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While striving to make academic libraries accessible repositories for students and faculty, the task remains one fraught with obstacles. “Everyone” tends to be a term that includes those individuals that fit an average or a norm and is less adaptive to those with disabilities. Physical disabilities are tackled first before hidden disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and print disabilities. The term “print disability” in higher education is defined as “barriers to accessing instructional material in nonspecialized formats” (AIM, n. d.).

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Individuals with hidden disabilities often feel inadequate when seeking out and understanding information. Encountering copious difficulties with information discovery, they perceive that they are inadequate to the task. This perception deflates their personal sense of confidence and independence when conducting research. Those with hidden disabilities are not always willing to make the condition known in part because they fear social repercussions for being labeled as different than non-disabled students.

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As academic librarians whose role is to assist and empower students in their pursuit of knowledge, it is important to recognize the needs of and strive to accommodate individuals with any and all disabilities, visible or invisible, from physical impairments to developmental differences, and to make all patrons feel welcome and successful in the academic library. Students engaged with library services are more likely to feel productive and successful. (Kuh and Gonyea, 2015). Through the methods to be discussed, students with disabilities can find academic libraries accessible for their educational purposes.

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Research

Exploring literature about how libraries approach disabilities, search terms were entered into various discovery systems including but not limited to Emporia State University Libraries, State Library of Kansas, Hawai′i State Public Library Systems, and Google Scholar depending upon the availability of related database and specific articles in each digital location. These discovery systems were selected based upon the author’s ability to access them using prearranged credentials.

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Search Terms & Results

Searching began with the terms “academic libraries” and “accessibility.” However, accessibility is a word with multiple definitions within the library profession, and so this search returned several results that had little to do with disabilities and more to do with equal access for patrons from different cultures, socioeconomic backgrounds, and age groups. While some of this information overlaps with striving to make accommodations for disabled patrons, the terms needed refinement to confine the outcome of meeting the topic.

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With a focus on academic libraries and how they provide for students with hidden disabilities, searches included the terms “disabilities,” “autism,” and “learning disorders” along with “libraries” to capture a range of sources. Results successfully highlighted studies and methods used to show the viability of accessibility concepts developed in the last few decades. Some articles focused on particular aspects of working with special needs populations, such as websites or physical services, or on disabilities such as low vision or autism. Relevancy was determined by inclusion of any type of hidden disability or mention of alternative-format materials for use by those with special needs.

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Limitations

Cited articles were limited to those freely available in online full text or PDF format without fee or cost using the author’s existing login credentials at multiple institutions or through open web services. Relevant articles not available for free may have provided more informative or up-to-date information on the topic of disability accommodations for those with print or functional disabilities but were rejected due to financial limitations. Despite these limitations, the articles selected represent a range of studies and theories covering the topic in academic and public libraries. Limitations of time for the assignment also affected the search parameters.

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Findings

International, federal, and state laws, such as the United States’ Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), cover public accommodation requirements to serve people with disabilities by defining what it means to be disabled and what adjustments are mandatory to make buildings and services inclusive for all community members. Certain state laws provide more stringent requirements (Lazar and Briggs, 2015). Updates to these laws and regulations help to improve the treatment of those with disabilities by ensuring that public institutions adapt to different needs and avoid discrimination of these populations.

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The American Library Association (ALA) adopted the Library Services for Disabilities Policy in 2001 (ALA, n.d.). Under a section named Libraries Serving Special Populations (LSSPS), several focused forums are directed to cultivate awareness of special needs populations and enhance the quality of library services for people with a wide range of special needs (ALA, n. d.). With so many guidelines for creating accessible services for the range of functional abilities, we see both successes and failures when it comes to addressing hidden disabilities within academic libraries.

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Holistic Accessibility

Compliance with ADA regulations focuses mainly on accessibility for physical disabilities instead of the divergent reality of functionality that exists for individuals with hidden disabilities (Pionke, 2017). Pionke conducted a study to interview individuals with a wide range of disabilities who use academic libraries in order to create what the author referred to as a “holistic view” of the true accessibility of a large academic library. Librarians are aware of but do not necessarily understand or have training regarding disabilities such as autism, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and PTSD; and Pionke points to several pieces of literature that relate to how libraries deal with disabled patrons of various types, both positively and negatively.

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Much of the available literature focuses on a single disability and intervention and does not look across a range of disabilities to make connections that can be used across multiple adaptations. Surveys are usually completed by librarians and not the students, providing a limited viewpoint on the subject. Spina supports this assessment that these studies are completed by librarians about interventions for library patrons with disabilities, and researchers do not directly interact with the target patrons (Spina, 2017) which limits the point-of-view to those working in academic libraries, not the ones using the libraries. The number of students with disabilities is increasing at institutions of higher education, but the training and modifications are not keeping up with the demand (Spina, 2017).

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Empowerment

Within a study specifically driven by interviews with “functionally diverse” patrons, Pionke (2017) revealed that these individuals typically perceive the academic library as a place where they do not feel welcome. For those with social and learning disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder, PTSD, and dyslexia, the perception of intimidation and trepidation widely felt by many non-disabled students at universities and colleges is amplified and causes a significant amount of discomfort. Already uncertain how to ask for what they want or need, students will freeze or flee, and their access to research and learning is greatly diminished (Pionke, 2017). While libraries may offer programs to assist patrons with hidden disabilities, it is important for librarians to remember that many of these students do not want to lose the perception of “invisibility” they have within the community (Pionke, 2017). Services and assistance should provide a sense of empowerment to this special population without interfering with any previously established level of comfort per individual.

