Libraries Advancing Accessibility: Using PLA's New Toolkit to Support Patrons with Apple Devices

Accessibility is central to making libraries welcoming, human-centered, and truly public. In this webinar, PLA will share the new Libraries Advancing Accessibility Toolkit, which helps staff and patrons increase access to and awareness of settings, apps, and resources available on the iPad and iPhone. The toolkit supports older adults, people with low vision, and users with hand motor issues, such as tremors, arthritis, or limited dexterity. Participants are encouraged to bring their iPhones and iPads to explore some of the accessibility tools featured in the toolkit during the session. Leave with practical tips and tools to expand tech training and one-on-one support in your library.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Identify tools to build staff comfort and confidence using Apple accessibility features;
• Identify tools to help patrons build comfort and confidence using Apple accessibility features in a workshop, one-on-one interactions, and/or on their own; and
• Identify materials you can use to assist patrons in exploring Apple accessibility features in a workshop, one-on-one interactions, and/or on their own.

Panelists

Patricia B. Ball, PhD (she/her) is branch manager of Stratton Branch, part of Cobb County Public Library System located in Marietta, GA. Ball is a passionate advocate for equal access to library services for all. She is committed to serving the unserved and underserved. Ball believes that access to broadband is a right for every citizen and works to help alleviate the inequalities created by the digital divide in her community.

Witt Salley is the teen services librarian at Quince Orchard Library, a branch of Montgomery County (MD) Public Libraries, where he develops programs for teens and emerging adults and provides reference, technology, and digital literacy support to patrons across age groups. Salley serves as secretary of the Maryland Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Panel and as a member of PLA's Digital Literacy Advisory Group. Earlier in his career, he led award-winning online learning units in higher education and now applies that experience to instructional design, digital access, and equitable lifelong learning in public libraries.

Christiana VanPelt is a senior professional learning specialist supporting Apple’s Community Education Initiative, where she works to expand equitable access to education through technology, creativity, and community-connected learning. With a background as an elementary teacher and STEM curriculum specialist, Christiana is passionate about designing transformative learning experiences that integrate coding, computational thinking, and interdisciplinary STEM initiatives into culturally responsive instruction. With a Bachelor’s degree in Child Development from Spelman College and a Master’s in Computing in Education from Columbia University Teachers College, Christiana champions education as a catalyst for change, equipping both students and educators with the tools to think critically, create boldly, and shape a more just and connected world.

Devin Wood (she/her) is the head of adult services at the Antioch (IL) Public Library District, overseeing reference services, programming, and the makerspace. She currently serves on her library’s Digital Accessibility Committee.

Michelle Frisque is a technology leader focused on technology adoption, digital equity, design thinking, and executing transformative organizational change with a human touch. She has a Master of Learning and Organization Change from Northwestern University and a Master of Library and Information Sciences from the University of Pittsburgh.

Once you've joined the webinar, there are two ways to connect your audio: via computer or via telephone. No microphone is required. PLA works with its webinar platform provider to assure the highest quality audio is being delivered to attendees. However, variables over which PLA has no control—such as the speed of your Internet connection or traffic on your local network—can affect the end quality of the webinar audio delivered by your computer. Each webinar’s audio is also available by telephone via a toll number, so we recommend you have access to a long-distance enabled phone as a backup in case you experience audio issues with VoIP. If you do encounter any problems during the webinar, you will receive a link to its archived recording within a week of the live event and can review anything you missed.