West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind Story Archives

Blind, Visually Impaired Students Unite For Braille, Cane Challenges

For the first time since the pandemic, the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind hosted a public version of its annual Braille Challenge and Cane Quest competitions.

March marked a special month for the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind.

For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the schools opened their doors to children from across the state for a pair of school traditions placed on hiatus: the Braille Challenge and Cane Quest.

These competitions test children’s skills at reading and writing braille, and using mobility aids like canes to get around.

The Braille Challenge tests skills like reading comprehension, writing speed and accuracy.

In it, students read sheets of braille, and use a machine called a braille embosser to write and respond to questions. These embossers use pins and weights to indent a sheet of paper with braille.

Morgan DiPalma is a teacher at the Children’s Vision Rehabilitation Program (CVRP) in Morgantown, and organized this year’s Braille Challenge. She said group activities like these inspire kids to practice their skills.

“There’s different levels – different levels of kids, different needs,” she said. “Whatever level they’re at, we just encourage them to keep building off that.”

Nearly 40 students representing 11 different West Virginia counties competed in the challenges. Some attend the School for the Blind, and others stayed overnight at the campus in Romney after visiting from schools elsewhere in the state.

Kenzie Hayes (left) and Searra Kline (center) use braille embossers to type braille into a sheet of paper during the Braille Challenge.

*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

In addition to the Braille Challenge, kids also got to participate in Cane Quest. This challenge tests students’ ability to use canes as orientation and mobility devices.

Bethanie Mateer, an orientation and mobility specialist with the CVRP, organized this portion of the competition. She said people often don’t see the work that goes into learning how to use a cane – or how important a tool it can be.

“For the user themselves, it helps them detect drop off,” she said. “But again, that goes into learning how to use it and making sure you’re using it appropriately.”

Canes also signify to others when a person is blind, including fellow blind people who a cane user might encounter in public.

There are several barriers to accessible education for students with disabilities. Mateer said events like these can help amend gaps in traditional education resources.

“They work on technology. They work on independence. They work on self-advocacy, like learning skills,” she said.

For students, an added perk of participating in the Braille Challenge and Cane Quest is getting to meet other students who share their experiences.

“I get the braille, and I just get to hang with the people I love,” said Searra Kline, a high school student visiting campus to participate in this year’s challenge.

“Same here. I am so happy to get to see all of these people, because we live so far away from each other,” added her friend Kenzie Hayes, a middle school student visiting for the challenge. “It’s just so nice to get to see everybody.”

Searra Kline (left) and Kenzie Hayes (right) have been friends for years, and reunited during this year’s Braille Challenge and Cane Quest.

*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

Based in Morgantown, the WVU Eye Institute works with students who are blind or have limited vision from across West Virginia. They also partner with the School for the Blind, and this year helped the school organize its challenge.

Director of Outreach Rebecca Coakley said that events like these are good at bringing youth together because, for many students, there are few times when they are in spaces where their experiences are shared with a majority of their peers.

“Kids who are blind and visually impaired are often isolated in their communities. Sometimes, they may be the only child in the county that’s totally blind,” she said.

“When they come to one of our events, there are kids just like them,” Coakley continued. “They get to be the people who help and provide assistance. So it really builds up their self-confidence, their self-esteem [and] their independence.”

Given all the benefits the event brings, Principal Melanie Hesse said she was excited to reopen the events to out-of-school students.

But she also said this year’s event was particularly bittersweet for the school community. One of the school’s orientation and mobility specialists who helped organize the event in the past, Matthew Stewart, died from COVID-19 in 2021.

The events, which spanned three days, ended with a ceremony open to parents and community members. During the ceremony, school administrators shared a video memorial for Stewart, and reminisced over stories of him.

For Hesse, these memories have only renewed the school community’s desire to continue hosting the Braille Challenge and Cane Quest, in order to carry on Stewart’s legacy in the years to come.

“It was always his baby,” she said. “We want to make sure that we honor his memory.”

Infant Sleep And Longtime Tradition Returns To W.Va. Schools For Deaf, Blind, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, sleep is a key part of both mental and physical health for everyone. But for many parents, ensuring their baby is getting good sleep can be frustrating and elusive. We talk with an expert on infant sleep. Also, we visit the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind to learn about a longtime tradition that has returned.

On this West Virginia Morning, sleep is a key part of both mental and physical health for everyone. But for many parents, ensuring their baby is getting good sleep can be frustrating and elusive. In our latest installment of our new series “Now What? A Series On Parenting,” reporter Chris Schulz speaks with Dr. Paul Knowles, a Marshall Health neurologist and assistant professor at Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, about infant sleep.

Also, in this show, a tradition at the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind allowed kids from across the state to show off their braille and cane usage skills. It was placed on hiatus during the pandemic. This year, the tradition made a grand return. Jack Walker visited the school’s campus in Romney to learn more.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Eric Douglas is our news director and producer.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Clayton Burch To Serve As New Superintendent Of W.Va. Schools For Deaf, Blind

West Virginia Superintendent of Schools Clayton Burch is now the new superintendent of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, after stepping aside as the chief of the state's school system.

At the August meeting of the West Virginia Board of Education, board members, including newly appointed Board President Paul Hardesty, voted unanimously to approve Burch’s request to become the new superintendent of the Schools for the Deaf and the Blind in Romney.

There was no discussion following the vote.

Burch released a statement, however, later in the day, outlining his 13 years working in the Department of Education, his more than two years as state superintendent, and a vision for the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind:

“One project stands out as especially dear to me. The students of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (WVSDB) and the work of that venerable institution are always at the forefront of my mind. I have developed a special connection with the school. From the beginning of my administration until this very moment, I have made the WVSDB a priority. My team and I have been a consistent presence on campus to work through the challenges that exist – from facilities to services and instruction and more, we continue to give the WVSDB a level of support it has not had in many years.

