Accessibility.
Your access is essential
Our Commitment to Accessibility
The Northwest Minnesota Arts Council (NWMAC) does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the admission or access to, or treatment or employment in, its services, programs, or activities. Upon request, accommodation will be provided to allow individuals with disabilities to participate in all Northwest Minnesota Arts Council services, programs, and activities.
Access Coordinator & Contact
Please email Mara Hanel at director@nwartscouncil.org or call 218-745-8886 to connect about your needs.
Arts Council office hours are typically 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday, but please call 218-745-8886 ahead of time or email director@nwartscouncil.org to make an appointment and ensure that our one staff person (who works in the building) is present and available.
Building & Facilities
NWMAC rents space in the Westbridge Center at 109 South Minnesota Street, Warren, MN 56762. This space was a hospital and clinic prior to becoming our office space with the NWRDC and Area Agency on Aging. It is one level with easy access through very wide doors. The space has push button door openers as required when it was a clinic.
Signage in the building includes braille for ADA compliant restrooms.
When visiting, the ADA accessible entrance with an automatic door is on the northeast side of the building. Inside there is a tabletop bell on the left side of the front desk to call for assistance if there is no staff member present.
A restroom is located in the lobby through automatic doors and is not gender specific. It is a very large open restroom with grab bars. All restrooms have grab bars, but not all restrooms in the building are fully compliant with ADA guidelines; please ask us which will meet your needs.
You are welcome to use our refrigerator to store food or medicine as well as our private space for prayer, lactation, quiet/sensory break, etc. A PC laptop and WiFi are available for anyone to use. A telephone with volume control is available for public use by request.
When events are held at locations other than the NWMAC offices, the event description will include all accessibility details about that space.
Access Services
NWMAC is happy to offer our grant guidelines and workshop presentations/materials in Large Print or other formats. We request advance notice for these requests that vary according to format, from one week to on-demand, but it never hurts to ask. On each grant webpage there is a link to the guidelines in a text format that is friendly to screen readers. This text format also allows you to easily adjust the font size in your browser. Signage in the office is 18 point font or larger.
We can provide ASL interpreters or captioning for any of our workshops or events (one week advance notice requested), and make accommodations for dietary needs and fragrance sensitivity (two days’ advance notice requested). Simple audio description of audio/visual presentations (e.g. Powerpoint slides) is always provided in workshops and trainings.
Application Assistance
We are aware that some applicants may face challenges accessing the online interface NWMAC uses to manage applications, especially those using screen readers. The company that makes this product, Foundant Technologies, assures us that their products are tested for accessibility with NVDA, a screen reader software compatible with Windows available for free download. Applicants with disabilities wishing to use other means to apply can work with NWMAC staff to adapt our typical processes to ensure you have equal opportunity to submit an application. Solutions we have previously implemented include filling out an adapted form in Microsoft Word, and providing verbal responses that NWMAC will share via audio recording or transcribe. To begin a conversation about how we can help, please contact the program coordinator for the grant or service opportunity you wish to pursue, or email Mara Hanel at director@nwartscouncil.org or 218-745-8886.
Additional In-Person Access
If you would like any other assistance during your visit, there are three options: 1) ask the nearest Northwest Regional Development Commission staff member in the building, 2) ring the doorbell installed on the right side outer frame of NWRDC’s office door in Westbridge Center, or 3) ring the bell towards the center of the front desk.
Accessibility Resources for Arts Organizations
If you would like to learn more about making your organization accessible to people with disabilities, please visit the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council’s page titled Accessibility Resources for Arts Organizations.