FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education, has awarded a new Disability and Rehabilitation Research Project grant to the University of Arkansas Research & Training Center for Persons who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing.

The College of Education and Health Professions and members of the Arkansas Congressional delegation announced the grant.

Programmatic research and demonstration studies with six collaborating states will be aimed at improving employment outcomes for deaf people who are low-functioning or at-risk. These collaborative partnerships will include state vocational rehabilitation agencies, community-based rehabilitation programs and transition programs at state schools for the deaf and mainstream high schools.

Based in Little Rock, the center is a programmatic unit within the College of Education and Health Professions’ department of rehabilitation, human resources, and communication disorders. The grant award provides $1.3 million in faculty support and resources over a three-year period. Douglas Watson, project director, works with a team that includes senior researchers Glenn Anderson and Steven Boone and research associate Amy Hebert.

Members of Arkansas’ congressional delegation praised the center’s work.

“I am proud the University of Arkansas has taken the lead and secured this grant money that represents an important investment in the future of our state,” said Rep. John Boozman, R-3^rd District. “The center will continue to provide the high-quality education and skills training for the hearing impaired in Arkansas, which will lead to better lives for the community.”

“This investment helps open doors for employment and independent living for the hearing-impaired community,” said Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark. “I’m pleased this grant will enhance the resources at the center and will ultimately boost the quality of services they provide.”

“Thanks to the center’s long-standing dedication to rehabilitation research and services, individuals with hearing loss are able to receive the education and skills they need to live more independently,” said Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark. “These federal dollars will allow the center to continue to improve the quality of life among the hearing-impaired community.”

Dean Reed Greenwood said the research projects planned in the next three years will continue the center’s work toward helping the disabled achieve their highest potential.

“The center has been doing tremendous work in the field of rehabilitation research and training for the past 25 years,” Greenwood noted. “The new projects made possible by this $1.3 million grant will further advance the ability of the disabled to hold jobs that will be rewarding to them and contribute to society as a whole.”

Watson said the center’s team appreciates the support.

“We look forward to the opportunity that the grant will provide for the University of Arkansas to continue its national leadership in rehabilitation research with this population group,” he said.

The target population represents the most severely disabled segment of the more than 28 million people in the United States with a hearing loss. In addition, these individuals generally include people with functional limitations that necessitate intensive and longer-term education, rehabilitation and related services to enhance employment, independent living, and community participation.

In response to the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research’s priority regarding deaf people who are low-functioning or at-risk, the center will conduct one national and five state/program level research and demonstration projects during the period from 2007 through 2009:

• Development of a national profile on the state of the art regarding services to people who are deaf and low-functioning or at-risk.

• Consensus-building regarding functional definitions, characteristics and risk factors that distinguish those who are deaf and low-functioning from those who are not.

• Development of a psychometrically validated tool that can be used to assess functional characteristics of the target population.

• Assessment and validation of the utility and impact of state plans as a vehicle for improving service outcomes with the target population.

• Evaluation of the utility of available pre-employment preparation resources that can be used by service providers in working with the target population.

• Identification of best practices in job coaching to enhance workplace integration, job retention and job advancement.

Established in 1981, the center is a partnership between the University of Arkansas and Arkansas Rehabilitation Services. The new grant award extends three decades of national leadership and service on behalf of people with hearing loss. In that time, the center has received more than $22 million in competitive federal grant awards supporting 43 research projects and six research and demonstration grants. Center faculty have produced and disseminated hundreds of professional and consumer-oriented publications and multimedia training curricula as well as conducted workshops and presentations in more than 40 states. 

The center’s two master’s degree specializations in rehabilitation counseling for the deaf and independent living rehabilitation have graduated more than 180 students leading to careers working with consumers who are deaf or hard of hearing.