The document discusses hidden disabilities, which are physical or mental impairments that are not readily apparent. It notes an increase in students at the University of Redlands requiring accommodations like alternative texts. The library will apply universal design principles to make services more accessible to students with disabilities, such as by modifying a selected service to be more accessible for a group like students with visual impairments.

1. Hidden
Disabilities:
Awareness
Melissa I. Cardenas-Dow
Armacost Library, University of Redlands
March 12, 2013

2. What are we going to talk about?
• What are hidden disabilities?
• What do hidden disabilities have to do with
Armacost Library services?
• What do these mean for Armacost Library?

3. What are hidden disabilities?
Hidden disabilities are physical or mental
impairments that are not readily apparent to
others.... These hidden disabilities often
cannot be readily known without the
administration of appropriate diagnostic tests.
~ U.S. Dept. of Education, Office for Civil Rights (2005)
from a USDE-OCR pamphlet, 1995

4. What are hidden disabilities?
Can be physical or mental...
• physical
o visual
o auditory
o allergies
o chronic-medical
• mental/psychological
o emotional
o learning
o information/sensory processing
o cognitive

5. What do hidden disabilities have to
do with Armacost Library services?

6. What do hidden disabilities have to
do with Armacost Library services?

7. What do hidden disabilities have to
do with Armacost Library services?
CAS, URSB, SoE statistics of students with
disabilities accommodations:
• 2011-2012: 212 students
• 2012-2013: 223 students
"The most notable increase...involves students needing alternative or
audio texts. On average, the time needed to acquire these texts is
approximately 2-4 hours per student..."
~Draft Review of Disability Resources, Curriculum, and
Programming (Fall 2012), Ad-hoc Working Group on Disability
Resources and Services

8. What do these mean for Armacost Library?
(1) Universal Design (UD): The Principles

9. What do these mean for Armacost Library?
(2) Universal Design (UD): The Process
6 Steps:
1. Identify the service
2. Define the "universe"
3. Apply UD for overall service
4. Apply UD to subcomponents of service
5. Develop processes to address
unaccommodated needs
6. Test with diverse users

10. What do these mean for Armacost Library?
(3) Universal Design (UD): Apply the Process
1. Select 1 group of students:
a. students for whom English is a second language
b. students with visual impairments (low vision)
c. students with dyslexia
d. students with impaired hearing
e. students with medical conditions that require quick access to restroom
facilities
2. Select 1 library service:
a. use website to find books
b. use course reserves to borrow course materials
c. study a sound recording
d. view a movie for class
e. library space
3. Discuss, Brainstorm 1-3 possible solutions, and Report