A former high school teacher with a lifelong passion for reading, Hadley wanted to learn braille.

He worked to build and manage an organization that could sustain itself while offering education free of charge.

In 1922, Dr. Brown was appointed to be Hadley's first President of the board of trustees and would serve in this role until his death in 1953.

[4] By the early 1960s, Hadley was exploring new approaches to distance learning, producing braille books and audio recordings from its building in downtown Winnetka, for distribution to a growing population of visually impaired people across the country.

In addition, Hadley's call-in discussion groups offer live support from experts and a chance to connect and learn from peers.