Outreach Services

Blind / Physically Disabled:

• Blind or Visually Impaired
  • Talking Book Service - offered in conjunction with the State Talking Book and Braille Library, Cultural Education Center, Albany, NY 12550, (800) 342-3688 or (518) 474-5935. Free player and taped materials are available by application from your local library. Applications for adults and youth, and instructions on how to join the Talking Book and Braille Library are available on line, and are also available from the MHLS Outreach Services Department, (845) 471-6060 x36. See what people are saying about the Talking Book Program.
    • The Talking Book and Braille Library's collection is similar to that of a public library and includes fiction and non-fiction for all ages. The collection includes many books that could be used for literature classes, book reports, research assignments, and recreational reading. They do not have textbooks. Sources for textbooks in alternative formats - cassette recordings, Braille and large print - are available.
    • Described Videos are available through the Talking Book and Braille Library. Described videos are films with narration added to the sound track to describe for people with impaired vision the visual elements of the film. These include actions, body language, costume, scenery, and set details. The narration does not interfere with the dialogue or sound effects. Information about borrowing and a listing of titles is available from MHLS Outreach Services upon request.
  • Additional resources for people with vision problems are available through Lighthouse International and also Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic.
  • MHLS rotating collections of Large Print books.
  • There are over 12,000 Large Print books in the MHLS Public Library Catalog. For a complete listing, type an asterisk * in the Word/Phrase box, then select Large Print from the Material Type drop-down list.
  • Suppliers of magnifiers and other adaptive equipment:
    • Pulse Data Humanware: Innovative solutions for people with visual impairments
    • Senior Shops
    • Life with Ease
    • Dynamic Living
    • Indepenent Living Aids, Inc.
• Deaf or Hearing Impaired
  • A TTY - also known as a Text Telephone - is a keyboard-like device that a deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired person can use to communicate over the phone, through a relay service, by typing instead of speaking. Bell Atlantic has donated TTYs with a call alert (flashing light) and instructional videos to the Mid-Hudson Library System. If you are a resident of the Mid-Hudson Library System area, you can borrow a TTY through your local library for up to two weeks. This gives the opportunity for you to try one before you buy it or to get a temporary replacement while yours is being serviced.
  • Internet based relay service at IP-RELAY.com
• ADA Information - information on ADA regulations and compliance is available through MHLS Outreach Services. Check also the ADA design standards for libraires and the federal web site of disability related government resources.
• Independent Living Centers Serving the Mid-Hudson Library System Area:
  • Columbia County - Capital District Center for Independence, Inc, 22 Colvin Avenue, Albany, NY 12206; (518) 459-6422 (Voice); (518) 459-7847 (TTY)
  • Dutchess County - Taconic Resources for Independence, 80 Washington Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601; (845) 452-3913 (Voice); (914) 485-8110 (TTY)
  • Greene County - Troy Resource Center for Independent Living, Broadway and Fourth Street, Troy, NY 12180; (518) 274-0701 (Voice)
  • Putnam County - TRI (phone assistance only) - for more information contact, Westchester Independent Living Center, 297 Knollwood Road, White Plains, NY; (914) 682-3926 (Voice)
  • Ulster County - Resource Center for Accessible Living, Inc, 602 Albany Avenue, Kingston, NY 12401; (845) 331-0541 (Voice); (845) 331-8680 (TTY).
• Adaptive Technology Glossary

View our online brochure Now That We've Met, What Do I Say?, General Guidelines for Communicating With Persons Who Have Disabilities

Aged:

• Large Print Rotating Book Collections - Eighty five collections of rotating large print popular reading that circulate through participating member libraries. Visit you local library to access the collections or contact you local library to see if they have the collections available.
• Bi-Folkal Kits - Thematic multimedia kits that focus on a time or topic which has touched most people's lives: school days, automobiles, fashion, etc. Kits include audio and videocassettes, booklets, slides/tapes, shapes, textures, etc. Available through Interlibrary Loan through your local library.
• Association for Senior Citizens

See the special programs and collections developed by MHLS libraries in 2002 with Older American mini-grants. Thank you to Coordinated Outreach state aid and the NYS Division of Library Development for making these programs possible.

Institutionalized:

• Correctional Facilities - provide service and support comparable to those given to public libraries
  • New York State Commission of Correction
  • New York State Department of Corrections, Corecraft Products and prison population numbers.
  • The Prisons Foundation, including links to resources and Prison Librarianship Clearinghouse
  • National Institute of Corrections
  • The Fortune Society is a not-for-profit community-based organization dedicated to educating the public about prisons, criminal justice issues, and the root causes of crime. They also help former prisoners and at-risk youth break the cycle of crime and incarceration through a broad range of services.
  • Dog programs in prisons: Forum about prisoners training dogs | Pets in Prison Programs
• County Jails - provide paperback book collections
• Nursing Homes - provide deposit collections of large print material through request from the local public library

Educationally Disadvantaged:

