Partnerships for Rural Resource Teams: Bringing Best Practices To Children Who Are Deaf-Blind in Montana Project (Partnerships Project)

Mission

Grounded in a framework that draws upon the principles of contextually-based technical assistance, family involvement, and an ecological approach to skill development, this project promotes the development of additional resources which support and intervention to children and youth with deaf-blindness who do not have access to these resources at the local level.

Outcomes

Children and youth who are Deaf-Blind will:

Families of children and youth who are deaf-blind will:

Rural Resource Team Members will:

Montana's service system for individuals with deaf-blindness will:

Project Description

The majority of children and youth with Deaf-Blindness in Montana live and learn in small rural communities that do not have ready access to the state's three population centers. As a result, technical assistance from the state's Deaf-Blind Coordinator may be the only source of specialized support available to this population, their families, educators, and service providers. The Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) in collaboration with the Montana University Affiliated Rural Institute on Disabilities (MUARID) propose to expand the capacity of the system to be responsive to the individual needs of children and youth with deaf-blindness, their families, educators, and other service providers, as they move through the early intervention, preschool and public school systems into adult life.

Grounded in a framework that draws upon the principles of collaborative teamwork, contextually-based technical assistance, family involvement, and an ecological approach to skill development, this project proposes to increase the availability of resources for families, schools, and youth who do not have access to these resources at the local level. These resources will partner with families and local service providers to respond to their concerns and unmet needs of the target child with deaf-blindness, as well as plan for necessary services and supports for the future. The specific supports and resources are based on the needs of the individual child with deaf-blindness who is the focus of support efforts. If the needs of a child cannot be addressed by in-state resources, this will trigger the arrangement for consultation and training by out-of-state experts in areas of specialization. Training opportunities will be available to Rural Resource Team members, families, service providers, and others interested in developing competencies in the support of individuals with deaf-blindness.

Services of the Rural Resource Team will include, but are not limited to: (a) early identification and intervention for infants and toddlers who are deaf-blind; (b) acquisition of communication and orientation and mobility skills; use of assistive technology supports for students who are deaf-blind; (d) strategies to facilitate the inclusion of students with deaf-blindness into general education settings; and (e) issues related to the successful transition of students to adult life in the community.

For the State of Montana, Rural Resource Teams represent a vehicle through which the relatively limited specialized resources of a large rural state can be coordinated to achieve the maximum benefit for children and families. By the end of this project, Rural Resource Teams will become part of OPI's array of training and technical assistance services for families, service providers, and education personnel who are involved with children who are deaf-blind and receiving either Part H or Part B services statewide. In order to maintain the services of the Rural Resource Teams after the Pilot Project has ended, strategies will be adopted that link the pilot program support with Montana's State Project For Children Who are Deaf-Blind, CSPD programs, and other systems change initiatives.

For more information contact Ted Maloney or Ellen Condon.