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G2S Project Code: 2020-VT-85310
State: Vermont
Fiscal Year: 2020
Grantee
Vermont Department of Libraries

Project Director
Director Name: Karen Gravlin
Director Phone: 802-272-4912
Director Email: karen.gravlin@vermont.gov
General Information
Title: Library Services to the Visually and Physically Impaired and to State Institutions
State Project Code: VT-2020.08
Start Date: 10/01/2019
End Date: 09/30/2021
Abstract: The Vermont Department of Libraries provides statewide services to patrons who are unable to access traditional print resources or traditional programming through the ABLE Library (Library for the Blind & Print Disabled). Services include home delivery of talking book machines, large-print and digital titles to individual patrons, large print deposit collections that circulate to public libraries and other institutions across the state, acquisition/support of library resources for in-state residential institutions(including correctional facilities and mental health facilities),and programming opportunities like our virtual book club for the home bound and the monthly memory café (hosted collaboratively) for patrons with Alzheimer’s/dementia. ABLE also manages a robust local recording program wherein volunteers are trained to narrate and edit monographs with Vermont themes and/or settings.

State Goal: Access to Resources
Budget Information
LSTA
MATCH-State
MATCH-Other
Total
$117,504.53
$46,362.26
$0.00
$163,866.79
Intent(s)
Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
Other
Activities
Activity Details
Title: ABLE Library (Formerly the Library for the Blind & Physically Handicapped)
Narrative: The ABLE Library is affiliated with the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) as an effective regional branch. ABLE’s collection includes the full catalog of NLS digital books, equipment for playing digital books, multi-genre large print books for all age groups, audio-described media for all age groups, books and periodicals in Braille for all age groups, and a locally produced recording program. 

Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Content
Mode: Lending
Format: Combined physical & digital


Quantity
Total number of items circulated: 90,953
Average number of items circulated / month: 7,579
Total number of ILL transactions: 55
Average number of ILL transactions / month: 5


Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No


Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: Yes
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No


Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Suburban
Rural
For what age groups: All Ages
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: No
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: Yes
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: Yes
Is the activity category not already captured: No


Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 157
Academic Libraries: 0
SLAA: 0
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 0
School Libraries: 2
Other: 62
Activity Details
Title: Large Print Books
Narrative:

ABLE maintains and develops a collection of large print (LP)materials for all ages. As with our digital titles, we provide home delivery for patrons. The general statewide community is given access to our LP collection through two primary mechanisms: our deposit collection program supporting public library services and other allied agencies, or through direct interlibrary loan request.




Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Content
Mode: Lending
Format: Physical


Quantity
Total number of items circulated: 8,199
Average number of items circulated / month: 683
Total number of ILL transactions: 178
Average number of ILL transactions / month: 15


Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No


Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No


Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Rural
For what age groups: All Ages
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: No
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: Yes
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: Yes
Is the activity category not already captured: No


Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 157
Academic Libraries: 0
SLAA: 0
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 0
School Libraries: 2
Other: 62
Activity Details
Title: Local Recording Program
Narrative:

ABLE manages a recording program for monographs by Vermont authors and/or of Vermont interest for our patrons. Our talking book program currently has one active volunteer who can record from home. Staff manages all aspects of the program - including the selection and preparation of titles for recording, as well as recruitment/training volunteer teams to record, monitor and edit. Staff are in the process of working with NLS to re-certify as eligible to master our own recordings before being made available to eligible readers nationwide. It is important to mention that this program slowed considerably once COVID-19 forced us to close our recording studio. We were still able to work with a more technically savvy volunteer reader who recorded remotely.   







Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Content
Mode: Creation
Format: Digital


Quantity
Number of items digitized: 1
Number of items digitized and available to the public: 45
Number of physical items: 0
Number of open-source applications/software/systems: 0
Number of proprietary applications/software/systems: 0
Number of learning resources (e.g. toolkits, guides): 0
Number of plans/frameworks: 0


Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No


Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No


Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Rural
For what age groups: All Ages
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: No
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: Yes
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: Yes
Is the activity category not already captured: No


Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 0
Academic Libraries: 0
SLAA: 0
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 0
School Libraries: 0
Other: 0
Project Outcomes
Project Outcomes
List any important outcomes or findings not previously reported:
The ABLE Library continued to experience another challenging year. In addition to continuing to operate under conditions necessitated by the pandemic, the Library Director/Consultant for Special Populations position remained vacant for the majority of the year, with the replacement starting in July 2021. Even with these challenges, the ABLE Library experienced record circulation numbers, while staff continued to provide access to our services for patrons and partner institutions throughout the state. In addition, staff continued our ABLE Library Book Club meetings, at 6 meetings throughout the year, and continued to cohost Memorable Times Café for residents with Alzheimer’s or dementia and their caregivers every month. Despite some unique challenges, ABLE staff completed their goal of transitioning fully to Duplication on Demand (DoD) and removing single-title cartridges from the collection. Patrons have greater access to titles, receiving more books than ever before and discontinuing wait times for popular titles. This modernization has reduced our reliance on Interlibrary Loan and has translated into a logistical and financial benefit as it reduces the burden on our local mail carriers and saves postage. With the reduction of ABLE’s physical collection, staff has been able to reallocate space for other uses within the department. Additionally, with less time spent processing incoming and outgoing mail, ABLE staff have increased their capacity and are now learning to master local recordings to NLS standards for nationwide distribution rather than sending local recordings to the Perkins Library, as we were doing previously. Here are quotes from patrons that highlight why ABLE is important: “I spoke to a consumer yesterday who does have a visual impairment, and she brought up the talking book program on her own because she’s been a user for many years now, and she let me share this quote with you that says talking books has been the best part about being legally blind. She loves the program so much. It’s opened up reading to her again, and she just really likes how she’s independently able to ask for books.” Receiving ABLE services during COVID: “I just want to also sing the praises of Wendy and Sara…and just the fact they never quit. […] A lot of blind people were at a loss…How do we shop for groceries? How do we…sustain ourselves? And they were there to basically feed our brains and keep us alive. And all I can say is thank you. And I love this library.”
Please briefly describe the importance of these outcomes and findings for future program planning:
This year has again reinforced the fact that our patrons rely on us as a lifeline. It also brings to the forefront the knowledge that there are many eligible users who are not yet registered with the ABLE Library, and therefore are not receiving what we know have been significant benefits to patrons. One of our goals in the upcoming year is to find new ways to reach potential patrons and ensure that stakeholders are aware of our services and can promote them to those who need them. This includes promotion and outreach to schools, higher education institutions, and youth librarians to bring our services to younger audiences. During the past year, we have not been able to attend as many outreach events as we would have before the pandemic. This has taught us that, for a lot of patrons and stakeholders, our website may be their first point of contact with our organization. With this in mind, we are continuing to pursue an update to our website to improve wayfinding and access to our services, as well as those of our partners. Lastly, we are positioned to resume our in-house recording of Vermont-based titles and continue our partnership with other state agencies and nonprofits whose clients benefit from them using our studio.
Explain one or two of the most significant lessons learned for others wanting to adopt any facets of this project:
During our transition to the Duplication on Demand process, we learned that open and regular communication with our patrons is vital to successful implementation of new processes. We ensured that there were multiple ways patrons could access instructions on how to play DoD cartridges (print, digital, and audio formats) and confirmed that staff were familiar and comfortable with the information so that they could assist patrons as needed. Following the success of the DoD implementation, we will continue to find ways to communicate with our patrons and make sure that they are up to date on ABLE Library news and any other information they need to know about the service. We plan to restart our newsletter as one of the ways in which we can build community with our patrons and guarantee they are hearing from us on a regular basis. Another lesson we continue to be reminded of is the importance of pivoting when presented with a situation beyond our control. As effects of the pandemic continue to influence library services across the country and here in Vermont, we have learned that we cannot wait for life to return to “normal.” Rather, we need to find new and creative ways to continue to provide the best service we can to our patrons, even in changing circumstances. With that in mind, we are pursuing a new project to purchase audio recording equipment that can be used at home so that our volunteers can record books from the safety of their homes, and we can continue our mission to provide our patrons with materials of local interest that they would otherwise lack access to. We plan to use this approach to take a fresh look at other services that we may not have provided in the past or suspended to determine if there are other areas where we can find creative solutions to benefit our patrons.
Do you anticipate continuing this project after the current reporting period ends:
Yes
Do you anticipate any change in level of effort in managing this project:
No
Explain:

Do you anticipate changing the types of activities and objectives addressed by the project:
No
Explain:

Was an evaluation conducted for this project:
No
Was a final written evaluation report produced:
No
Can the final written evaluation report be shared publicly on the IMLS website:
No
Was the evaluation conducted by project staff (either SLAA or local library) or by a third-party evaluator:
Third-Party
What data collection tools were used for any report outcomes and outputs:
Did you collect any media for the data:
What types of methods were used to analyze collected data:
Other:
How were participants (or items) selected:
What type of research design did you use to compare the value for any reported output or outcome:
Exemplary: Yes
Exemplary NarrativeThe ABLE Library staff have worked diligently to complete the transition to Duplication on Demand. With just a staff of two, they were able to continue providing services to patrons throughout the process, which included educating patrons and providing patron support around the change in service, as well as weeding the entire collection of physical cartridges. Being an early adopter of this service model, staff did not have many resources to turn to and instead created many of their own processes and worked with our ILS provider, Keystone, to ensure that it was a smooth transition for our patrons. As the library landscape in Vermont has changed due to the pandemic, the ABLE staff have adapted accordingly. Staff worked closely with libraries as they closed and reopened to suspend large print deposit collections and then slowly begin sending them out again as libraries began welcoming patrons back into their buildings. They also led an informational webinar for librarians to explain the service and reached out to new library directors to provide information. This gave our public librarians another tool to assist patrons by providing them with an alternate way to serve eligible patrons who couldn’t come into the building. Staff also solicited feedback from the public libraries using the large print deposit collection program to ensure that the ABLE Library was meeting the needs of public libraries and their patrons.
Project Tags: Library for the Blind & Print Disabled; Talking Books; Large Print Books