RSEQ 5th Retrospective Issue Introduction

Abstract

In previous Rural Special Education Quarterly (RESC)) retrospectives, one author has written the introduction and another the commentary. We decided to write together because we share similar experiences working together as faculty mentor and doctoral student, conducting research together as faculty colleagues from two universities (one rural, one urban), and being life-long Kentucky residents. In the introduction, we will discuss our individual histories working in rural special education and the importance of the American Council on Rural Special Education on our work. As well, we will draw parallels between issues addressed in this retrospective issue and how those same topics are impacting special education services for children and youth, birtii to 21, in Kentucky. After 7 years of teaching and administration, I (Jennifer Grisham-Brown) started working at the University of Kentucky (UK) in 1990 as Director of the Kentucky DeafBlind Project. While completing my doctorate, I traveled the state providing technical assistance and training to families, school districts and agencies serving children, birth to 21, with dual sensory impairments. The trials of service delivery in a rural state were especially apparent when trying to provide recommended educational services to a very low incidence population. During that time, we learned that strategies, such as personal future planning (Moss & Wiley, 1995), that enlisted community support were necessary to ensure that children with the most significant disabilities received needed services. After completing my doctorate, I worked with Dr. Belva Collins to implement the Training Rural Educators in Kentucky through Distance Learning (TREK-DL) Project. We delivered UK's severe disabilities and early childhood special education master's programs to teachers in rural Kentucky using satellite, interactive video, and on-site distance learning strategies. While training teachers through TREK-DL and later Project Options (for early childhood special education only), I traveled the state supervising students in elementary, middle, and high school resource and inclusive special education classrooms; in Head Start program, public preschool classrooms; and during home visits with early intervention providers. The breadth of issues rural Kentucky teachers deal with on a daily basis include extreme poverty, missed school days for snow and flooding, lack of school resources, and insufficient related services support and are evident across the entire state. During this time, Dr. Collins invited me to become involved with the American Council on Rural Special Education (ACRES). Since becoming a member of ACRES, I have benefitted from the important, high quality RESQ articles, excellent national conferences, and advocacy work of the organization. ACRES provides a niche for those interested in rural education in that it provides the most up-to-date information on using distance learning technologies and working with diverse populations of children and families. With changing technology, my treks to rural Kentucky have reduced, but the needs of our state remain. Presently, as Professor in the Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling, we train early childhood educators in rural areas of the state. Our early intervention providers are dealing with many of the same issues I found some 20 years ago when I started providing technical assistance in Kentucky. However, those issues are exacerbated by one of the worst methamphetamine problems in the country, dramatic increases in our English Language Learner population, and a devastating state economy. ACRES, and what it stands for, is more relevant than ever! I (Sarah Hawkins) was introduced to ACRES as a doctoral student at the University of Kentucky. As a doctoral student, I took a doctoral seminar class that focused on various topics, and, one semester, the topic was No Child Left Behind and its effect on special education. …