About School and Group Accounts

Free Bookshare.org Memberships, Funded by OSEP, for U.S Schools and Qualifying U.S. Students

As of October 1, 2007, memberships for qualifying U.S. students of all ages including K-12, post-secondary, and adult education are now free, thanks to special funding from the Office of Special Education Programs. (Read more about the award.) U.S. educators and qualifying students have access to tens of thousands of digital books, including textbooks, literature, current popular reading, teacher recommended reading, reference materials, newspapers and periodicals, and much more.

Qualifying U.S. students may access Bookshare.org in two ways, either through a school membership or an individual membership.

Individual Memberships for U.S. Students

Schools in the U.S. can sign up their students for free individual memberships (funded by OSEP) to download books on their own. Students under the age of 18 will need permission from a parent or guardian. To open individual memberships for students:

1. Have the sponsoring school complete the school registration process listing qualified students and certify that the students' proof of disability is on file at the school.
2. Give the student an Individual Membership form to finish registration as an individual.
3. Be sure to write the name of the sponsoring school on the Individual Membership form before the student sends it in.

Students who want to obtain free individual memberships without the assistance of their schools can submit the Individual Membership and proof of disability forms on their own, and request a student subscription online. For more information, visit our Individual Subscriptions page.

School Memberships

With a school membership, also funded by OSEP if within the U.S., teachers and staff members download books for their students with qualifying print disabilities. U.S. public K-12 schools can also access our NIMAC-sourced titles under this type of membership. To benefit from this award and begin to provide qualified print-disabled students with books in accessible formats, please visit "Create a School or Group account," and select the appropriate type of school or organization.

Other Organizational Memberships

Other organizations serving the print-disabled such as libraries, rehabilitation agencies, resource centers, retirement communities, group homes, and educational institutions outside the U.S. may also open accounts for their readers. Organizations have two choices for providing books to members: purchase books in blocks for their readers or purchase individual memberships for readers. Either option allows access to Bookshare.org services for one year. Selection of the purchase option occurs at the completion of the registration process. In order to activate the membership, either the organization or the individual will have to provide the Member's proof of disability.

To create an organizational membership, please visit "Create a School or Group account," and select the appropriate type of organization.

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