Samples and summary of faculty scholarly activities - St. John Fisher ...

special needs as was Charlie’s first school nurse a decade and half previously, almost precluded
his return to a second day of classes. On his first day, he was referred to the Dean’s Office by
the campus health center for what medical staff members were willing to consider a student
conduct issue in terms of cleanliness and adequate personal hygiene!
After successfully completing an Associate’s degree within two years, Charlie
transferred to a four-year state school in the area, and again faced significant challenges in
transition. Fortunately by this time, his parents had learned enough themselves to seek the
support of an advocacy agency and the provision of case management services. Charlie’s case
manager from CP Rochester helped coordinate home health care services on campus that
allowed Charlie the opportunity to live in a handicap accessible dormitory room (tellingly,
though, only one of four such rooms available). Despite success in establishing routine daily
living care, health issues, including behavioral health issues that many typical students face in
dormitory living, caused Charlie to contract pneumonia by the end of this first year on campus.
It was a serious enough situation that we moved him home, reduced his course load and had
him finish his Bachelor’s degree as a commuter student. Even then, difficulties around the
physical accessibility of classrooms, and the inflexibility of certain professors to make
modifications to curriculum for required subjects posed challenges for a student in a
wheelchair. This is not what we would have anticipated from in a college with both a school of
professions, including education and human development and educational administration
majors, as well as a school with health science and physical education as major areas of study.
We all still have much to learn.
So, with two decades worth of experience as both the parent of a student with multiple
significant disabilities and as an administrator working both inside and outside of the school
settings where my son attended, what have I learned about the requisite skills and aptitudes
necessary for the full promotion of inclusive education? First and foremost, effective inclusive
education requires an understanding and caring classroom professional who sees the possibility
in every child. It requires the support of administrators who can look beyond placating staff
members who may be asked to do more than usual or to do things in ways that differ from the
norm. However, since few states require a special education course before obtaining credential
and license, lack of special education content may limit principals’ ability to fully understand the
field and to provide sufficient support (McHatton, Boyer, Shaunessy, & Terry, 2010). Thus,
appropriate preparation, including foundational knowledge of the academic, social/emotional,
and functional needs for students with disabilities is necessary to ensure the effective
leadership, which leads to schools’ response to inclusion (Villa, Thousand, Meyers, & Nevin,
1996).
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