Special Needs and Inclusive Library Services (SNAILS)

Renee Grassi Renee Grassi, co-founder of SNAILS, friend, and mentor to many of our members, has been selected to receive the 2017 Alexander J. Skrzypek Award ! Presented by the Illinois Library Association and the Illinois State Library in honor of Alexander J. Skrzypek (1905-1976) -- the first librarian for the blind at the Chicago Public Library -- the award is given to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of library services for the blind or physically disabled in Illinois. We know first hand how Renee's work has impacted libraries and communities across the state of Illinois, so we nominated her for the award! Read  ILA's press release  to learn about Renee's award-winning efforts to make Illinois libraries more inclusive to children with disabilities. Renee's word cloud The Alexander J. Skrzypek Award Award will be presented to Renee at the Awards Luncheon held on Tuesday, October 10, during the 2017 Illinois Library ...

Our summer meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 30 at Deerfield Public Library . Please plan to arrive close to 9:00am for morning treats and networking. Our business will begin promptly at 9:30am. Robin Jones This month, we have the privilege of hearing from Robin Jones, the Director of the Great Lakes ADA Center . Robin will be giving an overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act as it relates to local government (i.e. public libraries). Her presentation is jam-packed with legal and practical information, so this is a great meeting for library staff at all service levels to attend. In order to the make the presentation as relevant as possible, Robin would like to know what type of scenarios you experience when serving (or not being equipped to serve) people with disabilities. If you ever wanted to ask an ADA expert a question about legal requirements, best practices, or "what to do if..." this is your chance! Even if you can't make it to the meetin...

The 14th Annual Disability Pride Parade is this weekend, on Saturday, July 22! The Parade kicks off at 11:00am from 401 S. Plymouth Court (beside the Harold Washington Library Center), and then travels up Dearborn Street to the Daley Center where post-parade festivities take place beginning at 12:30pm. According to the parade website , the overall mission of the Disability Pride Parade is: To change the way people think about and define “disability;” To break down and end the internalized shame among people with Disabilities; and To promote the belief in society that Disability is a natural and beautiful part of human diversity in which people living with Disabilities can take pride. Wouldn't it be great if a group of SNAILS members could meet downtown and cheer for the parade participants?? If you'd like to show support as a spectator use the Contact Us form on the right side of the blog, and I'll work out the logistics for meeting in one place. If you can'...

The Muppets of Sesame Street are getting a new friend for the first time in years! Julia, a red-headed four-year-old with big, green eyes, loves to sing and jump and happens to have autism. Julia was first introduced digitally in 2015 as an illustrated character in an online storybook entitled "We're Amazing, 1,2,3!" (which can be viewed on the  Sesame Street and Autism website or by downloading the app for  iOS , or  Android ). This year, during Autism Awareness Month, Julia will make her TV debut as a Muppet on Sesame Street! Tune into PBS Kids or HBO on Monday, April 10 to meet Julia and learn about autism. Muppeteer Stacey Gordon, who has a child with autism and used to work as therapist for kids on the spectrum, has the privilege of bringing Julia to life. Learn more about Julia, Stacey Gordon, and the Sesame Street: See Amazing in All Children initiative by viewing this report from the  Today Show . people.com

The Illinois State Library is currently accepting registrations for the third Targeting Autism Forum , to be held at the Illinois State Library, in Springfield, Illinois, on May 11-12, 2017 . The Illinois State Library was awarded two grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to help libraries better serve patrons and family members impacted by Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Phase I, Targeting Autism: A National Forum on Serving Library Patrons on the Spectrum received funding through an IMLS National Leadership Grant. Through two stakeholder forums, this phase of the project – was designed to explore how libraries can work with diverse community organizations and programs to increase their role in supporting patrons and family members impacted by ASD. Phase II of the project, now underway – Targeting Autism: A Comprehensive Training and Education Program for Librarians is funded through an IMLS Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program grant to de...

Great news, everybody! If you've been wanting to make visual schedules and other supports for your inclusive programs but haven't been able to afford Boardmaker  there is now a strong alternative. Picto-Selector is a free visual support program for Windows and Mac users. It has 28,000 images translated into English, Dutch, German, French, Danish, Spanish, and Italian. Like Boardmaker, there are plenty of images to choose from, and you can customize the placement of the titles, the thickness and edges of the borders, and the background color. I've just begun to play around with Picto-Selector, so I won't be presenting a full comparison and contrast, but, from a quick look, it does appear to have some advantages over Boardmaker. Boardmaker is very expensive. Picto-Selector is free thanks to ads and user donations. Multiple staff can simultaneously use Picto-Selector because a CD is not needed to run the program. In addition to templates, there is also a Wiz...

Yes, it is true that our fearless leader has left Illinois for Minnesota, but that doesn't mean she is out of reach. On the contrary... Renee Grassi will be presenting a free webinar called Creating Welcoming and Accessible Libraries for Children with Disabilities on Wednesday, April 12, 10:00-11:00am CST  for Minitex , an information and resource sharing program of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and the University of Minnesota Libraries. Big or small, rural or urban--all public libraries serve children with disabilities in their communities. Librarian and advocate Renee Grassi will show how your library can develop an awareness and an enhanced spirit of inclusion to children with disabilities and their needs for library service. In this workshop, attendees will learn how to perform a community needs assessment and advocate for families, forge new partnerships with other agencies and organizations, and find new and innovative children’s programming and outreach i...