July 31, 2001

Contact: Tom Skrtic, special education, (785) 864-4954

KU's deaf education program becomes part of School of Education

LAWRENCE -- Elizabeth "Beth" Yoder, Lawrence master's student in deaf education at the University of Kansas, may not notice an administrative change in the deaf education program at KU -- and that's just fine with her and 23 other students in deaf education.

Administration of the KU deaf education program, the only such program offered in Kansas, has moved from the School of Allied Health at the KU Medical Center campus in Kansas City, Kan., to the School of Education on the Lawrence campus.

Angela Lumpkin, KU dean of education, said, "KU will continue to serve the education needs of the deaf and hard of hearing in Kansas through our special education department, which ranks number one in the country."

Tom Skrtic, KU chair of special education, said change will help KU expand the research component to make it consistent with other graduate programs in special education. KU also plans to revise the teacher education component of deaf education to meet new state certification standards to be issued this fall.

In addition to teacher certification, KU's nearly 50-year-old program is the only one in Kansas to offer master's and doctoral degrees in deaf education, as well as an undergraduate minor for education students preparing to teach in regular classrooms. Although allied health faculty had administered the program, KU's School of Education has granted the degrees in deaf education.

Classes will continue to be offered at KU's Edwards campus, 12600 Quivira, Overland Park, said Sally Roberts, acting director for deaf education. The course in the anatomy and physiology of the ear will continue to be offered at the School of Allied Health.

Yoder, who is deaf, completed KU's five-year-teacher education program this spring and plans to specialize in teaching the deaf and hard of hearing.

Yoder is one of 24 students enrolled in the program, Roberts said. Eighteen of these students are certification candidates, 16 of whom are seeking master's degrees; four, doctoral degrees; and two are undergraduates minoring in deaf education.

Teachers such as Suthaharan "Sutha" Ramanathan, Olathe, who received his bachelor's degree in education from Gallaudet College in Washington, D.C., and a master's degree in deaf education from Western Maryland Universityin Westminster, are enrolled in KU's program to earn certification required in Kansas. Both Gallaudet and Western Maryland are nationally known for serving a deaf student population.

KU's program is one of about 50 graduate and undergraduate programs in deaf education offered throughout the United States.