Browse-and-Borrow Visits to Missouri School for the Blind’s Library Media Center

Missouri students who read braille may visit the MSB library to browse through the braille and print-braille collections and choose books to borrow.

What’s the Process for Arranging a Visit?

  • An appointment must be made in advance to arrange a time with the MSB librarian for the visit. To make an appointment, call 314-633-1566 or email Mike McQueen, the librarian, at Mike.McQueen@msb.dese.mo.gov to set up a day and time for the Browse-and-Borrow Visit.

What’s the Process for Making a Browse-and-Borrow Visit?

  • Students must be accompanied at all times by a professional staff member from the student’s school district.
  • Students may browse through the shelves to read and select books that they would like to borrow. This is a rare treat for many people who read Braille, to actually be able to handle the books, look through them, and decide for themselves which ones they would like to read.

What’s the Process for Borrowing Books?

  • The professional with the student may check out up to five books (or five volumes in a multivolume book) at a time for use by each student. Books must be returned before more books may be borrowed, with no more than five books or volumes on loan for the use of any one student at a time.
  • The professional working with the student may set the guidelines as to whether the books must stay at school or may go home with the student.
  • Books may be borrowed for six weeks at a time, and may be renewed once as long as no one else has requested them.

What’s the Process for Returning Books?

  • Books borrowed while on a visit to the MSB library media center may be returned when returning for another visit or through the mail to:
    Library Statewide Services
    Missouri School for the Blind
    3815 Magnolia Avenue
    St. Louis, MO 63110
  • Library books returned by mail may be sent Free Matter for the Blind through the U.S. Postal Service.
  • The majority of MSB’s braille library books are the same as those that are in Wolfner Talking Book and Braille Library’s collection and care must be taken to keep the books separate. Please be sure to return MSB library books to MSB and Wolfner library books to Wolfner. MSB library books are stamped “Library Media Center, Missouri School for the Blind” on an inside page of the book, and also have white spine labels either on the lower spine or on the lower left-hand side of the front cover.
  • If books are not returned, borrowing privileges may be suspended until lost materials are returned or replaced.

For more information, contact Mike McQueen, MSB librarian, at 314-633-1566 or Mike.McQueen@msb.dese.mo.gov