JOHNSTON, Iowa (AP) — A committee will recommend that the Iowa Board of Regents expand educational offerings to blind and deaf students by creating a regional system that uses existing campuses in Vinton and Council Bluffs and creates additional centers at three new sites.
The (Cedar Rapids) Gazette reported (Proposal sets 5 regional centers to serve deaf, blind students | TheGazette ) that a special committee chose the plan at a meeting Monday, following months of discussions and three public forums.
Patrick Clancy, superintendent of the School for the Deaf in Council Bluffs, said the plan will be presented to the Regents at the board's Dec. 5 meeting, but action isn't likely until February to give officials time to consider the proposal.
The Board of Regents oversees the deaf school and a statewide system for blind students as well as Iowa's three public universities. The Regents asked the committee to study the effectiveness and efficiency of the services it now offers to about 500 blind and visually impaired students and 1,500 who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Clancy, who also leads the Vinton-based Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired, said test scores indicate deaf and blind students should be performing better and that some rural areas may not be meeting students' needs.
"We know there's students without access to as much high-quality instruction as what they need," Clancy said. "There's a gap that exists in some locales."
By creating more regional sites, a majority of committee members agreed those students could be served better, Clancy said.
That regional approach would make use of the residential school for the deaf in Council Bluffs, the former Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School's Vinton campus and three additional centers. The proposal would cost $3.2 million more than current spending, and Clancy said the extra costs would be shared by various entities, including local school districts.
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Information from: The Gazette, Eastern Iowa Breaking News and Headlines | thegazette.com - Cedar Rapids, Iowa City
Read more: Regional approach for Iowa's blind, deaf students - SFGate