Northern Illinois University
Department of Special and Early Education
College of Education

Gaylen Kapperman, Ed.D.
Professor Emeritus, Special Education,
Vision Program

Department:

Special and Early Education (SEED)

Education:

• Ed.D., University of Northern Colorado
• M.S.Ed., University of Northern Colorado
• B.S., Doane College

Interests:

Gaylen Kapperman began work at Northern Illinois University in 1974. Before coming to NIU, Kapperman graduated from the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado, in 1974 with a doctorate in special education administration and research. Previous to his tentrance into the doctoral program at UNC, he had taught students who were blind and visually impaired at the Kansas School for the Visually Handicapped in Kansas City, Kansas from 1969 through 1972. At that school, he taught mathematics and German. Before beginning work at the Kansas School, he spent one academic year in 1968-69 as a Fulbright Scholar studying special education at the University of Heidelberg in Heidelberg, Germany. He was the first person who is visually disabled to be awarded a Fulbright Fellowship. Before going to Germany, Kapperman graduated from the University of Northern Colorado in 1968 with a master's degree in special education for children who are visually disabled. Previous to his admission to UNC, he graduated from Doane College in Crete, Nebraska where he majored in mathematics and German and was awarded a secondary teaching certificate. He graduated from that institution in 1967 at the rank of Magna Cum Laude.

His professional work has focused on preparing personnel to work with persons who are visually disabled to enable them to meet the challenges which they must overcome to lead productive, independent lives. Kapperman's major interest focus on the development of strategies and methods for increasing the effectiveness of mathematics instruction for students who are visually disabled and the development of methods for providing effective instruction in the use of assistive technology for persons of all ages who are visually disabled. He uses an array of assistive technologies for carrying out his work because he is severely visually disabled himself. He reads braille and uses a guide dog.