History

The Center for Literacy and Disability Studies is a unit within the Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Medicine, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Formerly known as the Carolina Literacy Center, the CLDS was established in September, 1990 to address the literacy needs of individuals with severe speech and physical impairments in North Carolina. The CLDS has expanded its focus since then and now addresses the needs of individuals with a range of disabilities in response to the demands of families, educators, and health care professionals across the United States and the world. The CLDS has concentrated most of its resources on individuals with severe and multiple disabilities, an estimated 70-90 percent of whom read and write at levels significantly below their non-disabled peers.

Read the USSAC Newsletter article regarding the Center's re-establishment and first 15 months in operation.