Professional Development Opportunity - Sponsored by the Consortium

Announcing the Recipient of the 1st Consortium-Sponsored Professional Development Award

The CAST National Consortium on Universal Design for Learning is pleased to announce Eileen A. Daneri as the recipient of the first, Consortium-sponsored scholarship to attend the International Symposium on Instructional Technology and Education of the Deaf in Rochester, NY June 25-27, 2001. (For more information on the symposium visit http://www.rit.edu/~techsym/).

Ms. Daneri's impressive credentials, enthusiasm for technological approaches to enhancing learning opportunities for students who are deaf or hard of hearing, and excellent positioning to widely disseminate her experiences all make her an ideal recipient for this award. Ms. Daneri receives $1,000 to cover the costs of Symposium registration, travel and hotel accommodation, presentation to CAST staff, and dissemination to Consortium members.

Ms. Daneri's numerous credentials include state certifications as a special education teacher, regular education teacher, and teacher of the deaf as well as professional certification from the Council of Education of the Deaf. She received a masters degree in Education of the Deaf from Smith College and is presently pursuing a second masters degree in assistive technology at the University of Connecticut.

Professionally, Ms. Daneri has put her education to highly effective use as Teacher of the Deaf for the Amherst Public Schools, a position she has held for 15 years. At the Wildwood school she coordinates Individualized Education Plans and provides direct services such as monitoring, one to one direct teaching, and small group instruction for over twenty deaf and hard of hearing K-12 students. She is regarded as an enthusiastic and dedicated teacher.

In 2001, Ms. Daneri was appointed Assistive Technology Coordinator for the Amherst Public Schools. She has been a vital facilitator of the assistive technology movement in her district, garnering three Department of Education grants focusing on assistive technology and leading the establishment of the Assistive Technology Center at Wildwood School in 2000. The objective of her current grant is to increase curriculum access for all students by disseminating software and hardware to teachers and training them in their use.

Ms. Daneri is in an excellent position to disseminate her knowledge to students and teachers within her district. The many possible avenues include direct teaching to deaf and hard of hearing students, modeling of the effective use of technology in the classroom for elementary teachers, conducting after school workshops at the staff development center, and networking with various outside agencies that service deaf students after high school graduation. Ms. Daneri is equally enthusiastic about sharing her experiences at the symposium with CAST and the Consortium and has proposed numerous methods for doing so. We anticipate that all parties will greatly benefit from her experiences.