The Literacy & Communication Model Demonstration Classroom Project for Students with Deaf-Blindness

Through a contract with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, North  Carolina Deafblind Project, the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies is working with selected school sites and individual students to identify and implement exemplary practices in literacy and communication for students who have been identified with deaf-blindness. Model sites are located in 4 different counties in the state. The students in the project have made remarkable changes. Some of their stories and accomplishments are being shared to show the student changes that can occur over time when given access to meaningful literacy & communication activities. To learn more about the Deaf-blind Model Demonstration Project and download resources, go to the project homepage.

*A note about deaf-blindness: There is a state census of students who have deaf-blindness. Being on the census entitles students and those that work with the students to special services and resources.  Students do NOT need to be completely deaf and completely blind to be on the state roster.  Goto the Deaf-Blind Project homepage to learn more about the Deaf-Blind census and available services. 

The North Carolina PreK Model Demonstration Program

The Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, under a subcontract with the North Carolina Office of School Readiness and Department of Public Instruction, Exceptional Children's Division, supports a system of PreK Model DemonstrationSites. Distributed across the state, the ten sites provide regional opportunities for early childhood educators to observe high quality PreK programs in action. Each of the ten sites is inclusive of children with and without disabilities. To learn more about the PreK Model Demonstration Project and download resources, go to the project homepage.  

The Time is Now in PreK - An Early Reading First Program

Written, supported, and evaluated by The Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, The Time is Now in PreK was awarded to Richmond County Schools in south central North Carolina.  The project, funded from 2007-2010, includes children with and without disabilities from 20 preschool classrooms across Richmond County. 

Route 66 Literacy

     After years of development, our instructional reading interface will soon be available for use through a partnership with the Benetech Initiative.  An outgrowth of Project ALL-Link: The Adolescent Literacy Learning Link, Route 66 Literacy is an interactive literacy learning tool designed for adolescents and adults with significant disabilities who read like beginners.  Funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, Office of Special Education Research, the original ALL-Link was tested across 12 weeks of use with adolescents with severe speech and physical impairments.  More recently, Route 66 Literacy has been field tested with adults with developmental disabilities across 6 weeks of instruction.  Read about the research base for Route 66 Literacy.

Project Converge

Project Converge is a Phase I Steppingstones of Innovative Technologies grant awarded to the Center for Literacy & Disability Studies by the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.  The grant is a collaborative effort among the Center, AbleNet, Inc., and Don Johnston, Inc.  The three organizations developed new technologies that bring together the existing MEville to WEville Early Literacy and Communication Instructional Program and the Start-to-Finish Literacy Starters. The new scientifically-supported product line The MEville to WEville with Literacy Starters Program is available through both companies.  Read about the results of the study involving 47 students with moderate to profound intellectual disabilities here.