The Roseburg Public Library is among more than a dozen rural libraries in Oregon that’s received a grant to help better serve people with disabilities.
Roseburg Library Director Kris Wiley said the yearlong grant of $10,000 will help them develop accessibility resources. She told KLCC people with disabilities visit the library every day.
“We want to engage even more with them and give them the material that they want to use and the formats that they want to use,” she said. “We want to give them programming that excites them and makes them want to come back to the library and develop these relationships with libraries and librarians that are so important.”
Wiley said they’ll have community conversations to gather input for how to use the grant money.
The sessions are 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 3 and then Thursday, June 19, at 6:00 p.m.
“I’ll bring the pizza,” she said. “I ask folks to bring their enthusiasm and ideas. And this will be a guided conversation with people with disabilities.”
She said caregivers are welcome, but she’d like the conversations to be with the folks they’re intending to serve.
Wiley said she would like this year-long grant project to have long-term impacts.
“My hope is that the programs will be so popular that they’ll be able to continue on a smaller scale,” she said.
When asked how federal program cuts may affect Roseburg's ability to provide services, Wiley said she hasn't seen any impact yet. She said their library's funding is local. But, they're keeping an eye on what's happening at the various levels of government. She said the accessibility grant they received is privately funded by the American Library Association, in collaboration with the Association of Rural and Small Libraries.
The Sweet Home Public Library, Halsey, Oakridge, and Oakland Public Libraries were among other Oregon libraries to receive grants under the program.
