VIDBE-Q 2025 Volume 70 Issue 1
states. Consistent with findings documented by Schles and Chastain (2023), most
of our teacher candidates are educators adding the endorsement to work with
students who are blind and visually impaired. Many of these teachers had a student
who is blind/visually impaired and were intrigued by best practices to provide
instruction, others appreciate the one-on-one nature of working with students, and
some were recruited by existing TSVIs that recognized an innovative teacher who
would be a good match for this field. As our undergraduate program in special
education with a concentration in blindness and vision impairment is less than five
years old, we are recruiting more students who seek initial licensure as teachers
and plan to begin their professional careers as TSVIs.
Figure 2
VI Consortium TSVI candidates
