EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – El Paso Museum of History will start programming for people with acute sensibility to light and sound starting Saturday, April 8.
In what the Museum calls Low Sensory Saturdays, visitors will be able to enjoy the exhibits under dimmed lights and sound. “We are proud to take the first step to make our museum more accessible and engaging for all,” explained El Paso Museum of History Director Erica Marin. “We have just completed our first phase of accessibility work and will be working on our second phase later this year in partnership with community groups,” she added.
Starting April 8, and every second Saturday of the month, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Low-Sensory Saturdays will include semi-private and quiet space availability as well as easy hands-on crafts. Upon request, the Museum will also offer noise-reducing headphones and weighed lap pads for use by any patron, and quiet spaces with low lighting.
Additionally, the Museum announced the exhibition of 3D-printed scans of artifacts in their collections that visitors can handle. These objects were created by local students exposed to the history of disability rights movements. The permanent exhibit is called Changing Pass: People, Land & Memory and will include braille labels and QR codes with recorded audio descriptions.
The project was funded in part by the El Paso Community Foundation, El Paso Electric’s Community Partner Program and Marathon’s Community Investment Program.
