Overview
The Visual Impairment Training Program (VITP) is a distance education program with courses offered through a combination of online study and concentrated weekend meetings allowing students to continue working during the school year. The program can be completed on a part-time or full-time basis. As part of every program, candidates will complete a minimum 350-hour internship in their specialty area. The VITP is guided by the professional standards in the field of visual impairment and blindness. Coursework is based on the knowledge and skills identified by the Council of Exceptional Children (CEC), the Academy of Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP), the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually (AER), and the North Caroline Department Instruction (NCDPI). Areas of instruction include compensatory functional academic skills, including communication modes, orientation and mobility, social interaction skills, independent living skills, recreation and leisure skills, career education, use of assistive technology, sensory efficiency skills, and self-determination.
Overview of Programs
The Masters of Education (MEd) is available through three concentrations: 1) Teaching Students with Visual Impairments (TSVI-43 credits), 2) Orientation and Mobility (O&M-43 credits), and 3) Dual TSVI/O&M (58 credits). The TSVI concentration prepares individuals to become eligible for teacher licensure in visual impairment and to serve and support classroom teachers. The O&M concentration prepares individuals to become eligible for certification from the Academy for Certification of Vision and Rehabilitation Professionals (ACVREP) and to serve as mobility instructors for children and adults. The dual conctration in both TSVI and O&M prepares individuals to become eligibl for both visual impairment licensure and ACVREP cerfication. Students interested in Assistive Technology are directed to Assistive Technology in Visual Impairment.
Certificate and Licensure Preparation Programs
Alternatively, applicants may pursue an add-on specialization to their current degree through a, Post Baccalaureate or Post Master’s Certificate in Orientation and Mobility (27 credits), or through Licensure Preparation in Teaching Visually Impaired Children (31 credits). Students who enter the Post Master’s Certificate Program will also earn a second master’s degree upon completion of all Foliotek requirements.
Second Master’s Degrees
TSVI Concentration
Students with an existing master’s degree in a related educational field may earn a second master’s degree (MEd) by completing a minimum of 37-credit hour plan of study in Teaching Students with Visual Impairments developed by the program coordinator and complete all of the Task stream requirements.
O&M Concentration
Students with an existing master’s degree in a related degree in a related field (e.g., education, counseling) may earn a second master’s degree (MEd) by completing a 31-credit hour Orientation and Mobility plan of study developed by the pgoram coordinator and complete all of the Taskstream requirements.