Wisconsin Deafblind Technical Assistance Project

Consultations are available to Wisconsin School Districts free-of-charge and offer in-depth information, recommendations, a plan of action, and ongoing support for educational teams serving a student who is deafblind or for a student who the team suspects is deafblind. The information provided through a consultation can be used to further understand the needs of the student, provide strategies to address these needs, and can inform IEP team decision making.

Consultation requests can be submitted by school district staff, parents, guardians, or other service providers. In order to obtain recommendations and/or develop an action plan that can be applied to the current school year, submit requests as early in the school year as possible.

March 31st of the current school year is the deadline for most school-based consultations. Requests for this service made after this date will be processed and a determination will be made if the school consultation can be completed during the current academic year or the next.

WDBTAP Request for Services Form

Presentations on a variety of deafblind related topics are available to be provided within your school, district, CESA, or region. All workshops can be adapted to meet specific needs and length.

Outreach Services for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deafblind Training Request Form

Family, teachers, and other service providers of children who are deafblind in Wisconsin may borrow books, toys, technology, and interactive equipment from the Resource Lending Library for a specified period of time. Books or other resources may be loaned to an individual for up to 3 months.

These resources are provided at no cost to family members or service providers. This provides an opportunity for the parent or service provider to try the item with the deafblind child to determine if it is appropriate for the child prior to purchasing the item.

WDBTAP Lending Library

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction recognizes the value that the role of an intervener plays in the academic progress of a student identified with deafblindness. To demonstrate commitment to the efforts of training highly qualified personnel for students with deafblindness, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has approved financial allocations through the Wisconsin Deafblind Technical Assistance Project (WDBTAP) to support school districts in providing high quality, useful and relevant training for their staff supporting this lowest of low incidence population.

The Wisconsin Deafblind Technical Assistance Project will reimburse a participant for the cost of the intervener training under specific conditions:

• The individual that will receive the training is currently working with a student identified with deafblindness.

• The student with deafblindness is current on the WDBTAP Deafblind Child Count (contact Child Count Coordinator at (608) 356-2023 if you are unsure).

• Participants must complete and submit an “Intervener Training Scholarship” form on the WDBTAP Website. This document outlines the parameters of cost and reimbursement.

WDBTAP offers reimbursement to participate in the Intervener Training Program through Utah University. Utah State University offers the intervener training program for undergraduate and graduate credit as well. The WDBTAP will reimburse at the CEU/Non-Credit level and the participant is responsible for any costs beyond that base level. The schooling involves an online, three semester learning platform. The third semester is a practicum with the student who is deafblind that the participant is currently working with. Participants do not meet at a specific time, but they are required to log-in weekly. Past participants have reported an average of four hours per week of dedicated time to complete the assignments. Utah State University enrolls for fall, winter and summer semesters. A participant can begin the training program at the start of any of these semesters.

Register Now For Online Deafblind Intervener Courses.

WDBTAP Scholarship Information

Family events are offered to allow children who are deafblind and their families to have an opportunity to connect.

See this YouTube playlist for a few examples of activities WDBTAP has hosted.

WDBTAP provides opportunities for families to come together to learn about various Deafblind topics. These opportunities may include both in-person or virtual meeting spaces. The purpose is to continue to build the capacity and understanding of children who are deafblind and the topics that impact them. This YouTube playlist contains a few examples of opportunities WDBTAP has hosted.

WDBTAP hosts two Facebook pages. The first Facebook page is open to anyone involved with children who are deafblind. The second Facebook page is open to families only and is facilitated by our Family Engagement Coordinator.

• WDBTAP General Facebook page
• To connect with the WDBTAP Family Only Facebook page, please contact us at wdbtap@wesp-dhh.wi.gov.

Deaf Mentor Program
The Deaf Mentor Program is designed to provide families with opportunities to learn sign vocabulary and American Sign Language. Families are matched with an adult Deaf Mentor to support their child’s communication and language development. This Program is available to WDBTAP families who have children with deafblindness from birth to the time they receive their high school diploma.

Parent Mentor Program
The Parent Mentor Program is a “parent to parent” matching program for families with children who are diagnosed with hearing loss. Through this program, families will have an opportunity to establish a supportive relationship with a Parent Mentor, an experienced and trained parent of a child who is deafblind. This Program is available to WDBTAP families who have children with deafblindness from birth to the time they receive their high school diploma.

WDBTAP partners with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to administer iCanConnect in Wisconsin. Through iCanConnect, WDBTAP provides the technology and training needed for distance communication with equipment including smartphones, tablets, computers, screen readers, and braille displays free of charge to those who qualify.