Who We Are

The Massachusetts Accessible Instructional Materials Library (AIM Library), formerly called the Vision Resource Library (VRL), acquires, maintains and distributes specialized instructional materials, as well as coordinates textbooks in Braille, Large Print, Audio and E-Text from NIMAS file sets, to assist school districts and educators to provide visually impaired and print disabled students with an appropriate education and equal access to the general curriculum.

The AIM Library serves as an additional resource for school districts seeking to borrow materials on a per school year basis. The AIM Library is not equipped to respond to all of the needs of the Commonwealth's students with visual impairments and print disabilities. Therefore, school districts cannot rely upon the AIM Library solely to meet their obligations to provide any and all specialized materials deemed essential for student learning and that are identified in the students IEP.

The AIM Library is able to offer the following resources for loan: Braille writers, tape recorders, slate and styluses, pre-braille and literacy kits, tactile tools, raised lined maps, standardized tests, some assessment tools, and other materials provided by Federal Quota Funds through the American Printing House for the Blind. The AIM Library can refer districts to specialized sources nationally to purchase materials not in the library's possession. Resources in this area are very limited; public school districts are encouraged to use local resources for transcription and enlargement of textbooks in order to facilitate access to these materials for the students in their district.

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education contracts with the Carroll Center for the Blind to operate the AIM Library in Canton, MA.