically Handicapped, along with the Utah State Library
building, will move to new quarters, probably in late 1998.
(Information and photographs for this article were provided
by Donald John Weber and Dorothy Minor (Florida), Richard L.
Helmes and Donna Foust (Ohio), Sue O. Murdock
(Pennsylvania), and Jan Ames (Washington).)
(photo caption: Florida Bureau of Braille and Talking Book
Library Services--Machine Repair Area. Photo courtesy of
Dorothy Minor.)
(photo caption: Tasso Katselas's design for new exterior for
Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Leonard C.
Staisey Building, Pittsburgh.)
(photo caption: The Arkenstone reader, which scans and
converts printed material to voice output, is one of several
adaptive devices available at the Cincinnati regional
library.)
(photo caption: Exterior of the newly renovated Washington
Talking Book & Braille Library in Seattle entices passersby
with a view into the children's room.)
(photo caption: Patrons confer with reader advisor Jerry
Hauge in the newly renovated lobby of the Washington Talking
Book & Braille Library.)


Florida's Lee County recognized for service

The Lee County Library System Special Services division,
North Fort Myers, Florida, was the 1997 winner of the
ASCLA/National Organization on Disability Award.
     Barbara Mates, chairperson of the ASCLA Awards
Committee, explained, "The award recognizes an `innovative
and well-organized project that has successfully developed
or expanded services for disabled persons.'" She commended
the organization that sponsors the Lee County Talking Books
Library, an NLS subregional library, for its leadership in
making library services accessible.
     Lee County's Assistive Technology Project, an integral
component of its program, is directly administered from the
subregional library. The project started in the 1980s when
the organization began purchasing assistive devices for
people with vision and hearing disabilities. Though most of
the devices are housed at the Talking Book Library, patrons
can request and pick them up at any branch library.
Equipment is loaned only for a short period. Patrons can
select from the more than 150 items in the system
publication Catalog of Assistive Devices for Seniors and
Persons with Disabilities.
     The Talking Book Library, in its tenth year, is also
one of eleven sites involved in the Florida Alliance for
Assistive Services and Technology (FAAST) project. Library
staff demonstrate devices, help patrons find vendors that
supply certain products, and refer patrons to appropriate
services for further assistance. 
     Other parts of the Lee County Library System effort to
make its services, materials, and facilities accessible are
 An ADA Advisory Group consisting of library staff and
people with "varying disabilities" and advisory groups for
each of its services, including the talking-books library.
 A Books-by-Mail program that serves patrons who cannot
visit a library because of limited mobility.
 A Senior Outreach program that provides large-print books
for residents of more than thirty residential and day-care
programs on a bimonthly basis and offers training workshops
on using library resources for activity directors.
(photo caption: Lee County Library System staff (seated,
left to right): Ann Clark, Assistive Technology; Kathy Mayo,
head, Special Services; Eileyn Sobeck and Karen
McLeish-Delgado, Talking Books Library; (standing) Dave
Wilkerson, Books-by-Mail; and Ann Bradley, Talking Books
Library.)


New brochure has all the answers

At the request of network conference chairs, NLS has
recently published a new brochure entitled "Frequently Asked
Questions." It contains answers to questions routinely asked
by patrons and potential subscribers to the services
available at NLS. These include questions about eligibility
requirements, range of services, and book selection and
recording. Questions often asked of NLS staff at exhibits
nationwide were gathered together and augmented with queries
that often come up at libraries. 
     Samples of the brochure have been sent to network
libraries, and bulk orders can be obtained from the
multistate centers. It is available with the NLS address or
with space for libraries to stamp their local address and
phone number. The text of the brochure is available over the
Internet and, upon request, on computer diskette.
     This brochure joins the series of ten brochures already
produced by NLS, two of them in Spanish. For further
information, please contact the NLS Reference Section.


