School for visually impaired offers important services

In response to some of the information that has been floating throughout the halls of the Legislature since the release of the study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy, or WSIPP, I would like to take this opportunity to tell you a story of success.

It is our hope the controversy that this study has created can be used to expand quality services for blind and visually impaired children, and therefore provide more options for success.

As the WSIPP researchers discovered, trying to analyze data on a somewhat small number of students with a wide range of needs is very difficult. There doesn't appear to be any one approach that works the best for any one blind or visually impaired child at any particular time in his/her educational program. This is confirmed in the literature review that was conducted as part of the study.

The development of strong partnerships between residential schools and local education agencies to find ways to provide for the comprehensive needs of children seems to be one of the best solutions. WSSB has developed hundreds of partnerships over the years and is currently serving about 600 students per month from throughout our state.

The services these children receive range from intensive short-term placement options on campus; to providing trained teachers that work with children in their local districts; to providing equipment, materials, consultative services, distance (digital) learning class options, summer school programs, etc., wherever the needs arise.

WSSB has always had a philosophy that if a child needs a service, we are going to figure out a way to assist that child, parent, or district, even when the state has not provided the funding. Therefore, we have a moral obligation to be creative and make a difference for that person in helping them achieve success.

Due to WSSB's national reputation, families from throughout our state and from other states have relocated to Vancouver or Washington, so their child can access quality intensive services either at or through WSSB. The gains that can be made through the 24-hour program in short periods of time are amazing, as is the success rate of children at WSSB.

Employment success

On a national basis, some of the data suggest that there might be as high as 70 percent unemployment within the blind community. Contrary to this data, for students who have graduated from WSSB since 1998, the success rate ranges from 76 percent (post secondary educational program, employed) to 87 percent if you consider those who have chosen to be homemakers.

WSSB challenges the belief that residential schools (on-campus programs) are much more expensive than those provided in the local districts. To the contrary, when examining the amount of specialized services provided to comparable high-needs students, the residential school should be viewed as a very efficient model in meeting blind and visually impaired children's comprehensive needs.

Through intensive comprehensive short-term education placement, blind and visually impaired children are able to build a base of skills that allows these children to experience a higher level of success in a shorter period of time and therefore transition back to the local district with the skills needed to be successful. It is important to mention that the typical student that attends the residential school is usually not the lower-cost, low-vision students that account for the largest percentage of visually impaired children in the state.

WSSB has had a great track record in the implementation of initiatives that have made a huge difference in the lives of blind and visually impaired children in our state. The leadership for these statewide changes has come from the Washington State School for the Blind working in partnership with teachers of the visually impaired and the blind consumer organizations from throughout our state.

Please review the complete study and comments at www.wssb.wa.gov. I invite you to check out the school and see what is really happening statewide for blind and visually impaired children.
Dean Stenehjem is superintendent of the Washington State School for the Blind.