I have a vision of what the WVSDB can become as a resource to serve children and families of our state, region, and beyond. All of the foundational elements have been laid, but they need the commitment of a full-time leader and visionary to solidify the work and see it to completion. I believe that the totality of my career, and my close ties to the Hampshire County community, including my personal residence there, have made me uniquely qualified to lead the school into the future.”

Burch’s full statement can be read on the West Virginia Department of Education’s (WVDE) website.

Burch will receive an annual salary of more than $142,000 in the new role, which is a pay cut from his current salary at around $230,000.

Last year, the Schools for the Deaf and the Blind came under scrutiny for several areas of non-compliance, including student care, instruction, and finances. Burch has been a longtime advocate for improving the schools.

In February, a historic administrative building on the campus was destroyed in a fire. While the building was unoccupied, it housed the technology servers that powered the campus internet, phones and surveillance system.

Burch and other state officials traveled to the site and worked, with support from Gov. Jim Justice and Frontier Communications, to get a temporary fix in place so students could continue with classroom instruction.

Burch has served as West Virginia Superintendent of Schools since February 2020.

David Roach, executive director of the West Virginia School Building Authority, will take on the state superintendent role. No plans for a superintendent search were announced.

In a news release from the WVDE, Roach said he is honored to be the next state superintendent.

“I want to thank President Hardesty and the board members for their confidence in me,” Roach said. “I look forward to working with him, the board, and the staff at the West Virginia Department of Education. With the exception of student safety, student achievement has always been at the forefront of every position I have held. As a lifelong educator, I am grateful for this opportunity and look forward to starting this new position.”

Roach is a graduate of Marshall University with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and a Master of Administration in School Administration.

He will be the 33rd West Virginia Superintendent of Schools.

Students To Return To W.Va. Schools For The Deaf, Blind After Large Fire Destroyed Campus Building

Students will return to the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind next week following a devastating fire that destroyed the schools’ administrative building.

The West Virginia Department of Education said that over the next few days, key services and utilities will be restored on the campus. All this week, students were in remote learning.

The cause of the fire is undetermined, according to a statement released by the State Fire Marshal.

“This was more than a building to the school and the community, it was a part of the culture and tradition, and it is a significant loss to everyone,” State Superintendent of Schools Clayton Burch said.

The department of education said additional social-emotional supports are in place for students, faculty and staff.

“We will continue to work with our students and staff during this time of recovery,” said West Virginia Board of Education President Miller Hall. “We are eager for our students to return to campus so that their school year and activities can continue.”

The fire broke out early Saturday morning. Several West Virginia volunteer fire companies from the region came to help.

The building was one of the oldest structures on campus dating back to the 1800s. It was empty at the time of the fire and deemed a total loss.

Report: W.Va. Schools For Deaf, Blind Found Lacking In Student Care, Finances

The West Virginia Department of Education last week released a report that found the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind to be in non-compliance in eight different areas.

Those areas included student care, instruction, special education, facilities, transportation, financial indicators and purchasing compliance, personnel and leadership.

“My staff and I are dedicated to supporting the WVSDB in addressing the deficiencies outlined in the report,” said State Superintendent of Schools Clayton Burch in a news release. “We will begin with immediate concerns in the process of transforming the school to become a center for excellence in the education of West Virginia students who are deaf [and] hard of hearing or blind [and] low vision.”

The report found that students enrolled in the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind have not received adequate social-emotional support. Additionally, the report found that the schools need improvements in professional development, leadership infrastructure, documentation and family communication.

“The [West Virginia Board of Education] is committed to the process of restoring the vision and mission of the school so that it can best serve this important role,” said WVBOE President Miller Hall. “It is going to take some time; however, it is essential that we understand the magnitude of the issues in order to begin implementing the necessary measures.”

The Schools for the Deaf and the Blind declined to comment on the report and referred West Virginia Public Broadcasting to the WVDE.

The report was conducted by a team of 21 WVDE staff members. They reviewed 49 classrooms, conducted 29 instructional staff interviews, toured facilities and examined student files and financial records between April 27-29, 2021.

The Schools for the Deaf and the Blind are located in Romney, Hampshire County, and currently house 93 students and 24 teachers. Students live on-campus during the school year and range from kindergarten to 12th grades. The WVDE said typically, however, younger students do not participate in the residential program.

Consolidation of both schools is expected to begin this summer. The goal, according to a news release, is to provide students increased opportunities to interact with peers and have more efficient access to services. Plans also include increased community engagement.

On Monday, the WVDE announced the schools’ campus will now be open to residents of Romney and its surrounding communities this summer. More than 77 acres of open green space, a walking trail and a playground have been made available, according to a news release.

The WVDE said that normally the area is only open to authorized users during the summer months. However, the campus will be open to Hampshire County residents in an effort to provide an inclusive environment for the community.

Superintendent Named for W.Va. Schools for Deaf and Blind

Martin Keller Jr. has been named superintendent for the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind.

The state Board of Education voted unanimously to hire Keller at a special meeting Friday.

Keller himself is deaf. He’ll takes his new role next month at the Romney school. He will replace Lynn Boyer, who announced her retirement earlier this year.

Keller is currently the principal at the Indiana School for the Deaf. He holds numerous degrees, including a doctorate from Lamar University.

Keller has worked 14 years in administration, managing student service programs at the elementary and secondary school levels.

Boyer had been appointed superintendent in 2011, a year after the school was cited by the Office of Education Performance Audits for deficiencies in leadership, curriculum, safety and technology.