Chicago goes all out to reach patrons

Reaching its patrons--present and future--was a major thrust
of the Illinois Regional Library for the Blind, Chicago,
this past summer.
     The library recruited a popular national narrator and a
couple of local mystery writers to help in its efforts to
meet current patrons and reach new ones and throughout -

Illinois. "We literally toured the state in the library's
van," reports Karen-Marie Allen, programs/outreach
coordinator. "Our venues included an area shopping mall,
several metropolitan and suburban libraries, and even a
library so rural and so small that it was closed during our
presentation."
     In June the library sponsored its "The Face behind the
Voice...Conversations with NLS Narrators" program, which
debuted in 1986 with talking-book narrator Bob Askey. This
year Madelyn Buzzard, a talking-book narrator from the
American Printing House for the Blind studio in Louisville,
Kentucky, traveled with library staff throughout Illinois
and greeted guests. Buzzard, who has recorded more than six
hundred books for the talking-book program, discussed her
narrating experiences during her fourteen-year career and
read from some of the books she has recorded for the
program. A ninety-six-page bibliography of her narrated work
was also provided to participants in large-print, braille,
or recorded format.
     The staff took to the road again in August hosting the
"Sleuths on the Loose" program featuring Chicago authors
Hugh Holton and Mark Zubro. Holton, writer of Presumed Dead,
The Windy City, and Violent Crimes, is a real-life
lieutenant with the Chicago police department. Zubro is an
English teacher whose work centers on the gay community. His
credits include A Simple Suburban Murder, An Echo of Death,
The Only Good Priest, and The Truth Can Get You Killed.
     Public libraries in Cherry Valley, Matton, Moline, Mt.
Vernon, Northbrook, and Peoria were among the many
facilities hosting the events.
(photo caption: Talking-book narrator Madelyn Buzzard signs
an autograph.)
(photo caption: Authors Hugh Holton and Mark Zubro with some
of their novels.)


Sue Murdock celebrates twenty-five years

Reflecting upon her silver anniversary as regional librarian
at the Carnegie Library for the Blind and Physically
Handicapped (CLBPH), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Sue Murdock
believes her greatest contribution has been improving the
quality of service to her patrons.
     She considers "providing an atmosphere in which people
can get the information they need and be treated with the
dignity and respect they deserve" as her greatest
achievement. 
     "The regional library is a microcosm of the public
library," says Murdock, who was appointed head of the CLBPH
in 1972 after having served the Carnegie Library of
Pittsburgh in a variety of clerical and professional
capacities since 1959. "The reason why I have stayed so long
is that working here has given me the opportunity to be -

involved with automation, acquiring a physical plant, and
working with management and people at both the state and
national levels." 
     Her first task as department head of the Library for
Blind and Physically Handicapped was reorganizing the staff
to better meet the reader advisory needs of patrons and
implementing a staff development plan. When the CLBPH became
the sole occupant of their building in 1975, she
restructured the logistics of the organization by moving the
public service staff from the second floor to the first
floor and expanded the stack area to fully utilize the
building.
     Her next task was one for which she gained national
acclaim--library automation. Working with Dr. James Williams
of Pitt's School of Library and Information Sciences in
1975, she and her staff established an automation system
that enhanced the library's ability to handle an increased
readership and circulation.
     In 1989, the Carnegie LBPH faced another crisis when it
was threatened with eviction. Enlisting the help of Judge
Leonard C. Staisey, whose name the building now bears,
Murdock led the agency's effort to purchase the building.
     Not satisfied by the successes of the past, Murdock is
already setting the goals for the future. She is looking
forward to working with the next generation of automation
and to directing internal and external renovation of the
CLBPH building.


