Historic Hampton School
For Disabled Turns 100;
Faces An Uncertain Future

By Tanya Christian
Associate Reporter
Hampton University

     The Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind, and Multi-Disabled, VSDBM-H, has been an educational staple in the Hampton Roads community for 100 years. It has stood the test of time through segregation, integration, and now through an on-going battle to keep its doors open.
      This week celebrates the school's 100 years of service to the deaf, blind, and multi-disabled African-American community. As members of this community join together to highlight the dedication of the school as a historical marker, the future of the school leaves most citizens worried.
    

Dr. Mary Christian, leading in the fight to keep The Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind and Multin-Disabled open.

    The Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind, and multi-disabled at Hampton was established in 1907 but officially opened under the direction of William C. Ritter in 1909 as the Virginia School for Colored Deaf and Blind. During this time of segregation, there were very few opportunities for black students with disabilities to be readily taught those necessary lessons that will allow them to advance at the same speed as their peers.
      Despite the institution's historical significance to the Hampton Roads community, it continues to face opposition from the state and runs the risk of having its doors closed forever.      

        
      
      The state of Virginia has been pushing for the past three decades, to have one school for those students who are deaf, blind, and multi-disabled. Currently, two of these schools exist, one located in Hampton, and the other at Staunton. While both of these schools service students with special needs, Hampton's facility can readily assist students with physical handicaps. The mountainous location of Staunton makes it difficult for wheelchair bound students to gain access to the school. In addition, the move of Peninsula students to Staunton would separate special needs children from their families. Still, the government believes that it is best to do away with the school in Hampton.

     This decision has come with much opposition. In 1996, under the leadership of Dr. Mary Christian, a taskforce was created for the preservation for the school at Hampton. In 2005, this taskforce grew to a coalition of dedicated citizens determined to keep the historical school open to its students.
Christian said, “Everything was okay when the schools were separate but equal, but after desegregation the state decided to close all the black schools and bus African-Americans out to white schools. Now only three black schools are left. It's simply not fair.”
      Christian, a former Virginia state delegate and chairperson of the coalition, is among many who believe that the decision to move the students from Hampton was racially motivated.
Esther Dickerson, a VSDBM-H graduate said, “I understand about needing to integrate but there is still a need for a residential program at Hampton. To have to tear down a mountain to have wheel chair access does not make sense. There is no question that this decision is racially motivated.”
      Ralph Shelman, Co-Chairman of the preservation of VSDBM-H and a graduate of the school, believes that when it comes to education of the blind, race tends to be a factor.
      He feels that there were periods where the school did not receive support and funding when it should have. “When the school was cited for violations the federal government should have stepped in and corrected the problem instead of trying to close it. By reacting the way they did, they failed black children.”
      The hard work of people like Dr. Mary Christian and Ralph Shelman has allowed the school to stay open thus far. However, in June of 2008, VSDBM-H will change from a residential program, where students with special needs have been housed on campus for now 100 years, to a day-to-day program, where students are transported to the school daily.
      At its height, the Hampton school served approximately 500 children. It now has an enrollment of approximately 60 students. The change from a residential to a day-to-day program will drop this number nearly in half. The coalition for the preservation of the Hampton school believe that without their continued efforts the school will not be in operation at all.

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