Special Education

Visual Impairment including Blindness

Definition:  A child with a Visual Impairment, including Blindness shall have a deficiency in visual acuity and/or visual field and/or visual functioning where, even with the use of lenses or corrective devices, he/she is prevented from receiving reasonable educational benefit from general education.

Children and youth who are blind or have low vision in Colorado have access to a range of services for their education and social support. The majority of students who are blind or low vision attend a public school in Colorado. Close to 60 students are served at the Colorado School for the Blind, which is located on the campus of the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind in Colorado Springs. Almost every Colorado administrative unit has employed or has contract access to a teacher certified in the area of blindness/visual impairment (TVI) and a certified Orientation and mobility Specialist. These individuals work with other educational team members to ensure that the students who are blind or have low vision have access to the general education curriculum and the related services that are identified on their Individualized Education Programs.

• Activities Related to Blindness/Low Vision (CDE Sponsored or Co-Sponsored)

  • Low Vision Clinics

  • Keeping in Touch Newsletter - formerly What's Happening Out There (WHOT)

   

• Education Careers Working with Students who are Blind/Visually Impaired

  • Braillist

  • Braille Textbook Transcriber

  • Certified Teacher in the Area of Visual Impairments (TVI)

  • Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist (COMS)

  • Licensure information in Colorado

  • University:

    • University of Northern Colorado Teacher Training Program in Blindness/Low Vision, which includes coursework in Orientation and Mobility 

    • UNC Program TVI and O&M Training Program (PDF)

   

• Guidelines and Documents

  • Guidelines

    • Assistive Technology

    • Caseload Formula for Teachers Certified in the Area of Visual Impairment

    • School Vision Screen Programs:  Kindergarten through Grade 12

    • Vision Screening for Children Ages Birth through Five Years

  • Documents

    • Colorado Braille Mastery Test Documents

    • Literacy Fact Sheets for the Learner who is Blind/Visually Impaired

    • Sample Individual Education Program (IEP) Goals and Objectives

    • Natural Environments Monograph

    • Braille and Visually Impaired Students - What Does the Law Require?

    • ECEA Regulations on Learning Media Plans

    • Educating Blind and Visually Impaired Students:  Policy Guidance from OSERS/US Department of Education
       

• Information for Families
   

• Scholarship Information and Resources

  • Scholarship Information

  • Resources

    • Resources for Parents of Children with Disabilities, including Blind/Low Vision

    • Resource and Support Services Specific to Blindness

    • Correspondence Courses, Publication Resources, and Video Clip Resources in Other States

    • National Resources Specific to Blindness/Low Vision

    • International Resources
       

State Eligibility and Demographic Information in Colorado

 

House Bill 11-1277, which was passed in May 2011, made several conforming amendments in the Exceptional Children's Education Act (ECEA) to align with federal terms and requirements and/or terminology used in the field.  The changes to the Colorado eligibility categories and their eligibility criteria were approved by the Colorado State Board of Education and finalized in the Rules for the Administration of the Exceptional Children's Act in October 2012.

 

Colorado Administrative Units can begin to use the new disability definition and eligibility criteria as of November 2012.  These definitions and criteria must be adopted no later than July 1, 2016.

 

 

Definition and Eligibility Criteria

 

Visual Disability (prior to HB11-1277)	Visual Impairment, Including Blindness (post HB11-1277)
State Eligibility Information on Visual Disability (PDF)	State Eligibility Information on Visual Impairment, Including Blindness (PDF)
	Demographics of Students with Visual Impairment, Including Blindness Putting a Face on Blindness/Visual Impairment in Colorado (PDF) BVI State Infrastructures and Programs (NASDSE Survey of Colorado Services) (PDF)

 

Related Links

• Colorado Services for Children and Youth with Combined Vision and Hearing Loss Project

• Deafblindness (combined vision and hearing loss)

• NIMAS/NIMAC

• Specific Learning Disabilities
• Vision Impairment, Including Blindness
• Vision Impairment, Including Blindness - Resources

For more information on Visual Impairment including Blindness, please contact:

Tanni Anthony
Phone: 303-866-6681

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