Koldenhoven takes helm of Atlanta regional

Linda Koldenhoven, the new regional librarian in Atlanta,
Georgia, says her position is "the best job in the world."
     "Its benefits are two-fold," Koldenhoven says. "People
appreciate the service and the work I do, and I feel
empowered and supported by the agency [Georgia Division of
Public Library Services] to accomplish my goals for serving
the blind and physically disabled public."
     Koldenhoven came to the LBPH from Cheyenne, Wyoming,
where she had served as head of the Reference Department at
the Cheyenne Public Library. A graduate of the University of
Colorado, she received her master's of library science -

degree in 1988 from Indiana University, where she attended
on scholarship to study library service to people with
disabilities. In 1995, she co-authored "Academic Libraries
and Students with Developmental Disabilities," which is part
of the textbook Information Services for People with
Developmental Disabilities.
     Currently she serves on the National Information
Standards Organization digital talking-book standards
committee. She is chair of the Library Service to People
with Visual or Physical Disabilities Forum in the American
Library Association (ALA) as well as a member of ALA's
Americans with Disabilities Act Assembly. In 1994, she ran
for the Wyoming House of Representatives and "almost won."
     Koldenhoven served as acting regional librarian from
July 1996 until her official appointment to the position in
May 1997. An energetic and optimistic person, she has high
aspirations for the Atlanta regional library and for the
state network of cooperating libraries.
     She says, "We want to be a modern, efficient, and
effective facility, an advocate for our patrons, and a
visible force in the community." She hopes to achieve these
goals through outreach, reader support, and working closely
with NLS. She maintains an aggressive public awareness
schedule. She would like to have the Atlanta facility
renovated by 1999, when the library hosts the Southern
Conference.
     Though she credits her staff--most of whom are
relatively new--with most of the work, Koldenhoven has
already seen some impressive results. In 1995 the library
was circulating between 5,000 and 6,000 books per month.
Today it circulates between 12,000 and 15,000 books per
month.
     Koldenhoven has been working to strengthen the
relationship between the regional library and the thirteen
subregional libraries in Georgia. Together, she and the
subregional librarians have developed a state slogan,
"Talking Books Speak Volumes," and a logo that features a
drawing of a peach and a talking-book machine. 
(photo caption: Submitted by Savannah subregional library
(Ginna Kitko, artist).)
 

Network exchange

California (Los Angeles). The Braille Institute Library
Services held two events of particular interest to children
during 1997. 
     "Kids Connect at the Library" was the theme for
National Library Week in April, and children from three
classes at the Frances Blend School were bused in for a day
devoted to outer space. The event featured a storytelling
session that included The Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar
System, by Joanna Cole, followed by exploring Magic School
Bus and NLS sites on the Internet.
     On July 30 more than sixty children, along with parents
and teachers, came to the library to celebrate the success
of the revamped summer reading program "Book Stew." They
participated in "a stew of activities" ranging from
storytelling and a dance contest to food tasting and
decorating cookies.

New Mexico (Santa Fe). During October through December the
regional library participated in StoryLines Southwest, a
radio series about thirteen significant works of Southwest
literature. The series was sponsored by the National
Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library
Association and was coordinated in New Mexico by the
Albuquerque Public Library. The discussions featured authors
and scholars, and listeners could participate by calling an
800 number.
     The thirteen books to be discussed were listed in the
library's September newsletter, along with a bibliography of
other books about the Southwest. Regional libraries in
Arizona, Colorado, Texas, and Utah cooperated by providing
some of the recorded books. 
     At the end of the series, tapes of the radio programs
also became available for patrons.
(photo caption: Nuris Coronado, a student at Frances Blend,
touches the model of the planets in the solar system.)

Montana (Helena). The July/August issue of Big Sky
Libraries, the newsletter of the Montana State Library,
contained a "Spotlight" feature on Alberta Blanton, who has
been the machine-lending agent and a readers' advisor at the
Montana Talking Book Library since 1979. Besides covering
personal background, interests, and dedication, the article
highlighted Blanton's responsibility for maintaining an
inventory of the thousands of pieces of playback equipment
that are government property and must be accounted for.

Virginia (Fairfax County). "A Century of Southern Vision: A
Literary Lecture and Discussion Series," sponsored by the
Fairfax County Public Library's Center for the Book, began
exploring the legacy of Southern writing in September. The
series covers the development of Southern literature from
its roots through contemporary authors.
     Sessions of the five-part series, presented by
lecturers from area universities, were held monthly through
February at three different times and locations in the
county. Accommodations included real-time captioning,
assistive listening systems, and series titles in large
print and recorded formats. Video- and audiotapes of the
two-hour lectures began to become available to individuals
and groups in January.

