VIDBE-Q Volume 67 Issue 4
and mobility specialist, and teacher of the deaf/hard of hearing. In the Fall of 2016,
when Ivey transitioned from the severe and profound setting to a self-contained
classroom for students with mild intellectual disabilities, she came into my
classroom. I had worked in the classroom for twelve years prior to Ivey coming,
and in those twelve years I had never encountered a student with deafblindness. In
fact, she was the first student with any form of sensory loss that I had ever had the
pleasure of meeting. I considered myself to be a veteran teacher. I was comfortable
with the IEP and eligibility process, I was skilled in selecting instructional
strategies and materials to meet the needs of my students, I worked well with
colleagues and families, and I had multiple degrees in the field of special
education. None of this, however, prepared me to meet the very specific needs of a
student with deafblindness.
As per the typical model in our county in Georgia, as Ivey's classroom
teacher, I was also her case manager. This means that I was responsible for
coordinating with service providers, communicating with parents, overseeing the
implementation of her IEP, and ensuring that due process procedures are followed.
For Ivey, this also involved overseeing the work of the intervener, since
interveners work under the supervision of a classroom teacher or other person
responsible for implementing the IEP. I thankfully received support from many in
the field of deafblindness (our state DeafBlind project, Linda Alsop from Utah
