(I am posting this for a museum colleague)


I am glad to see that several Museum-L subscribers are interested and
concerned about the accessibility issues in museums. There is another
area of concern (besides providing accessibility information about a
museum and virtual visits of its exhibits on a website) which is making
sure the web information is even accessible to people with various types
of disabilities who use adaptive computer equipment to surf the
websites. As an example, a blind person using a screen reader to "read"
the text (in Braille) may not be able to access all the text bodies in a
website, such as text that is embedded in graphic image, rather than as
a string of text on a line which can be read.

Having done a excellent fellowship program in 1995 with the Smithsonian
Institution's Office of Accessibility Programs, I have some background
in dealing with accessibility issues in the museum environment as well
as accessibility to electronic information for people with disabilities.
Within the next year, I hope to finish my thesis paper, tentatively
titled, "Universal Access to Web Museums: Making Museum Websites
Accessible for People with Disabilities." It will also include a chapter
of suggestions on what information to provide on a museum website so
people with disabilities can be better informed and prepared to visit
the museum (e.g., where the accessible entrance is in a historical
structure, phone number to call to request for a sign language
interpreter, etc.). For those who might be interested, I can let you
know when I've completed the paper.

Randy, I would be happy to discuss with you further about your project.
Maybe we can share some information either on or off the list.

Kristin Schumacher
Museum Services Assistant
Derse Exhibits Company
1234 N. 62nd St.
Milwaukee, WI  53213
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Cooperstown Graduate Program in Museum Studies Alumni '96