New York (Suffolk County). Subregional librarian Julie
Klauber and her husband, Avery, received the 1997
Achievement Award for Media Representative of the Year from
the New York State Developmental Disabilities Planning
Council (DDPC). The Klaubers received the award on behalf of
Disability Resources, Inc., a nonprofit organization that
they founded in 1993, for the publication Disability
Resources Monthly: The Newsletter That Monitors, Reviews,
and Reports on Resources for Independent Living.
     The newsletter, which reviews books, pamphlets,
audiovisual materials, and other resources, has a broad
national readership among disability-related organizations
and practitioners as well as public, academic, and special
libraries. The winner was selected from all New York
State-based media organizations.
     Julie Klauber, the managing editor, has also
contributed articles on disability-related issues to Library
Journal, School Library Journal, and other publications. For
more information, contact Disability Resources, Four Glatter
Lane, Centereach, NY 11720-1032; telephone (516) 585-0290.


International briefs

Netherlands. The Netherlands' TESTLAB (Testing Systems Using
Telematics for Library Access for Blind and Visually
Handicapped Readers) is establishing a twenty-four-month
series of trials of a system to provide online catalogs,
networks, databases, and documents in formats that can be
read by blind and visually handicapped readers. Adapted
workstations will be installed in eleven libraries in the
Netherlands, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Austria.
Different elements of the system, such as the movement of
alternative format materials from a national center to the
public library system and the linkage to a national catalog
providing information about access to alternative-format
documents, will be tested in each country. The trials are a
follow-up of an earlier test project, Expansion of European
Library Services for the Visually Disadvantaged (EXLIB).
Financial support is being provided by the European
Community Telematics for Libraries Program.
(For more information on TESTLAB, see Tucker, R. "Testing
Systems Using Telematics for Library Access for Blind and
Visually 
Handicapped Readers (TESTLAB)" (Abstract appears on "Dialog 
Alert" 9/15/97).)

Australia. The National Library of Australia's quarterly
newsletter, Link-up, has been replaced by an electronic
discussion list under the name Linkup-l. The new format is -

intended to facilitate networking among grassroots
organizations and to speed the dissemination of information
that is important to visually impaired and other disabled
library patrons. The National Library will commission
occasional articles to be posted on Linkup-l and plans to
develop an archive for some contributions on the National
Library's World Wide Web server. That Web site receives at
least 20,000 "hits" a day and serves as a clearinghouse for
information on disability, literacy, and cultural diversity
issues.

South Africa. "Reading Is for Everyone" is an important
slogan in the new post-apartheid South Africa. Thanks to
special outreach efforts in formerly deprived communities,
the nation's Library and Information Service for Blind and
Print-Handicapped Readers (Blindlib) has extended its "mini-

lib" audio service to reach ninety-two communities by the
end of 1997.
     During the 1996 97 year, minilib network welcomed the
Sinethemba Community Library in Khayelitsha, one of the
largest informal settlements outside Cape Town; the
Masekhane Public Library in Bellville; and the Butterworth
Public Library in the former Transkei. In addition, the
Alexan Community Library in Soweto enlarged its minilib
services with the help of a local organization, Thuthukani,
which operates under the auspices of the Society to Help the
Civilian Blind in Johannesburg.
     Blindlib also established a braille book exchange
system with the National Library for the Blind in Stockport,
England. Books are exchanged on a one-to-one basis between
the two countries in response to readers' requests. South
African authors Andr‚ P. Brink and J.M. Coetzee are popular
requests among braille readers in the United Kingdom. Many
South African braille readers have requested The Clergyman's
Daughter by George Orwell; Queen by Alex Haley; Acts of
Faith by Erich Segal, and numerous works by James Michener.
     South Africa has made its first purchases of braille
titles (in English) from China. Most of the new books cover
such topics as Chinese culture and traditional medical
practices, including acupuncture, that are of interest to
many South Africans.
     Blindlib reached high production levels during the
1996 97 year. Staff and volunteers produced 979 new audio
and braille titles, for a total of 5,115 new audio and
braille volumes, as well as 48,934 magazines in both
formats. Total circulation reached 240,017 volumes for 5,949
patrons, including 506 new readers during the year.
     Blindlib produced 252 new cassette players during the
year; at least 977 cassette players were repaired and
recycled; and a total of 1,955 braille books were preserved
to lengthen the shelf lives of these costly volumes.


