About The Atlanta Braille Volunteers

Library of Congress

• Who are the Atlanta Braille Volunteers?
• What is the class about?
• Do I have to have a certain type of education, or a certain degree?
• What characteristics does a good braillist have to have?
• Who originated this course?
• How long does the course take?
• Tell me about the weekly class.
• What does it cost?

Who are the Atlanta Braille Volunteers?
The ABV is a 30+ year-old group of local, nationally-certified braillists whose primary mission is to serve the students of Georgia by transcribing educational materials. We are strictly a volunteer group, taking no pay for our services. We work in conjunction with the Georgia Informational Materials Center, located in College Park. Due to the cataloging efforts of many national Braille agencies, materials brailled by us are available to students all over this country and in Europe.

What is the class about?
The class involves learning the contractions, abbreviations and formats of English Braille, in order to be able to Braille textbooks [the ABV's primary mission], gift books, library books, and special requests [such as hymnals, restaurant menus, appliance directions, etc.]

This course covers Grade 2 braille, which is what is used in most materials beyond those for beginning readers. Additional courses are available in math, music and scientific materials, but those are not taught at this time by the ABV.

Do I have to have a certain type of education, or a certain degree?
All the people who take the class have a high-school education, with many having associate or advanced degrees. However, specific educational requirements do not exist at this time.

What characteristics does a good braillist have to have?
A good braillist needs to love words and books, to have a knack for language, to have an eye for detail, and to be self-motivated.

Who originated this course?
The Library of Congress took over the design of this course from the American Red Cross. Originally, it was intended only as a correspondence course, but over the years has been administrated by Braille agencies throughout the country. However, the materials and design of the class, as well as the certification manuscript [the "test"] are all handled through the Library of Congress, which also awards the certification. This certification is recognized nationally, not just in Georgia.

How long does the course take?
Most classes run for a year, after which the students work at their own rate to complete the required certification manuscript-generally an additional month or two. However, depending upon an individual's circumstances, the course can be completed more quickly or more slowly. Most important is the amount of time a person has to devote to practicing the Braille outside of the weekly class.

Tell me about the weekly class.
Currently, the class meets on Wednesdays, from 10 to noon, at the Sandy Springs branch of the Fulton County Library, located on Mount Vernon Road, about two blocks east of Roswell Road. Weekly class attendance is encouraged, but not required. Many people find the class atmosphere, as well as the camaraderie, very helpful in clarifying the material and in staying encouraged. Other students take the class on their own, e-mailing lessons to an ABV instructor; still others take the class through correspondence directly from the Library of Congress.

What does it cost?
Classroom materials [which include a text and an answer-workbook] are provided at no cost by the Library of Congress. The Atlanta Braille volunteers assess a $10 charge to cover the cost of Braille paper, and brailler repair. You will be given the use of a Perkins brailler for as long as you remain affiliated with Atlanta Braille Volunteers. The braillers are usually handed out during the first class. Because the braillers are very valuable and hard to replace, the ABV is currently re-thinking its policy and may at some point begin asking for a deposit on the braillers loaned out to members. However, that is not yet the case.

You may also decide to use the computer to do your Braille work. While you need to have specific questions answered by the classroom instructor, generally speaking you need a computer that runs DOS or WINDOWs, a printer, and a keyboard that can handle six-key input. Several free software packages are available for your use while you are a student. After certification, you will want to invest in a fully-featured program that includes translation and transcription. These programs are available commercially, and have a huge range in price and features.