Activities

Subject to the provisions of this subtitle, the Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and Educational Excellence shall— (1) conduct or fund original quantitative and qualitative research and publish or otherwise disseminate such research; (2) conduct or fund in-person and online continuing education opportunities for teachers of children who are blind or visually impaired and related services personnel specifically trained to meet the unique learning needs of such students, and prepare, publish or otherwise disseminate supporting materials; (3) conduct or fund in-person or online enrichment projects for children who are blind or visually impaired (including those who may also have additional disabilities) to offer direct instruction and services intended to improve the capacity of such students to learn effectively and live both productively and independently for the purpose of— (A) supplementing the availability of such instruction and services offered by State and local educational agencies; and (B) evaluating, through appropriate quantitative and qualitative methods, the effectiveness of instruction and services offered by such projects; (4) fund the establishment or maintenance of programs within institutions of higher education preparing teachers of children who are blind or visually impaired and related services personnel to better equip such personnel both to provide expert instruction and services to infants and toddlers with blindness or visual impairment and their families and to provide specialized instruction and services to children with blindness and visual impairment who may have additional disabilities; and (5) enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, grants (or other arrangements which may be permitted by the Secretary) with nonprofit organizations possessing demonstrable expertise and experience serving children who are blind or visually impaired or the professionals trained to work with such students, institutions of higher education, State and local educational agencies, public and private specialized schools serving students with visual disabilities, and consortia of such entities, for the purpose of carrying out activities authorized in this section that are not otherwise directly conducted, in whole or in part, by the Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and Educational Excellence.