Seized tape equipment aids talking-book program

More than $200,000 worth of state-of-the-art tape
duplicating equipment seized from music pirates was donated
at ceremonies on December 4, 1997, in Philadelphia to
libraries in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and
Trenton, New Jersey. A cooperative project involving five
federal agencies --the Library of Congress, the Internal
Revenue Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the
U.S. Postal Service, and the U.S. Attorney's Office--began
in 1995 when the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) briefed the U.S. Copyright Office (see News,
January March 1997).
     Mary Levering, now associate register for National
Copyright Programs, told RIAA officials she "knew a
community that could use this equipment" and was responsible
for initiating the national cooperative effort. Levering, a
former chief of the NLS Network Division, was honored at the
event, as was RIAA.
(photo caption: Chief postal inspector of the U.S. Postal
Service, Washington, D.C., Kenneth Hunter addresses more
than forty representatives of five federal agencies December
4, 1997, in Philadelphia. Speakers included, from left,
William C. Nugent, U.S. Attorney's Office, Philadelphia;
Hunter; Vicki Lange Collins, Philadelphia regional library;
Sue Murdock, Pittsburgh regional library; and Vianne Connor,
New Jersey regional library. Photo by Nate Clark.)
(photo caption: Wells B. Kormann, chief, NLS Materials
Development Division, presents Mary Levering, associate
register for National Copyright Programs, U.S. Copyright
Office, with a plaque from The Library of Congress
recognizing her efforts in initiating the federal
government/RIAA effort. Photo by Nate Clark.)


The Program
The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically
Handicapped of the Library of Congress publishes books and
magazines in braille and in recorded form on discs and
cassettes for readers who cannot hold, handle, or see well
enough to read conventional print because of a temporary or
permanent visual or physical handicap.
     Through a national network of state and local -

libraries, the materials are loaned free to eligible readers
in the United States and to U.S. citizens living abroad.
Materials are sent to readers and returned by postage-free
mail.

Books and Magazines
Readers may borrow all types of popular-interest books
including bestsellers, classics, mysteries, westerns,
poetry, history, biographies, religious literature,
children's books, and foreign-language materials. Readers
may also subscribe to more than seventy popular magazines in
braille and recorded formats.

Special Equipment
Special equipment needed to play the discs and cassettes,
which are recorded at slower than conventional speeds, is
loaned indefinitely to readers. An amplifier with headphone
is available for blind and physically handicapped readers
who are also certified as hearing impaired. Other devices
are provided to aid readers with mobility impairments in
using playback machines.

Eligibility
You are eligible for the Library of Congress program if:
 You are legally blind--your vision in the better eye is
20/200 or less with correcting glasses, or your widest
diameter of visual field is no greater than 20 degrees;
 You cannot see well enough or focus long enough to read
standard print, although you wear glasses to correct your
vision;
 You are unable to handle print books or turn pages
because of a physical handicap; or
 You are certified by a medical doctor as having a reading
disability, due to an organic dysfunction, which is of
sufficient severity to prevent reading in a normal manner.

How to Apply
You may request an application by writing NLS or calling
toll-free 1-800-424-9100, and your name will be referred to
your cooperating library.

News is published quarterly by:
National Library Service for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20542
All correspondence should be addressed to the attention of
Publications and Media Section.

Editor: Vicki Fitzpatrick 

Writers: Rita Byrnes, Jane Caulton, Carol Corrigan, Robert
Fistick, and George Thuronyi