U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

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Accessibility

All National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) museums, research facilities, and Presidential Libraries are accessible (ADA compliant). If you have questions regarding a specific location’s accessibility, please contact the facility directly.

Notice of Rights Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794d and the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. §§ 4151--57) )

Disability Services

Blind and Low Vision Visitors
NARA’s museum has five copies of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence in braille. Please contact visitor services for more information at visitorservices@nara.gov or call 202-357-6816.

Deaf/Hard of Hearing Visitors
Most research facilities and all Presidential Libraries provide Interpretypes® as a quick and easy means of face-to-face communication between deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing people. These can be used for simple research questions, visitor Q & A, and general information. Interpretypes® will not be replacing interpreters, but are a means of immediate access for those with hearing loss. For information about interpreted museum tours, please email visitorservices@nara.gov or call 202-357-6816.

Sign language interpreting and CART (Communication Access in Real Time) services are available with a seven business day notice. Please contact the facility in which you are interested in visiting for more information about reserving services.

Welcome video tour of the National Archives Museum in American Sign Language (ASL).

Personal Assistant Services (PAS) information
NARA provides personal assistant services (PAS) to NARA employees with targeted disabilities who require assistance with basic activities of daily living such as eating, removing and putting on clothing, and using the restroom unless doing so will impose an undue hardship on the Agency.  Personal assistance services differ from medical services and services that are typically performed by someone who often has the job title of “personal assistant.” Personal assistance services are non-medical services that allow individuals with targeted disabilities to perform basic human activities of daily living such as eating, removing and putting on clothing, and using the restroom. A full list of targeted disabilities can be found in NARA 303, Processing Reasonable Accommodation Requests for Employees and Applicants with Disabilities, Section 303.4m.  Personal assistance services are not the same as services that help the individuals perform job-related tasks, such as filing, or using a computer.

Read the NARA 303 - Reasonable Accommodations.

Reasonable Accommodation Procedures
NARA is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to its employees and applicants for employment to ensure that individuals with disabilities enjoy full access to equal employment opportunity at NARA. Access the policy. 

Service Animals
NARA has a Service Animal Policy, which permits animals specifically trained to perform tasks for persons with disabilities, access to public areas. Therapy animals are not considered service animals under the ADA Amendments Act of 2008. Service animals must be under the control of their handlers at all times.

Wheelchair Users
Wheelchairs are provided on a first-come, first-serve basis. 

Information Communication Technology

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is committed to making its electronic and information technologies accessible to the widest possible audience, including individuals with disabilities. NARA regularly monitors its sites to ensure that they meet and exceed the requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. 794d), as amended in 1998, and the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

NARA's Section 508 Coordinators

NARA's Federal Section 508 Coordinator is the primary point of contact for NARA's efforts to provide individuals with disabilities with equal access to electronic information and data. These efforts pertain to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1998.

  • Our Section 508 Coordinators: 
    • Policy - Uttam Kumar, Eric Chaskes  
    • Forms - Tamee Fechhelm 
    • Technical - Jocelyn Blakely-Hill
       
  • Email:  508feedback@nara.gov
     
  • Mail:
    National Archives and Records Administration
    Section 508 Coordinator
    8601 Adelphi Road, Room 5320
    College Park, MD 20740-6001
     
  • Telephone: 301-837-6034

Alternate Access to Web Information

If the format of any material on our website interferes with your ability to access the information, please contact us at the address above.

To allow us to respond in a manner most helpful to you, please let us know:

  1. Nature of your accessibility issue.
  2. Preferred format in which to receive the material.
  3. Web address (URL) of the material with which you are having difficulty.
  4. Your contact information.

Documents on our website are in many formats. The primary file types we use are.

HTML and Images

Generally, we use Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). In creating HTML documents, we follow Section 508 standards; for example, we include alternate text to describe graphics.

Adobe Acrobat Reader and PDF Files

Our website also contains documents in Adobe Portable Document Format ® (PDF). Most PDF files will be accessible to those who use assistive technology such as screen readers. Some legacy or software-created PDF files may not be accessible. If you are experiencing difficulty reading any PDF file, please contact us, and we will send you an alternate version.

For detailed, up-to-date information about Acrobat Reader or the PDF format, visit Adobe Systems Inc.

PowerPoint Files

You can view files that are in Microsoft PowerPoint ® (PPT) format if you have any version of PowerPoint installed on your computer.

Word Files

You can view files in Microsoft Word® (DOC) format if you have Word, version 6.0 or higher, installed on your computer. Word documents can also be viewed with many other word-processing software programs.

 Learn More

Section 508 is a Federal law that requires agencies to provide individuals with disabilities equal access to electronic information and data comparable to those who do not have disabilities unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. The Section 508 standards are the technical requirements and criteria that are used to measure conformance within this law. More information on Section 508 and the technical standards can be found on the following sites:

  • Section508.gov provides Federal employees and the public with access to resources for understanding and implementing the requirements of Section 508, including Section 508 tools, resources, standards, and news.
  • The U.S. Access Board's Section 508 Homepage provides information on Section 508 law, frequently asked questions, and standards.
  • The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) homepage provides strategies, guidelines, and resources to make the Web accessible to people with disabilities.

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