VIDBE-Q Volume 67 Issue 3
In 2019, an opportunity presented itself to tackle the challenge of limited
summer opportunities for children with low incidence sensory disabilities (LISD).
The authors (both university faculty and CoPIs) were awarded grant funding from
the Ohio Deans Compact on Exceptional Children to design and implement two 1-
week summer camp experiences for children with LISD. The Ohio Deans Compact
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grant provided the opportunity for university faculty, personnel from
partnering education agencies, and school districts to collaborate, plan, and
implement new summer experiences in more rural areas of the state. An additional
goal of the project was to utilize the summer camps as a practicum option for
future teachers of the visually impaired (TVI), teachers of the Deaf (TOD), and
Orientation and Mobility instructors in the TVI and TOD Consortium programs led
by Shawnee State University and partner Institutions for Higher Education.
Identifying summer practicum placements for future professionals in the areas of
sensory impairment education can be a significant challenge to several factors
including lack of qualified personnel in the sensory impairment areas, and limited
summer education options for P-12 children with sensory impairments. By
developing additional summer practicum options, this would create a win-win for
both future professionals in sensory impairments as well as children and families
who lack summer educational programming options.
