Maryland Accessible Textbook Program (MAT)

Maryland Accessible Textbook Program

The Maryland General Assembly created the Maryland Accessible Textbook Program (MAT) to provide additional options for all Maryland college students who are blind or visually impaired, or who have other disabilities that make reading print difficult. It is a program housed in the Maryland Library for the Blind and Print Disabled (LBPD) in Baltimore. Colleges, universities, and community colleges, whether public or private, generally have a person or office to assist individuals with disabilities with a variety of disability-related issues. Services available from Disability Student Services (DSS) staff include test accommodations and assistance with locating accessible books, among others.

The MAT program offers you an additional option to obtain accessible textbooks for your own use if you want another entity to assist with book procurement. The DSS office at your school may also use MAT to procure electronic texts for you. MAT is committed to providing a seamless book acquisition process for everyone who chooses its services.

Eligibility for MAT

MAT can serve students attending any Maryland 2- or 4-year public or private college who have a print disability that makes printed material difficult to read. Before each semester for which you need books and prior to service from the MAT program, you need to sign and return a copy of the student agreement, which MAT will provide on request. Publishers who provide MAT electronic files for your use in school have several expectations regarding how you will use those files. The agreement binds you to accept those restrictions and expectations to participate. The MAT also requires proof of your disability that we keep confidential. This proof can be any one of the following:

LBPD patrons automatically qualify for service.
A statement from your doctor indicating your disability;
A statement from your DORS counselor confirming you are eligible for the MAT program and that supporting medical documentation is available;
A statement of eligibility from the DSS office of the school you attend or from another expert at the school who can make such a statement on the school's behalf

By law, preference in receiving services is given to veterans who have been honorably discharged from the United States armed forces.

Important Facts

Apply Early

As early as possible, before each semester, you or your DSS office must provide MAT with the required textbook names. You also need to purchase the book, something required by the agreement you will sign. This is because publishers will not provide MAT or DSS offices with books for anyone without proof of purchase.

Required Information:

MAT requires a significant amount of information to identify the books you need. This includes the title, author, copyright, edition number, and the International Standard Book Number, commonly abbreviated as the ISBN number; there are 10-digit and 13-digit ISBN numbers, and we prefer the latter. The more information we receive from you and the more accurate it is, the faster we can locate and deliver your books.

Locating/Providing Electronic Books

MAT will search multiple sources and make every effort to locate electronic copies of the books you need. If an existing electronic copy cannot be located, MAT will scan the material and provide you with a digital file as a last resort. The files you receive using these methods may not be the type of electronic file you prefer, and they may not be of the highest quality, but they should arrive much more quickly than has generally been the case. This will reduce the risk of falling behind your peers because you don't have the same materials.

Accessing Electronic Textbook Files

MAT staff can provide technical assistance to help you access the files we provide. At MAT, we are aware of the latest devices for accessing electronic books and the file types that work best. We cannot provide all available devices, but we can help you learn about them so you can decide which, if any, would meet your unique disability and other requirements. In addition, we can often suggest sources to demonstrate the devices and potential sources to support their purchase. Access to books is also often possible for little or no cost. We look forward to helping you acquire the electronic book files you need to excel in your pursuit of higher education.