Services for Patrons with Disabilities

The University of Missouri-St. Louis Libraries are committed to providing individuals with disabilities reasonable access to materials, information, and services. The Libraries provide a variety of immediate and extended services for patrons with disabilities.

For assistance in the Libraries please contact the Circulation desks:

Thomas Jefferson Library (314) 516-5057
Ward E. Barnes Library at (314) 516-5572
By email: Patrick Tansey.

Patrons may also get additional assistance and information by contacting the University of Missouri-St. Louis Disability Access Services Office:

Telephone: 314-516-6554, TTY: 314-516-5212
Email: linder@umsl.edu
Website: http://www.umsl.edu/services/disabled/index.html
In-person: Disability Access Services is located in Room 144 of the Millennium Student Center on the campus of the University of Missouri-St. Louis. (map)
By mail: Disability Access Services; 144 Millennium Student Center; One University Blvd.; St. Louis, MO 63121

Retrieving Materials and Photocopying

Requests can be made three different ways:

In person: Bring a list of items (these cannot be for personal use - they must be for a current class project) to be pulled or photocopied to the Circulation Desk at the library entrance.
By telephone: Thomas Jefferson Library (314) 516-5057 or the Ward E. Barnes Library at (314) 516-5572
Via e-mail: e-ref@umsl.edu

Call numbers must be provided for all items. If you need help determining call numbers, contact the Reference Department by e-mail with the Research Consultation Form, telephone 314-516-5060, or in person at the reference desk.

Requests will be filled within one business day. Circulation personnel will retrieve materials and assist with photocopying as staffing allows. We can retrieve or copy up to 4 items at the time of the request; all others will be completed within one business day. All telephone requests and lengthy lists will be completed during weekday operating hours.

The only costs incurred are the standard self-service photocopying rates of seven cents per sheet. Please bring an UMSL copy card, which can be purchased in the library, loaded with sufficient money to make the amount of copies requested. Insufficient money on the card will result in an incomplete request. Materials will be held and must be picked up at the circulation desk.

Assistance filling out Interlibrary Loan request forms is available upon request at the Interlibrary Loan Office - Thomas Jefferson Library, Room 331 or Ward E. Barnes Library Reference Desk.

MOBIUS/MERLIN - Assistance in completing requests to borrow materials not found in our collection from other libraries is available upon request at the reference desk. The Libraries will accommodate use of proxies to check out material for a person with disabilities as long as the person is registered with the University of Missouri-St. Louis Disability Access Services Office. At the time of the request, the Head of Access Services Department will contact the University of Missouri-St. Louis Disability Access Services Office for verification.

The Libraries will extend loan periods for a person with disabilities as long as the person is registered with the University of Missouri-St. Louis Disability Access Services Office and provides the Libraries with a one-business day notice so that verification can be acquired. At the time of the request, the Head of Access Services Department will contact the University of Missouri-St. Louis Disability Access Services Office for verification. For reserve items, the Head of Access Services will contact the faculty for their approval to extend the loan period and ask for their guidance on the length of the extension.

Research Assistance

Reference librarians are available to answer your questions and assist in finding information sources, as well as provide custom tours of the library and assistance in identifying and obtaining special formats. Please see the Ask-A-Librarian page for more infromation.

Parking

Designated parking spaces are available. Please use the following link to find library locations, parking and driving directions to Thomas Jefferson Library, St. Louis Mercantile Library, Western Historical Manuscripts Collection, and University Archives located on the North Campus, and the Ward E. Barnes Library is located on the South Campus of the University of Missouri - St. Louis: - See Maps

Building Entrances and Physical Accessibility

The Thomas Jefferson Library, the Mercantile Library, the Western Historical Manuscripts Collections and University Archives are easily accessible by wheelchair through the front doors which are equipped with automatic door opening devices. Wheelchair accessible restrooms are located on the third level (entrance level) of the Thomas Jefferson Library. Elevators are also accessible from the entrance level. An extra wheelchair is available for use in the Thomas Jefferson and St. Louis Mercantile Libraries. The Ward E. Barnes Library is accessible by wheelchair and wheelchair accessible restrooms are located nearby. Here are some pictures of the entrance at the Ward E. Barnes Library:

Ward E. Barnes Library Entrance from outside building

Ward E. Barnes Library Entrance from inside building

Here are some pictures of the entrance at the Thomas Jefferson Library:

Thomas Jefferson Library Entrance from outside building

Collections

Most of the library collections, including the general collection, reference, and government documents, are housed in open stacks. Portions of these collections are in compact shelving. Persons with mobility disabilities may request assistance from Circulation and Reference desk staff to reach materials and/or to move compact shelving.

Miscellaneous Information

Patrons may use the Table -Top Video Magnifier (CCTV) that enlarges print material. This equipment is located near the entrance to the Library Instruction Room (Room 315) in the Thomas Jefferson Library.
A wheelchair accessible public access workstation is available for priority use at the Thomas Jefferson Library, but not at the Ward E. Barnes Library.
The Library Research Commons in the Thomas Jefferson Library and the Ward E. Barnes Library offers an authorized user one workstation with adaptive software that includes: ToggleMOUSE, Dragon Naturally Speaking, JAWS, Read&Write, TextAloud and ZoomText.
Disabled community patrons will have the same service that we provide to non-disabled community patrons.
The study rooms that are located in the Thomas Jefferson Library may or may not be accessible to wheelchairs. The patron will have to check for themselves or have a friend or assistant check for them.