Grants and Community Projects
Special Education and Literacy Studies
College of Education and Human DevelopmentGrants and Community Projects
Child Development Grant
This $3.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Early Reading First program promotes literacy among Head Start children in Battle Creek.
Intensive Recruitment Preparation and Retention (IRPR2)
This project is designed to fully credential teachers currently working on temporary teaching certificates in special education and practicing general educators pursuing endorsements in special education.
Creating IT Career Pathways through High School Career and Technical Education Programs
The Creating Pathways to IT Careers Project is a research partnership between Western Michigan University (WMU), the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and a Research-to-Practice Team consisting of business and practitioner stakeholders. In conjunction with the NSF, this collaborative research partnership will determine factors that influence enrollment, completion and employment experiences of high school females in Career and Technical Education-Information Technology (CTE-IT) programs.
The ACSESS Project: Adapted Collaborative Strategies for Evaluating Students' Strengths
Information provided through traditional standardized psychometric testing often is inadequate for planning and assessing inclusive education for children with severe physical, communicative and/or sensory disabilities. To address these inadequacies, the University of Michigan, Washtenaw Intermediate School District, Western Michigan University and the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Michigan will collaboratively develop, implement, evaluate and disseminate adapted cognitive assessment protocols and procedures. Focused on facilitating full participation in the general education curriculum and transition planning activities, the ACSESS project will use optimal sensory and response modalities and state-of-the-art assessment techniques to provide more accurate and comprehensive information regarding these students' capabilities and educational needs.
Creating Career Connections: A Longitudinal Study of Student Enrollment and Outcomes of Career and Technical Education
The Creating Career Connections Project is a research partnership between Western Michigan University (WMU), the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and a Research-to-Practice Team consisting of business and practitioner stakeholders. In conjunction with the USDOE-OSEP, this multi-disciplinary collaboration is investigating factors that influence enrollment, completion and employment experiences of high school students with disabilities enrolled in career and technical education programs in Illinois.