by Kyrsten Turner | Feb 5, 2014 | Uncategorized
Lipscomb’s new IDEAL program is equipping students with intellectual disabilities with the skills needed for successful employment. The two-year certificate program combines general education classes with core classes in technology and employment skills to prepare students for the work place. “Ultimately, my goal is to have students that graduate from this program that are able to find meaningful, paid employment,” said Mallory Whitmore, the program director. The IDEAL (Igniting the Dream of Education and Access at Lipscomb) program, which is partially funded by a grant from the Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities, became a part of Lipscomb in June 2013. Dr. Candace McQueen, the dean of Lipscomb’s College of Education, and Dr. Misty Vetter, the faculty advisor for the program, wrote a proposal for the program to present before the Council, and it was approved mid-summer. IDEAL students began their Lipscomb education in January with the start of the spring semester. The program currently has three students enrolled, and Whitmore says she hopes to see a total of 10 enrolled in the fall. The students will be taking two IDEAL classes every semester, as well as auditing two undergraduate courses and participating in an internship. Whitmore, who works with the Best Buddies organization in Nashville, said she is excited about the opportunities this program will provide for students, as well as how the program will grow in the future. “I would like to see our program inspire more and more high school students with disabilities to think of college as an option,” Whitmore said. “I would [also] like to get more professors involved. One of our components is that students audit two classes a...
