ACCESS FOR ALL

Language
Accessibility in the
ABQ Public Library
System

A recommendation report presented to The Public Library of Albuquerque and

Bernalillo
By Access for All

TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Introduction
3
Methods
4
Results.
6
Discussion of
Results8
Recommendation
.8
Wo r k s C i t e d
9

ABSTRACT
Access for All believes that all residents should be
able to use valuable services provided by the city of
Albuquerque. It is our intention with this
recommendation report to evaluate the accessibility of
t h e p u b l i c l i b r a r y b y n o n - E n g l i s h s p e a k e r s . We w i l l
outline the process of evaluation in the Methods section
o f t h i s r e p o r t . We w i l l s t a r t w i t h a s m a l l b r a n c h l i b r a r y
as we feel that implementations of improvements in
a c c e s s i b i l i t y w o u l d b e d o n e b e s t o n a s m a l l s c a l e . We
h a v e c h o s e n E r n i e P y l e L i b r a r y. O n c e t h e a c c e s s i b i l i t y
has been evaluated and established, we will include
results and a discussion of results as well as our formal
recommendation for the best course of action

INTRODUCTION
A l b u q u e r q u e i s a u n i q u e l y d i v e r s e c i t y. A c c o r d i n g t o
the city of Albuquerque, there are 13 languages other
t h a n E n g l i s h s p o k e n i n t h i s c i t y. Re c e n t C e n s u s d a t a
shows that out of 475,542 residents in this city 113,777
speak Spanish(census.gov). This number is growing
a n n u a l l y.

Languages of Albuquerque

English only
Spanish
Navajo
Other Native
Vietnamese
Chinese

source:Census.gov
The Public Library of Albuquerque and Bernalillo is
a large and complex lending system. In addition to
l o a n i n g b o o k s t o p a t r o n s , t h e l i b r a r y o ff e r s m a n y o t h e r
valuable resources. These are some of the services
o ff e r e d t h r o u g h t h e p u b l i c l i b r a r y:
Fr e e t u t o r i n g
3

Story hour
Internet access
Literacy classes for parents
Music and Events
Summer reading programs
Book clubs
Group meetings
eBooks and audiobooks through the Overdrive App
Check out museum passes for 8 Albuquerque
museums
Seed library for heirloom and heritage seeds (yes,
you can check out seeds in exchange for bringing in
some dried seeds when your harvest is over)
But what if you dont speak English? How accessible is
t h e pu b l i c l i b r a r y f o r n o n- E n g l i s h s p e a ke r s ? Wi t h th i s
report, we seek to evaluate the current level of
language accessibility of the Public Library of
Albuquerque and Bernalillo and create a plan of action
to improve accessibility and usability of the library
system.
METHODS
The Public Library of Albuquerque and Bernalillo is
a l a r g e s y s t e m . We f e e l i t w o u l d b e b e s t t o m a k e
changes gradually on a small scale in order to ensure
lasting positive change. As such, we have chosen to
start with one of Albuquerques smallest branch
libraries, Ernie Pyle. Ernie Pyle is located at 900 Girard
B l v d S E . I t i s a n e i g h b o r h o o d l i b r a r y f o r t h e Re s i d e n t s
o f N o b H i l l , U n i v e r s i t y , a n d K i r t l a n d A i r Fo rc e B a s e .
We s e e k t o e v a l u a t e t h e c u r r e n t l e v e l o ff
a c c e s s i b i l i t y o f E r n i e P y l e L i b r a r y. We p l a n t o c o l l e c t

materials, appraise signage and postings, and talk to

the librarian.
Step One
Evaluate language accessibility of Ernie Pyle
Library and discuss language accessibility with the
Librarian.
S t e p Tw o
Re s e a r c h p r o g r a m / s y s t e m s / m e t h o d s i m p l e m e n t e d i n
other small libraries around the country to improve
l a n g u a g e a c c e s s i b i l i t y.
Step Three
A n a l y z e p r o g r a m s f o r fi t a n d f u n c t i o n a t a l i b r a r y
l i ke E rn i e P y l e .
S t e p Fo u r:
Determine the most applicable methods for
implementing programs to improve language
a c c e s s i b i l i t y.
Step One
We will evaluate the accessibility of the
Albuquerque/Bernalillo Library system. In order to gauge the current
level of accessibility and implementation of universal design, we will
collect print materials, assess signage, and use the catalog. This
method of examination will give us a comprehensive idea of how the
Library systems may be modified to be more use friendly for nonEnglish speaking patrons of the library. We w i l l d i s c u s s c u r r e n t
policies and programs with the librarian to discover
what is already being done to ensure that all members
o f t h e c o m m u n i t y c a n u s e E r n i e P y l e L i b r a r y. We w i l l
also use census information to establish demographic
of people in Albuquerque who do not speak English. The
current language accessibility of all areas will be rated
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on a scale of 1(needs improvement)-3(language

accessible).
S t e p Tw o
B a s e d o n o u r fi n d i n g s f r o m S t e p O n e , w e w i l l
research language accessibility in libraries nationwide
using the web. Use the University Libraries and
scholarly articles about universal design and language
accessibility to explore programs and policies of similar
l i b r a r i e s . Fi n d o p t i o n s t h a t c o u l d b e u s e d b y E r n i e P y l e
t o i m p r o v e u p o n c u r r e n t a c c e s s i b i l i t y.
Step Three
Compile a list of programs or policies and analyze
them. Ernie Pyle is a small library that is part of a
bigger library system. Space and resources are limited
and a policy or program that might work in a larger
library might not work at Ernie Pyle.
S t e p Fo u r
Use information from step three to determine which
policies or programs from the list would work at Ernie
Pyle to improve language accessibility for patrons that
d o n o t s p e a k E n g l i s h . We w i l l b a s e o u r e v a l u a t i o n o n
c o s t , e ffi c a c y , a n d fi t f o r a l i b r a r y o f t h i s s i z e .

