Title: An act relating to education programs for teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing.

Sponsors: Representatives Kenney, Shabro, Dickerson, Morrell, Chase, Romero, Kagi and Lovick.

Brief Summary of Bill

• Subject to appropriation, creates competitive grants administered by the Higher Education Coordinating Board for higher education institutions to develop education programs for teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 11 members: Representatives Kenney, Chair; Fromhold, Vice Chair; Cox, Ranking Minority Member; Priest, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Boldt, Chase, Condotta, Jarrett, McCoy, Morrell and Ormsby.

There are approximately 500 deaf and 1,000 hard-of-hearing students aged three through 21 in Washington who require special education. An unknown additional number of deaf or hard-of-hearing children are served through birth-to-three programs. These students rely on a variety of different modes of communication, such as oral communication, American Sign Language, Signed English, or total communication. How these students are taught also varies, whether through early intervention services, in classrooms with other deaf and hard-of-hearing students, or in classrooms with hearing students. More than 80 percent of deaf and 99 percent of hard-of-hearing students are educated in public schools.

Relatively few school districts have a sufficient number of deaf students either in the district or from nearby districts to hire specially trained teachers of the deaf. Several educational service districts provide itinerant teachers of the deaf who travel from school to school. A teacher of the deaf is someone with a degree, usually at a master's level, or certification in deaf education. In Washington, there is no special certification or teaching endorsement for teachers of the deaf. No teacher preparation program in Washington offers special training for teachers of the deaf.

During the 2003 legislative interim, the House Children and Family Services Committee convened a Work Group on Deaf Education in Washington. One of the work group's recommendations was to "provide incentives for institutions of higher education in the state to establish educational programs for teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing that span the spectrum of communication and educational options."

Subject to legislative appropriation, the Higher Education Coordinating Board may award competitive grants to public institutions of higher education, or consortia of institutions, to develop education programs for teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing.

Guidelines for grant proposals include developing interdisciplinary curricula that cover the full range of communication options and education for deaf and hard-of-hearing children; using service delivery models that reach future and current teachers across the state in a cost-effective manner; incorporating the curricula into teacher preparation and in-service programs; and addressing the needs of both classroom teachers and itinerant teachers.

Priority will be given to proposals from consortia of institutions and proposals with the greatest potential to reach a maximum number of teachers.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: There is a real gap in training for teaching these children. Training for teachers of the deaf is a long overdue issue in this state. Deaf children and their families receive a very mixed and uneven array of services. The approach in the bill is the right one: encourage collaboration among the community colleges, universities, and school districts. Bring together a consortia of institutions, each with some existing strengths and expertise, but none with a complete program.

Persons Testifying: Representative Kenney, prime sponsor; Lorretta Seppanen, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges; Jane Sherman, Washington State University; and Ron LaFayette, North Seattle Community College.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 24 members: Representatives Sommers, Chair; Fromhold, Vice Chair; Sehlin, Ranking Minority Member; Pearson, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Alexander, Boldt, Buck, Clements, Cody, Conway, Cox, Dunshee, Grant, Hunter, Kagi, Kenney, Kessler, Linville, McDonald, McIntire, Miloscia, Schual-Berke, Sump and Talcott.

Minority Report: Do not pass. Signed by 2 members: Representatives Anderson and Chandler.

Summary of Recommendation of Committee On Appropriations Compared to Recommendation of Committee On Higher Education:

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: Currently in Washington, there is no teacher preparation program that offers special training for teachers of the deaf. Deaf students and their families receive a mixed and uneven array of services from our K-12 system. This bill would go a long way in assisting these students to become productive citizens in our communities.