Reno Reporter

The University of Nevada, Reno’s Project SELF has been awarded a 325D grant by the Department of Education (DOE).

According to a news release issued by the university, the DOE’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services provided the funds in order to have the school train special education teachers.

"We want scholars to really have to solve research problems that are meaningful and that they understand from beginning to end what it looks like to do research," Shannon S. Taylor, associate professor of special education, said in the release.

Students who partake in the studies will do so through the school’s College of Education and Human Development's Special Education and Disability Studies Ph.D. program.

According to Lindsay Diamond, associate professor of special education: "These partnerships will allow us to have scholars acquire experience in different areas to understand what research looks like in these capacities and the impact their research can have on the field."

The funds will help six scholars to enroll in the program this fall with tuition, a monthly stipend and enrollment for the project.

According to Randall Owen, associate professor of special education and director of the Nevada Center of Excellence in Disabilities: “We are looking forward to hosting scholars from this program in our current projects to help them better understand the range of contexts that people with disabilities face. It’s important that special educators, especially those who may fill leadership positions, have a solid understanding not only of special education, but of the community and how it relates to disability, as well.”