R E S U LT S

E r n i e P y l e L i b r a r y - Fi g u r e 1

Signage

Figure 1
Webpage

Sample 2
Sample 3

Print Materials

A n o t e a b o u t t h e a b o v e g r a p h : We r a n d o m l y
selected 3 available print materials, three postings,
and three areal of the website to evaluate and each
sample was assigned a score as part of our established
rubric.
Ernie Pyle is a small branch library and does not
have as expansive and varied collection as many other
l a r g e r b r a n c h e s . We s p o k e w i t h a l i b r a r i a n w h o s a i d
that she also felt that there was improvement needed
in language accessibility at this particular branch.
W h e n w e a s ke d w ha t i s c u rre n t l y b e in g do n e to i m p ro v e
language accessibility, she stated that non-English
speaking patrons usually bring a friend or family
m e m b e r t o h e l p t h e m n a v i g a t e t h r o u g h t h e l i b r a r y.
We l e a r n e d t h a t m a n y l i b r a r i e s a r o u n d t h e c o u n t r y h a v e
d e v e l o p e d p ro g r a m s t o m a ke t h e i r l i br a r y s y s t e m s an d
7

e v e n t s t o p e o p l e w h o s p e a k m a n y d i ff e r e n t l a n g u a g e s .
These are some of those innovative programs being
o ff e r e d a t s o m e s i m i l a r l i b r a r y s y s t e m s s u c h a s
C h i c a g o , I l l i n o i s a n d A u s t i n , Te x a s :
O ff e r i n g c l a s s e s o n u s a g e o f t h e l i b r a r y s y s t e m s
(catalog, web, events)
Have headsets with tutorials for using the libraries
in languages besides English
Provide interpreters
Bilingual programs for preschoolers and
f a m i l i e s ( Te x a s )
D i d e lo s N i o s / D i a d e lo s L ib ro s c e l e b r a t i o n s l i ke
t h o s e i n C h i c a g o a n d Te x a s h i g h l i g h t t h e
importance of literacy across cultural boundaries
(ala).

D I S C U SS I O N O F R E S U LT S
Aft e r c a re fu l e v a lu a t i on , t h e we b s i t e ap p e a r s t o b e
very language accessible and little change is needed to
m a k e i t u s e r- f r i e n d l y f o r n o n - E n g l i s h s p e a k e r s .
All of the signage in Ernie Pyle is in English. A lot
of the signs posted included important policies and
h o u r s o f t h e l i b r a r y.
All of the print materials available at Ernie Pyle
w e r e i n E n g l i s h o n l y. B o o k l i s t s , s u m m e r r e a d i n g
program information and calendar of events were
unavailable in Spanish or any other language.

R E C O M M E N D AT I O N
8

It is our recommendation the Public Library of

A l b uq u e rq u e an d B e rna l i l l o m a ke i m p ro v e m e n t s i n t h e s e
areas to remove language barriers for some non-English
speaking patrons.
Certain print materials such as calendars, classes,
book lists and summer reading program information
should be available in multiple languages.
The signage and policies of the library should be
updated to include Spanish versions as well as
English.
Library policies and instructions on how to get a
library card should be available in many languages.
Bilingual programs for families could be easily
a d d e d t o e x i s t i n g e v e n t c a l e n d a r. A g o o d p l a c e t o
start would be to explore the growing trend of
libraries celebrating El Di de los Nios/El Di de
los Libros to highlight the importance of literacy
(ala).

We f e e l t h a t t h e s e s m a l l s t e p s w i l l g o a l o n g w a y
towards improving language accessibility for the nonEnglish speaking residents of Albuquerque.
Thank you so much for considering this report. If
any further information is required, please do not
hesitate to contact us at (505)266-2222 or
accessforall@afa.org

WORKS CITED
Albuquerque Economic Development.
h t t p : / / w w w. a b q . o r g / D e m o g r a p h i c s . a s p x . We b . J u l y 1 8 ,
2016

Association for Library Service to Children. Division of

the American Library Association.
h t t p : / / w w w. a l a . o r g / a l s c / i m p o r t a n c e - d i v e r s i t y A p r i l 5 ,
2 0 1 4 . We b . J u l y 2 1 , 2 0 1 6
Burgstahler, Sheryl. Equal Access: Universal Design of
L i b r a r i e s . h t t p : / / w w w. w a s h i n g t o n . e d u / d o i t / e q u a l - a c c e s s u n i v e r s a l - d e s i g n - l i b r a r i e s . We b . J u l y 1 8 , 2 0 1 6
10

Te x a s S t a t e L i b r a r y & A r c h i v e s C o m m i s s i o n .
h t t p s : / / w w w. t s l . t e x a s . g o v / l d / p u b s / b i l i n g u a l / i n d e x . h t m l
A u g u s t 1 3 , 2 0 1 4 . We b . J u l y 1 9 , 2 0 1 6

United States Census.

h t t p : / / w w w. c e n s u s . g o v / q u i c k f a c t s / t a b l e / P S T 0 4 5 2 1 5 / 3 5 0 2
0 0 0 . A p r i l 1 , 2 0 1 5 . We b . J u l y 1 9 , 2 0 1 6

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