Inclusive Ann Arbor
If your child, you, or someone else in your community has a disability, you’ve likely had the experience of going someplace that was not accommodating. It can be frustrating, saddening, or even impossible to navigate.
Fortunately, the Ann Arbor District Library doesn’t have to be one of those places.
It is vital that public libraries provide service to all of their residents. Up to 25% of American residents have a disability, making it imperative for libraries to have a variety of options for accessibility for different disabilities.
Here are some of the disability accommodations the AADL offers.
Parking and entering.
Most or all AADL locations include automatic doors, ramps, elevators (when applicable), and handrails. They also have accessible parking, tables, and restrooms.
RELATED: Wheelchair Accesible Trails in Washtenaw County
Contactless lobby pickup.
You can choose a day and the library will put your books and materials on a hold shelf. You’ll get a reminder (you get to choose phone, text, or email) and you get a grace day to pick them up. AADL will do contactless pickups seven days a week, 12-8pm (excepting holidays).
The Washtenaw Library for the Blind and Print Disabled.
This is a free service for people who are blind, have dyslexia, struggle to hold a book, or just can’t read standard type print.
To receive a talking book machine and materials mailed to you, click here.
Once you apply, you can access over 100,000 books and magazines from the Braille and Audio Reading Download service.
Low-Vision Aids.
Every library location has bar magnifiers, hand-held magnifiers, and LED lighted magnifiers to use there.
T Loop Hearing Aid Assist.
Every library also has a special room equipped with T Loop technology for people who have cochlear implants or telecoil-equipped hearing aids.
Rehan i-See HD CCTV Magnifiers.
If using a standard magnifier makes your eyes feel tired or your stomach get nauseous, there are CCTV Magnifers at Mallets Creek, Pittsfield, Westgate and Traverwood in the computer lab.
Elevator Tables for library computers.
An elevator table moves up or down via a connected remote control. These are available at Malletts Creek, Downtown, Pittsfield and Westgate.
Assistive Technology Lab.
The downtown library has an iPad Pro with accessibility apps, a black and white printer, a PC with JAWS, NVDA, and Kurzweil text-to-speech software, and a large screen Mac computer. These are all on adjustable elevator tables. AT assistance on this equipment is available by calling (734) 327-4224 or emailing [email protected].
Special kid events.
The AADL often offers sensory-friendly storytimes or games for young children. Check their calendar to see which ones are coming up.
Sign-Language interpretation and CART.
If you give your library advance notice for one of their programs, they can provide sign-language interpretation or communication access and realtime translation.
The Directory of Visually Impaired Services.
The directory, created for MI residents, lists almost 800 organizations, activities, and services for people with visual impairments.
