The two entrances into the learning commons are fully accessible and equipped with automatic door openers. There are accessible restrooms located in both wings of the learning commons on every floor. General help may be found at the Library Help Desk on the first floor. Upon request, staff will retrieve items from shelves for you, assist with copying or printing materials, and provide other reasonable accommodation.
Special assistance with research is provided at the Library Help Desk. A portion of the service desk is lowered to accommodate patrons who use wheelchairs.
Assistive devices throughout the library include:
- Height adjustable workstations
- Merlin LCD – provides 5x to 61x magnification of black/white or color pages projected on a 17” monitor. On the 1st floor near the reference section. Another Merlin machine is available on the ground floor near the microfilm machines.
- Epson 1670 scanner – a flatbed color image scanner usable with text, graphics, or photos
- Two laptops with accessibility software are available for SSU patrons at the Library Help Desk to use for two hours per day in the library. Software includes:
- JAWS (Job Access with Speech) is a screen reading software that enables visually impaired users to access online catalogs, databases, Internet sites, and Microsoft Windows applications.
- Windows Narrator is a built-in screen-reader and text-to-speak tool which helps people to complete common tasks.
- Equatio is an equation editor that makes it easy to create digital, accessible maths.
- Read&Write is a literacy support tool that offers help with everyday tasks like reading text out loud, understanding unfamiliar words, researching assignments and proofing written work.
- OrbitNote is a PDF reader and annotation tool. It allows users to express their understanding in many flexible ways.
For more information on SSU disability services, contact the Center for Accessible Academic Resources on the ground floor of the Learning Commons.
