J.E. Wallace Wallin Special Education Lifetime Achievement Award

Dr. Douglas Carnine
Dr. Douglas Carnine, professor at the University of Oregon, is the recipient of CEC's 2005

 J.E. Wallace Wallin Lifetime Achievement Award. In his 30+ year career, Dr. Carnine has shaped special education practice and legislation, leading to significant improvements how millions of students with disabilities are taught.

Dr. Carnine originated the "big ideas" concept, which is critical to providing students with disabilities access to the general education curriculum. He also conceptualized the highly-respected "Direct Instruction" principles, applied them to teaching content, and developed technological tools to enhance the methods. Additionally, Dr. Carnine designed science and math curricula using technology. Dr. Carnine is also the author of some of the most significant books on instruction for students with disabilities used today, including Teaching Higher Order Thinking, Theory of Instruction, and Instructional Strategies for Diverse Learners as well as articles, essays, book chapters, and curricular programs. Additionally, Dr. Carnine has played a major role in molding special education policy. In addition to testifying before the U.S. Congress and state legislatures, he has worked with leading education organizations to ensure education practice includes research-based strategies, accountability, and access to the general education curriculum for students with disabilities. Through his efforts, the Reading First legislation and the accountability requirements in the No Child Left Behind Act are applied to students with disabilities. Dr. Carnine's service to the field is extensive: director of more than 20 federally funded grants, director of the National Center to Improve the Tools of Educators, and member of the National Educational Research Policy and Priorities Board. He was also an advisor to the IDEA reauthorization, What Works Clearinghouse, ERIC Steering Committee, Accountability Works, and American Board for Certification in Teacher Excellence. Dr. Carnine's influence has been felt at all levels of the profession, from teachers to national leaders. Thank you, Dr. Carnine, for the outstanding work you have done on behalf of students with exceptionalities.

CEC Clarissa Hug Teacher of the Year Award

Carol Dinsdale
Carol Dinsdale, recipient of CEC's 2005 Clarissa Hug Teacher of the Year Award, represents the best of special education teaching. This creative educator combines innovation, high standards, technology, and proven educational techniques to achieve her goal -- to get her second and third grade students with emotional disturbances OUT of her class and into general education classes!

Ms. Dinsdale facilitates learning through direct instruction and creative, "fun" projects that teach academic and social skills. For example, her students develop a monthly newsletter that is distributed to the school and write and produce a school brochure. They also tackle current events. After the 9/11 attack, her students built a Peace Garden where all students can go to resolve conflicts.

In fact, many of Ms. Dinsdale's class activities involve general education students and teachers and benefit the entire school. Her students write and perform puppet shows for primary students, share information about animal behavior with other classes, and perform karaoke on the school's Morning Show. Her class also used technology to demonstrate the fragility of the Florida Watershed to the intermediate classes.

Assessment is ongoing in Ms. Dinsdale's class. Students graph their progress, discuss their progress in class meetings, and conduct their own IEP meetings. With student ownership and Ms. Dinsdale's guidance, her students placed in the top 5 percent of the Reading Counts program, and many of her students achieve Level 3 and Level 4 scores on the state FCAT tests, competing academically with their non-disabled peers.

A National Board Certified teacher, Ms. Dinsdale is a leader in her school, district, and state. She works with colleagues to improve curriculum, serves as coordinator for a motivational program for minority students, mentors new teachers, and is a professor at the Univer- sity of South Florida where she also supervises interns.

Ms. Dinsdale refers to her students as exceptional heroes. Ms. Dinsdale, you, too, are an exceptional hero.

CEC Outstanding Research Award

Dr. Steve Graham and Dr. Karen Harris
Steve Graham and Karen Harris, recipients of CEC's 2005 Research Award, make one of  the field's most prolific research teams. Their research in written expression learning strategies has profoundly impacted instruction for students with learning disabilities and other struggling learners.

Dr. Graham's and Dr. Harris's interventions are some of the best strategies known for spelling, handwriting, written composition, and self-regulation. Their research is cited in all major special education textbooks and referred to in the literature on cognitive strategy interventions as an exemplary instructional model.

Dr. Graham and Dr. Harris are committed to ensuring teachers have access to their work. They have served as authors or consultants on numerous instructional programs, including Spell It ? Write It, the 2008 edition of Open Court Reading, Use and Keep Writing Portfolios, and Literacy Plus. Also, their video, Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities in the Regular Classroom, and their book, Making the Writing Process Work: Strategies for Composition and Self-Regulation, enable teachers to learn their techniques. They have also shared their research with state Departments of Education.

Additionally, Dr. Graham and Dr. Harris are editors of two prestigious educational journals: Exceptional Children and the Journal of Educational Psychology. Dr. Harris also served as President of CEC's Division for Research and as Chair of the Special Education Special Interest Group, the American Educational Research Association.

Dr. Graham and Dr. Harris are also superb teachers who have developed ground-breaking special education researchers and outstanding teachers.

Dr. Graham and Dr. Harris have received the Samuel A. Kirk Award, DLD; Distinguished Researcher Award, AERA; and Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award, University of Maryland.

Dr. Graham's and Dr. Harris's research has enhanced the learning and teaching experiences for thousands of students and their teachers. We thank you.