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Jenny Wells with Department of Special Education’s master of education cohort.

The Department of Special Education in the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa College of Education has been awarded a $952,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Over the next four years, the Hoʻolako Project will prepare 30 special education scholars with specialized skills to meet the demands of students with severe behavioral and learning needs in remote, rural and impoverished areas within Hawaiʻi. The grant provides funding for the recruitment and tuition of these experienced special educators.

Through a high quality two-year program, participants will earn a master of education degree with a severe disabilities/autism emphasis. The program combines coursework and integrated practicum experiences in a hybrid distance education format.

“We have a well established program. However, with the high costs of living in Hawaiʻi, it is difficult for special educators to fund a graduate degree program, leading to decreased enrollment,” explained Project Director and Associate Professor Jenny Wells. “Project graduates will provide a much needed resource to the students, schools and high needs communities they serve.”

Recruitment will begin statewide in August 2015, and the first cohort of 15 master of education candidates will begin in January 2016. For more information, please visit the college’s special education department website.

—By Jennifer Parks

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