Submitted by:
Janelle Parker, NC Teacher
Who supports the specialist who has become your district’s only expert?
For many sensory professionals, that question becomes more important with every passing year.
An experienced Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments had been serving students for many years. She had seen students graduate, welcomed new families into the program, and built strong relationships with teachers across her district. While she was confident in her work, she had never worked in isolation.
Another experienced TVI worked in her district, and a neighboring district had someone she could always call. They shared ideas, talked through difficult evaluations, compared IEP goals, and helped each other think through challenging situations. Sometimes they called because they needed an answer. Other times they simply wanted another professional to challenge their thinking or confirm they were headed in the right direction. Those conversations helped both educators provide stronger services to their students.
Over time, things changed.
Her district colleague took on caregiving responsibilities for a family member and eventually began an extended medical leave. The neighboring TVI accepted a position in another state. The vacancy remained unfilled for nearly two years.
When the position was finally filled, the new teacher introduced herself with a familiar sentence.
“I’ve heard you’re the person to call when I have questions.”
She smiled. She remembered what it felt like to be new.
As the months passed, she answered questions, reviewed ideas, and became the experienced mentor she had once depended on herself. The work continued. Her students still needed evaluations, instruction, progress monitoring, and IEPs. The new TVI needed support. Teachers and families continued to look to her for answers.
One afternoon, she was writing an IEP for a student she had worked with for several years. As she reviewed the draft, she noticed something.
She had written a goal that looked very familiar.
It wasn’t a bad goal. In fact, it had worked well for other students. But was it still the best goal for this student? Or had she begun relying on it because it was familiar?
Years earlier, she would have picked up the phone.
“Can I run this by you?”
Together they would have talked through the student’s needs, challenged each other’s thinking, and probably written an even stronger goal.
Almost without thinking, she reached for the phone.
Then she stopped.
The colleague she had always called was still away caring for family.
The new TVI now looked to her for answers.
There was no one left to ask.
The work is collaborative.
The expertise is often solitary.
That isn’t a reflection of the profession. It’s a reflection of how few sensory specialists there are.
For many Teachers of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, Orientation and Mobility Specialists, Educational Interpreters, Interveners, Braille Specialists, Assistive Technology Specialists, Spoken Language Facilitators, and other sensory professionals, being the only specialist is simply part of the job.
When You’re the Only Specialist
Sensory professionals collaborate every day with administrators, classroom teachers, therapists, school psychologists, related service providers, and families. Those partnerships are essential and improve outcomes for students.
But collaboration does not always replace specialty-specific expertise.
Questions about Functional Vision Assessments, Learning Media Assessments, listening checks, language access, orientation and mobility instruction, braille literacy, assistive technology, specialized instructional strategies, and complex IEP decisions often require another professional who has faced similar situations. Those conversations are rarely found in a textbook or covered during a staff meeting.
Even experienced professionals continue learning throughout their careers. New technology is introduced. Assessment practices evolve. Students present with increasingly complex needs. Best practices continue to grow. The need for another specialist to discuss ideas with never completely disappears.
Why Specialized Mentorship Matters
Mentorship is often associated with beginning teachers, but sensory professionals benefit from specialized mentorship throughout their careers.
A supportive principal, instructional coach, or special education administrator plays an important role, but they may not have the specialty knowledge needed to discuss a Functional Vision Assessment, review a listening goal, troubleshoot an assistive technology challenge, or think through the instructional implications of a complex evaluation.
That is where specialized mentorship makes the difference.
A mentor who understands the profession can ask thoughtful questions, challenge assumptions, offer another perspective, and help professionals make informed decisions without taking ownership away from them.
Just as importantly, mentorship provides something many lone specialists gradually lose without realizing it: another expert to think alongside them.
What Mentorship Looks Like
Mentorship is much more than answering an occasional question. It is an ongoing professional relationship built on shared experience, practical guidance, and follow-up support as new situations and questions arise.
A mentor may help interpret assessment results, discuss IEP development, recommend instructional strategies, explore evidence-based interventions, support the implementation of assistive technology, share resources that have worked in similar situations, and help professionals apply new knowledge in real-world situations. They may also help with workload management, collaboration, family communication, and professional problem-solving.
Sometimes the most valuable conversations are also the shortest.
“Have you seen this before?”
“Does this IEP goal make sense?”
“Am I headed in the right direction?”
Those conversations build confidence, strengthen professional practice, and remind specialists that they do not have to solve every challenge alone.
Supporting the People Who Support Students
Hiring a qualified sensory professional is an important first step. Supporting that professional throughout the school year is equally important.
Because sensory disabilities are low-incidence, many districts have only one Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments, Orientation and Mobility Specialist, Educational Interpreter, Intervener, Braille Specialist, Assistive Technology Specialist, or Spoken Language Facilitator. Whether someone is brand new to the profession or has decades of experience, there may not be another specialist in the district to collaborate with.
Specialized mentorship helps fill that gap. It provides an opportunity to ask questions, strengthen decision-making, continue professional growth, and maintain the collaborative thinking that benefits both educators and students.
When districts invest in specialized mentorship, they are investing in more than one professional. They are supporting the quality and consistency of services their students receive while ensuring their sensory specialists remain connected to a community of expertise.
Because no one should reach for the phone…
…and feel that there is no one left to ask.
Learn more about Equalize Sensory Services’ mentorship program and discover how experienced guidance can support the professionals who support your students.