The building of transformational leadership for the field of sensory disabilities:
The National Leadership Consortium
in Sensory Disabilities
Brooke C. Smith, PhD, COMS and Audrey
J. Smith, PhD
Salus University
bsmith@salus.edu
Doctoral programs constitute a tremendous
impact on any field relative to scholarship, research and leadership, learned skills heavily influenced by mentors, schooling, and experience.
Over a decade ago, a group of university leaders
in the field of blindness and visual impairment
met to express concern and share ideas and
strategies to address the increasing shortage of
professionals trained at the doctoral level, those
destined to continue carrying the leadership torch
into the future. Their efforts led to a U.S. Department of Education and Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) initiative, resulting in a
multi-year funded initiative to support the preparation of leadership personnel in the education of
students with visual impairments, titled the National Center for Leadership in Visual Impairment,
directed by Kathleen M. Huebner (Salus University). Specifically, emphasis was placed on the
following areas of interest: higher education
teaching; research; public policy; administration
at national, state and/or local levels; curriculum
development; and supervision. A leadership consortium of 14 universities, 15 public advisory
council members, 19 Doctoral Fellows, and
OSEP administration was formed and resulted in
the eventual graduation of 17 Doctoral Fellows,
with two Fellows at dissertation phase.
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