Education professor accepts Fulbright Specialist grant to impact special education needs in Uzbekistan

Dr. Lucinda Spaulding, professor and chair of special education at Liberty University’s School of Education, has received a prestigious grant from the Fulbright Specialist Program to work with education officials in Uzbekistan in promoting inclusive education for children with special needs.

The Fulbright Specialist Program is a unique opportunity for established professionals and educators to engage in two- to six-week project-based exchanges at host institutions throughout the world. The Fulbright Specialist Program is sponsored by the U.S. State Department and administered through World Learning, Inc.

Spaulding has been asked to conduct a needs assessment on the existing situation in Uzbekistan and develop a basic action plan with the policy and necessary legislative changes to implement inclusive education nationwide.

The opportunity came through a Fulbright seminar Spaulding attended on behalf of Liberty University Professor Edna Udobong, Fulbright Program Advisor and Scholar Liaison, last May in Washington, D.C. Professor Udobong was unable to attend the seminar, so Dr. Spaulding, Fulbright Committee member, attended in her stead through the request of the Helms School of Government. Then, in September, Fulbright contacted Spaulding about applying for the Fulbright Specialist Roster so she could serve as a consultant for the project. Experts on the roster are considered for special projects and opportunities around the globe. The roster is open to professionals in all disciplines.

“I had considered at some point applying to be on the Specialist Roster,” Spaulding said, after a Fulbright Specialist Program workshop at Liberty, “but given my current responsibilities at work, it was back burner, someday in the future.”

As she received more encouragement from coworkers, family, and friends in the field, and as she learned more about the project, she knew she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to assist in the worthwhile endeavor that could affect change in another country.

“I love Fulbright. I love its purpose. I love its ideals,” Spaulding said. “Fulbright was started after World War II to improve relations among nations. It’s about recognizing that when you sit and talk with people, that is where understanding comes from.”

Spaulding will work with government officials in Uzbekistan and will have a translator and a coordinator who will help schedule her visit. She will travel to Uzbekistan in April and will live there for five weeks.

A main component of the project will be the needs assessment, where she will develop an understanding of the current barriers to inclusive education in the country and the challenges the country has faced.

The country piloted inclusive education in a few schools in 2008, but it was unsuccessful and education officials are not sure why, Spaulding said. Parents did not send their children to school and teachers did not fully integrate or include the students. Spaulding will interview parents, teachers, and administrators to help determine the factors that led to the pilot program to fall short of its goals.

To prepare for her visit, Spaulding is working with doctoral student Tiffany Amack, who is completing a literature review on the current state of education and treatment of people with disabilities in Uzbekistan for her current capstone project for her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership. They are looking at the factors that might affect promoting inclusion in the country, from historical to social and religious factors.

Another main component will be creating an action plan with recommendations that Uzbekistan will use to determine its approach to implementing inclusion throughout its educational system.

The trip won’t be Spaulding’s first international experience. Spaulding was born in Canada, moved to the United States for school when she was 19, married, and remained in America. Along with her husband, she taught English in Japan for a year.

She said she looks forward to growing in this experience but knows that besides the challenges that it will present for her family, her husband, Tim Spaulding (associate dean for external relations at Liberty University School of Law) and their three young children, there is a great responsibility for the task ahead.

“You become an educator because you want to change the life of a child; you want to impact individuals,” Spaulding said. “Honestly, it is a tremendous honor but also overwhelming to be invited to have an impact on a country, to impact reform at the national level. I don’t take lightly the invitation to come and the responsibility that is involved with going.”

The Fulbright program at Liberty is administered through Dean Robert Hurt’s Office, Helms School of Government (HSOG), and supervised by the Office of the Provost. Contact Edna Udobong at eudobong3@liberty.edu to attend an information session on how to apply.

A committee leads the Fulbright U.S. Student program at Liberty, with members drawn from different university colleges and schools. Their role involves promoting Fulbright within their own departments and schools, talking with prospective students, reviewing completed applications, and participating in the mandatory campus evaluation interview process.  Committee members generally serve for three years.

For additional information, visit the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program website or contact the Fulbright Specialist Program at fulbrightspecialist@worldlearning.org.