• Literacy, GED and ESL:
  • Adult ESL Literacy and Language Education
  • Adult Literacy in New York study, Executive Summary
  • America's Literacy Directory allows you to search for the following services by zip code: Programs for Adults & Young Adults, Programs for Children, Learning Disabilities & Volunteer Opportunities.
  • Immigrant Education
  • Literacy.org: gateway to electronic resources and tools for the national and international youth and adult literacy communities
  • ProLiteracy Worldwide (formerly Laubach Literacy and Literacy Volunteers of America) has local affiliates
  • MHLS Area
    • Columbia County
  • Literacy Connections Hudson, New York 12534 (518) 697-8227
  • Dutchess County
  • Literacy Connections (formerly Dutchess County Literacy Volunteers)13 Davis St., Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 (845) 452-8670
  • Dutchess County BOCES (845) 486-4966
    • ESL through the Manufacturing & Technology Institute, 61 Page Park Drive, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
    • GED through the Adult Career & Learning Center @ FPC, 29 North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
  • Greene County
  • Literacy Connections Hudson, New York 12534 (845) 546-6957
  • Putnam County
  • Literacy Volunteers of Putnam County, 668 Route 6, Mahopac, NY 10541 (845) 628-8139
  • Comite Latino, 1037 Main Street, Peekskill, NY 10566 (845) 734-8846
  • Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES, 200 BOCES Drive, Yorktown Heights, NY 10598 (914) 245-2700
  • Ulster County
  • Ulster Literacy Association, 635 Broadway, Kingston, NY 12401 (845) 331-6837
  • Orange-Ulster BOCES 845-291-0100
    
  • National Even Start: Providing a National Voice and Vision for Even Start Family Literacy Programs
  • National Institute for Family Literacy: helping parents help their children to succeed
  • National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) is an independent federal organization focusing a national effort toward a fully literate nation in the 21st century.
  • PBS LiteracyLink: site helps adults build basic skills for lifelong learning
  • Literacy Resources from the Verizon Foundation
• Information & resources for individuals with developmental disabilities & their families
• National Head Start: services for poor children ages 0 through 5, and their families
  
  

Unemployed / Underemployed:

• Workforce Development Satellite Centers - contain specialized employment, training, and business related resources that can be accessed any time the library is open. The enhanced career resources available within these libraries allow patrons to quickly and easily locate information services specific to jobseekers and employers. A sampling of the materials available include:

For Jobseekers: - Access to job openings/placements - Benefit and wage information - On-the-job training information - Interviewing services - Access to career counseling and skill assessment - Adult Education and literacy information

For Employers: - Resume Database - Information on employee screening, testing - Employee training/tax credit information - Employer incentive program information

MHLS Libraries presently acting as these "satellite centers" include:

• Columbia County: Chatham Public Library, Hillsdale Public Library, Hudson Area Association Library, Kinderhook Memorial Library, Philmont Public Library
• Greene County: Catskill Public Library, Greenville Public Library, Heermance Public Library, Hunter Public Library, Palenville Branch, Windham Public Library
• Dutchess County: East Fishkill Community Library, Howland Public Library - Beacon, Pine Plains Library
• Putnam County: Brewster Public Library, Reed Memorial Library - Carmel, Julia L. Butterfield Memorial Library - Cold Spring, Alice Curtis & Hamilton Fish Library - Garrison, Kent Public Library, Mahopac Public Library, Patterson Library Association, Putnam Valley Free Library
• Ulster County: Highland Public Library, Hurley Library Association, Kingston Library, Marlboro Free Library, Sarah Hull Hallock Free Library - Milton, Elting Memorial Library - New Paltz, Phoenicia Library, Morton Memorial Library - Pine Hill, Plattekill Library, Rosendale Library, Saugerties Public Library, Stone Ridge Library, Town of Ulster Public Library, Town of Esopus/Port Ewen Library, West Hurley Public Library, Olive Free Library Association - West Shokan, Woodstock Public Library.
  The following libraries within the Ramapo Catskill Library System also participate: District Cragsmoor Free Library, Ellenville Public Library & Museum, Gardiner Library, Wallkill Public Library.

• Education / Job Information Center: Mahopac Public Library provides individualized assistance to people with education, career, and small business needs. The center is open Monday - Friday, 10am - 6pm, call ahead to (845) 628-8139 for an appointment.

For the Geographically Isolated:

• Consultation services are available on an as needed basis.

Members of Ethnic Minorities in need of Special Services:

• Titles in languages other than English may be requested from MHLS libraries through the Public Library Catalog or by Interlibrary Loan.
• Guidelines for Library Services to Hispanics
• Non-English Resources for Libraries
• Center For Immigration Studies
• Los Sitios Web Federales en Español <Federal Websites in Spanish>
• FirstGOV en Español. Informacion y servicios del Gobierno de los Estados Unidos <FirstGOV.gov The U.S. Government's Official Web Portal>

MHLS Member Libraries: Add this resource to your library website for your Spanish speaking patrons

See the special programs and collections developed by MHLS libraries in 2001 with Language Diversity mini-grants. Thank you to Coordinated Outreach state aid and the NYS Division of Library Development for making these programs possible.

OUTREACH STAFF
Merribeth Advocate	(845)471-6060 x54	madvocate@midhudson.org
Lena Smolon	(845)471-6060 x36	lsmolon@midhudson.org
PROGRAM STAFF
Kirstin Litwin	(845)471-6060 x49	klitwin@midhudson.org

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