Recruitment of Blacks into Special Education through an Interuniversity Linkage

Abstract

This article describes a cooperative program of special education teacher preparation between Lincoln University and the Pennsylvania State University. The program represents an effort to recruit black students into an established master of education program and to prepare them for careers in special education. The need addressed by the program is the underrepresentation of blacks in the field and the problem of overcoming the "opportunity cost" of continued professional study. The program operates in the following manner. Students who are juniors in education or liberal arts programs at Lincoln University and who are interested in careers in special education are invited to appty for admission. Those who satisfy the admissions requirements and are admitted will receive support during their senior years at Lincoln as they complete their undergraduate majors. They are subsequently supported during their M.Ed. programs at Penn State, initially with traineeships and later with graduate assistantships. Program evaluation is discussed, along with the potential benefits of increasing minority representation in the field.