The Special Education Minor is available to Lynch School of Education students only. This includes students majoring in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Secondary Education and Human Development who have an interest in special needs education.  The minor consists of four courses that include one Teacher Education core required course (ED044); two Special Education courses (ED208 and ED373); and options for the fourth course.  Selection of the fourth course should be made in consultation with the student’s advisor, with consideration for the student’s major and interests.

Download a list of program requirements (PDF)

Interested students must complete a declaration of minor form and submit it to either Campion 104 or 106D.

The Department of Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction has designed a Special Education Minor available for students in Elementary Education and Secondary Education as well as students in the Applied Psychology & Human Development major. The minor is designed to enhance the ability of future professionals to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population of children in America’s schools.  ED208, Educational Strategies: Children with Special Needs and ED373, Classroom Management, combined with ED044 Working with Special Needs Students, provide an excellent background in responding to the wide range of learning and behavior problems that may be encountered in a general education classroom. The elective(s) will be selected from a wide choice of courses offered in the graduate program in Moderate and Intense Special Needs and Visual Impairments. 

The advantages to the minor include:

• Broader array of teaching approaches to enhance learning for all students.
• Exploration of specific classroom management techniques that promote a positive climate for learning, encourage student collaboration and acceptance of individual differences.
• Greater competence in dealing with significant learning problems including reading and math disabilities, social/emotional problems and those related to sensory and physical factors.
• Opportunity to explore career options related to individuals with special needs (e.g. speech/language pathology, school counseling, specialized areas such as teacher of the deaf or visually impaired, etc.)
• Increased flexibility of employment.

Lynch School Faculty in Special Education

Dr. Susan Bruce, Campion 120, Intense Special Needs
Dr. Richard Jackson, Campion 209, Visual Impairment
Dr. Alec Peck, Campion 108, Moderate Special Needs
Dr. Claudia Rinaldi, Campion 117, Moderate Special Needs
Dr. David Scanlon, Campion 216, Moderate Special Needs