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Digital Inclusion

One of the methods for attempting to include individuals with disabilities in the access to knowledge is referred to as digital inclusion, giving access to digital technology and training on the technology to marginalized groups and subgroups in the population, including those with disabilities (Seale, Draffen, and Wald, 2010). Libraries may include links on their websites to inform those with special needs services for retrieval, reference assistance, proxy services, instruction services, and access assistance (Cassner, Maxey-Harris, and Anaya, 2011). Software and hardware to assist patrons whenever required may be listed on an academic library’s website as part of compliance with ADA requirements to meet the needs of special populations. Keeping these resources easy to find and access needs to be reassessed routinely.

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Seale et al., (2010) found that giving someone the technology did not necessarily mean that the technology was suitable for access according to their needs. Certain applications do not possess accommodations for learning and other disabilities, reducing the amount of available material. They go on to state that little is understood about how those with disabilities utilize digital technology in their search for information. In an effort to maintain privacy for students and patrons using technology both inside and outside the library, gathering objective data on this topic is problematic.

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Analysis

One issue with creating access to information for people with disabilities is the oversimplification of the topic instead of striving to understand the variability of characteristics necessary to create a comprehensive approach (Seale et al., 2010). The concept of access needs to be broken down into component parts, both physical and technological, both hardware and software. The number of variants of disabilities and diversities creates a situation where equally serving all of them is a tremendous and expensive task. Looking at current capabilities, we can attempt to broaden services for as many of our students as possible by looking at where services converge to serve more than a single population.

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Universal Design for Learning

Using the approach of Universal Design (UD) from the beginning when creating or remodeling services spaces helps to encompass the needs of more users (Pionke, 2017). The concept of UD offers a way to ensure ease of access for all users of all types with “flexibility, simplicity, intuitiveness, and usability” considered during the design process (Spina, 2017, p. 5) and covers physical spaces as well as access equipment. This concept can be utilized for any group of people, including the disabled, to make learning and information-gathering more accessible (Hammer, 2018) and is known specifically as Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

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Using UDL in library instruction is relatively new, and some studies indicate that it can improve a student’s learning experience even if they do not have a disability (Kavanaugh, Webb, and Hoover, 2015). Students and patrons possess different learning styles and perceive and retain information in different ways, whether visually, audibly, or kinetically. To serve the most students possible per lesson, librarians should present program materials in multiple styles or make it available in multiple formats, even if these in on request (Spina, 2017).

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Assistive Technology

Assistive technology, also known as adaptive technology, refers to devices, products, and equipment used to assist people with disabilities (Tripathi and Shukla, 2014) and is a form of digital inclusion. Assistive technology is brought into libraries through software, hardware, and equipment intended to assist patrons with their information-seeking needs. When libraries existed as repositories for books and other hard-printed materials, individuals with print disabilities found material inaccessible (Lazar and Brings, 2015) due to the inability to see or process print. Technology allows for digital formats to be adapted for these types of disabilities, broadening accessibility. For instance, certain font styles like Open Dyslexic are designed for readability for dyslexia, and font and background colors can be altered for individual needs. These relatively simpler methods can be paired with more robust applications.

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Assistive technology is intended to provide independence in information-seeking behavior for those with print disabilities through the use of screen readers and adapted print formats. Screen reading technology, however, is thwarted by graphically enhanced websites and pages with too many or broken links. Not all digital resources are adapted to be read by screen readers, such as PDFs that are image-based scans instead of text-based conversions and links that are not labeled with the HTML full text (Dermody and Majekodunmi, 2011). Without complete independence, individuals who rely on assistive technology as a research tool must also utilize personal contacts such as librarians, friends, and family to ensure that materials are accessible which consumes extra times and resources and limits learning (Dermody and Majekodunmi, 2011).

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Information Literacy

While information literacy is an important skill to be learned by all students, those with disabilities need additional education depending upon the challenges they face. Acquiring skills in information literacy improves student confidence in their ability to locate and use information resources. Barriers created by disabilities can affect a student’s academic success. Independence is challenged by the lack of the same opportunities and access to the same materials as non-disabled peers.

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Leveling the field with specialized accommodations allows disabled students to achieve similar success as other students (Dermody and Majekodunmi, 2011). Educationally purposeful activities along with peer, faculty, and staff interactions, create positive environments for academic success for all students (Kuh and Gonyea, 2015). These interactions, which may be limited by a student’s social or learning disability, require cultivation to provide the same opportunities for success on or off campus. Librarians can be a primary resource for connecting students with these opportunities once they learn to recognize the need for them.

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Future Study

The directions taken by academic libraries to assist those with hidden disabilities is demonstrated by website accessibility, staff awareness and training, and the redesign of the physical environment for utilization by diversely functioning individuals. Continuing improvement in these areas will increase the usability of academic libraries for all students, faculty, and community users. Exploratory studies sampling students from a range of learning and social disabilities may help to uncover points of overlap where assistive agents can be utilized by students for multiple purposes and improve the overall perception of the library and institution.

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Universal Design is one pathway to creating access and usability “for as many people as possible…without marginalizing any group” (Hammer, 2018, p. 36) through spaces and technology, but the concept and the execution require a firmer grasp of the perceptions of the targeted users. The limited amount of information on the success of UDL in library settings indicates that librarians have further to go in understanding and executing the methodology of this concept. Instituting a practice of providing presentations in multiple formats (oral, visual, and interactive) may help promote learning for all students without necessarily bringing attention to an individual’s dissimilar aptitude.

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Academic libraries should commit resources to review their current accommodations in the areas of assistive technology, websites, study spaces, and programs and formulate a plan to improve accessibility for students and faculty with disabilities utilizing Universal Design or similar concepts to make adjustments. Along with practical equipment and products, staff should be trained to create a welcoming atmosphere to help anxious students feel safe and comfortable. Websites, in particular, may offer a private and personal resource for students where helpful videos and information can be located. Once universal accessibility is established, informing patrons about available services is equally important.