Partnering with Lions Clubs to Provide Accessible eReaders to Patrons

HISTORY OF LEGAL CHALLENGES FOR EREADER USE IN SCHOOLS & LIBRARIES

Legal Challenges of eReader Use 2009 universities were the first offenders, several pilot projects were being tested Amazon Kindle pilot at Arizona State Univ – The issue was about access to opportunity to use new technologies, NOT about access to the information which ASU assured would be provided to all – National Federation for the Blind files a lawsuit – U.S. Departments of Education and Justice co- author open letter to Colleges warning of violating federal accessibility laws

PUBLIC LIBRARIES … Didn’t get the memo! Public libraries start circulating ereaders in 2011 August 2011 Nat’l Fed of the Blind sends letters to two Libraries in Maryland to move beyond providing only Nooks which are not accessible Autumn 2011, NFB files lawsuit against Sacramento Public Library, settled August 30, 2012 May 2012 – lawsuit against Free Library of Philadelphia, settled Oct 2012 – FLP must purchase accessible eReaders to add to the collection of eReaders they already have & pledge that within 4 years to only purchase accessible ereading devices.

LIONS CLUB INVOLVEMENT & FUNDING

“Knights of the Blind” For 100 years, Lions have taken the title to heart – White canes – Guide dogs – CCTV’s – Audible Crosswalks All focus on establishing independence.

Lions Focus on Literacy International President focused on Literacy in (and now, beyond) For the Tri-Village Lions, that included both technology literacy and literacy for our target population (people who are blind) In our high tech society, independence for people who are blind means access to technology and… eBOOKS!

Think Globally, Act Locally First step – donation of iPads to our local libraries “If local libraries need information/technology, so will others!” Project underwritten at the District Level …and beyond!!! Ohio Lions Foundation holds possibilities for all of you!

Why Should You Care? If you loan out eReaders, you already know why you must care If you DON’T loan out eReaders, you still have a problem! Let us help with the solution! – Lions – Libraries – Blind Patrons

MANAGEMENT & CIRCULATION OF IPADS & EREADERS

What type of iPad?? iPad vs. iPad mini: – Original size is heavier and harder to hold for long periods of time – Smaller size of screen on minis is not really an issue as it will be used primarily for it’s audio accessibility AND the screen of the iPad mini is very clear and loses no resolution from the larger size. – The mini is more affordable!

What model?? Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi & Cellular? – There is a large price differential. If only using as an eReader, you will not need Cellular! However, this is an internal decision 16GB or larger? – Again, if only using as an eReader, 16GB is plenty big! You can load several hundred titles on a 16GB New or refurbished? Or discontinued models? – Some home electronics store and the Apple storewill sell refurbished models at reduced prices. – Perhaps buy a superseded model new & get a price discount!

How will your iPad be used? Only as an eReader? – We made the decision to only use as an ereader – Patrons may use the iPad for other uses but we will not provide tech support for those uses. – We use the iPads just as we use our Nooks so all of our circulation & collection development policies are the same for both types

To PreLoad or not to PreLoad Yes, we preloaded the Nooks & the iPads with titles we purchased from Barnes & Noble – Prevents patrons from setting up their own accounts (library or Barnes & Noble) on the devices – No patron will need to input credit card info or library card info to download books – That said, all devices will be checked upon return & cleaned of anything not loaded by our library

Purchasing Titles vs. Downloading Purchased all titles from B&N, even for the iPad. – For the initial 15 titles per device, we were able to purchase with a PO because we had concerns about putting our credit card on each device. Barnes & Noble will only allow you to purchase titles through an institutional account if you buy 10 or more Nooks – If we buy more titles in the future, we’ll link a VISA gift card to each Nook, not our credit card.

Circulation Each device is loaded with at least 15 titles. A few of the devices are genre specific and a few have a mix of fiction & non-fiction general titles All devices have 28 day lending periods and can be renewed twice if there is no patron on hold. Circulate only within our Library –not within our consortium.

Cost Recovery Patrons sign a form that states they agree to re-imburse us for the device and or device accessories they have damaged or lost List of prices is on the form.

Budgeting Used ‘equipment’ budget for the devices Materials budget for the titles

Plans to Add More? We will monitor usage every six months to determine if we need to update the titles on each device Will monitor the holds list to determine if we will buy more devices

WHAT’S SO GREAT ABOUT AN iPAD???

Why not Kindle/Nook? The problem is navigation, not just the ability to read All IOS devices include Voiceover app that allows the device to read aloud what others see Amazon and Barnes and Noble took the easy way out and made their books available from an iPad!

Why YOU need to know this If you are prepared to show others how to use THEIR personal eReaders with your eBooks, you must be prepared to show people who are blind They (presumably) know how to use Voiceover; now you need to know how it works with Overdrive!

Need help? It’s coming! This must TRULY be hands on learning While resources will be available online, there probably is “in person” help available to you, too! One more set of stakeholders – college and university assistive technology folks

Questions? Please feel free to contact us! – Jane Jarrow, – Rebecca Felkner,