State Services for the Blind has a new website. Responding to consumer feedback, we've created a more streamlined site with less clutter and more information.
Here are a few tips to help you find your way around our new home on the web.
Clicking on any of the items in the bar at the top of the page will show you all the sub-categories for that section of our website. Screen Reader users will hear "Expand Nav" (for expand the navigation item) before each item in the navigation bar. Hitting the spacebar on "expand nav" will open the list of sub-categories.
We've organized our site according to different groups of consumers visiting our site. On the navigation bar, you'll find links for "Teens," "Job Seekers," "Seniors," "Employers," and "Vendors." Note that links to the Communication Center can be found under "For Teens," "For Job Seekers," and "For Seniors." On those pages, choose the link that says "Braille, Radio, Talking Books, News" to find all that we offer through our Communication Center. Those same pages, (Teens, Job Seekers, Seniors) also include a link to our "Living with Vision Loss" page where you'll find useful resources along with the success stories of some of our consumers.
Our front page gives quick access to news and events at SSB. There, you'll also find links to the most recent podcasts we've produced.
We use the rotating banners on our front page to highlight news, programs, and services. Rotating banners are a series of brief news items or highlights that automatically cycle on your screen. Use the button that says "Stop Feature Carousel" to stop the rotating function. You can then use the numbered buttons to move through each of the banners in the series. The rotating banners are only found on the front page of our website.
Click the link titled "Braille, Radio, Talking Books, News," on our "Teens," "Job Seekers," or "Seniors" pages and you'll find all that we offer in our Communication Center.
The online order form for braille materials, and the information and forms for transcription into human-voiced audio or e-text, can be accessed on our Braille, Audio, and E-text transcription page.
Listeners to the Radio Talking Book Network will find this month's list of books on air under Featured Books.
The Library Services section of the site includes information on digital book players and other equipment, the National Library Service and our online catalog, where you can search for books produced in braille or audio at the Communication Center.
Of course, there's much more on our Communication Center pages, including information on our news services, podcasts, eligibility, and how to apply.
The list of volunteer opportunities and all the details about the skills we're looking for can be found under support us by volunteering, on our Contact Us page.
You can donate directly to the Communication Center through our GiveMN page. We include that link and more information on supporting the Communication Center under Support us financially, also on our Contact us page.
Including our main office in St. Paul, SSB has 13 offices across the state. You can find a nearby office on the Find an Office near You section of our Contact Us page.
Information about our Business Enterprise Program offering opportunities to own and operate a vending services business can be found under For Job Seekers.
Information about the Aging Eyes Initiative, (a partnership with Minnesotans serving seniors to provide support to seniors in the early stages of vision loss) can be found on our For Seniors page. Current Aging Eyes Community partners will find online forms there.
Our consumer council gives guidance and recommendations for our work. Information about the council, and council agendas and documents can be found on the State Rehabilitation Council for the Blind section under About Us.
If you have questions about the services we offer, including eligibility, visit our FAQ section under "About Us."
If you're not sure where to find something on our site, use the search field to quickly find what you need. There's much more on our site, including resources, reports, and information on assistive technology than we've covered in this guide, and the search function will help you quickly find what you need. Please explore and enjoy.
We hope to make this site useful and useable for all visitors. If you can't find something, or if you've encountered a problem, contact our Outreach Coordinator.
At the bottom of each page is a form to subscribe to our email list. We send out emails whenever we have news that might be of interest to our community – usually about once a month. To subscribe, put your email address in the edit box and hit submit. You'll go to a page where you'll be asked to re-enter your email address, to make sure it's correct. You'll also have the option to create a password, which you could use to log-in to the Minnesota email subscription preferences list. You do not need to create a password to subscribe to our list. After hitting submit, you'll get a confirmation screen. On the confirmation screen, you can choose "close," to go back to the SSB site, or "Finish," to go to the email preferences page. The email preferences page will show you all the email subscription options from the Department of Employment and Economic Development. You can choose "Radio Talking Book News" from this list.
