A Asitecues is a web-based software solution that builds zoom and speech features right into websites. sitecues enhances accessibility and usability for people of all ages that experience vision, learning and languages challenges.

SITECUES | CASE STUDY

At the state library, we provide leadership and guidance to educational institutions, other state agencies, and public and school libraries across New Jersey, and what we want to advocate is a method that makes it easy for them to help serve their print disabled population

CHALLENGES:

The NJ State Library is poignantly aware of the grow-ing population that experiences visual impairments or trouble reading. According to the CDC, estimates project that in the next three decades, the popula-tion of adults with vision impairment and age-related eye diseases will double due to aging, diabetes and other chronic illnesses. In addition to this number, libraries also serve a demographic of people who might have reading disorders like dyslexia or have suered brain inMuries Irom a stroke, or otKer causes, who need to read with assistance.

To serve these people, the NJ State Library began by implementing information kiosks at Outspoken Libraries to increase the visibility of their services. However, the kiosks worked mostly as PR tools and didnt provide assistive technology to solve the problem at hand. As time went on, the community expressed a need for a more useful technology.

With a grant from the Comcast Foundation, the NJ state library explored using tools like ZoomText and JAWS (Job Access With Speech) and pointing peo-SOe to tKe magnication oStion on *oogOe CKrome.

Adam Szczepaniak, Director of Talking Book and Braille at the NJ State Library

ZoomText and JAWS were too expensive because of the grant. Google Chrome was free, but it was hard for SeoSOe to nd and initiate tKe tooO, and tKe images Oost clarity once enlarged.

(857) 259-5272 | sitecues@aisquared.com | 100 Cambridge Park Drive, 2nd floor Cambridge, MA 02140

Before the Outspoken Library and sitecues, many people just didnt have a place to turn. As we work forward, well be able to give them the initial step into how they can read by, basically, listening Adam Szczepaniak, Director of Talking Book and Braille at the NJ State Library

HOW SITECUES HELPED Exploring their options, the NJ State Library found sitecues. They describe the product as simple very very intuitive and easy. Mary Kearns-Kaplan, Adult Service Outreach Coordinator at the NJ State Library, highlighted the ease and discoverability of the embedded tool as well as essential features that magnify text while maintaining clarity and text to speech options that read articles out loud to com- munity members.

6itecues Zas eas\ Ior Satrons to use and gure out with little assistance. Put simply, it worked and provided an alternative way for people with visual imSairments to read. t aOso eectiveO\ removed tKe hurdle of having to train a community on how to use assistive technology and the costs associated while still expanding accessibility.

Described as a no-brainer, sitecues was put into place on the NJ State Library website and sitecues Everywhere is installed on their Outspoken Library computers. The actual implementation of the prod-uct was hard- ly a talking point. It was just easy.

(ectiveO\ Sut into SOace and Zorking in tKe com- mu-nity, the NJ State Library is able to reach out to patrons asking, Do you need an easier way to read? Do you want a better way to read? and provide a solution to these expressed challenges.

RESULTS, RETURN ON INVESTMENT AND FUTURE PLANS The NJ State Library has also inquired into upcoming features and made suggestions that express their true commitment to serving their entire community at the highest possible standard with sitecues.

THE NEW JERSEY STATE LIBRARY

sitecuesby Ai Squared

Tryon www.njstatelib.org

Contact us today for a demo of sitecuesE: bsauln@aisquared.comP: (857) 259-5272