Giving Teachers a Chance: Taking Special Education Teacher Preparation Programs to Rural Communities

Over the last several years special education teacher shortages have increased to alarming levels. Remote rural areas face even more critical special education teacher shortages. Many professionals teaching students with disabilities in rural areas do not have formal special education training. This article describes a distance education partnership program between Wright State University and school districts in rural Ohio that addresses special education teacher shortages in these areas. Although the program required intense effort from university faculty, partnership students, and district education staff, program benefits outweighed the work necessary to implement and maintain the program.