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The doctoral program in special education is a research degree. A core aspect of doctoral study is to learn how to conduct research and to transform the results of research into articles and scholarly presentations. The majority of graduates become professors in colleges and universities. Many students in the Special Education Doctoral Program also enroll in the newly created Concentration in Disability Studies.

Syracuse University has a long tradition of leadership in the field of special education and is recognized nationally and internationally. SU offered one of the first comprehensive programs of its kind in the United States and continues to be recognized for its leadership and vision in inclusive education. Throughout its fifty-year history, faculty and students in the program have engaged in critically important educational issues and concerns. Syracuse was among the first universities to bring attention to the educational needs of students with disabilities and to effectively develop and refine assessment and educational strategies for diverse learners. Syracuse also led the way in deinstitutionalization policy, research and advocacy. Syracuse faculty and students continue this important legacy of promoting the rights of students with disabilities. In collaboration with area school districts, faculty and students have been instrumental in demonstrating ways of meaningfully integrating students with disabilities in general education classrooms.

The program believes that doctoral study should afford students the opportunity to examine critical issues in the field in the broadest possible contexts. It should encourage expansive thinking about important educational issues as well as in-depth study. At Syracuse University students and faculty pursue both aims by supporting broadly framed inquiry as well as in-depth investigations into particular areas or issues. The program is organized around two interrelated foci: the development of effective instructional programming for diverse learners and a concern for public policy affecting the lives of people with disabilities. Doctoral students are asked to select one focus area: 1) Inclusive Educational Studies; or, 2) Disability Studies & Policy. The purpose of selecting one of these areas of study is to help bring focus to student’s coursework plans, research activities, internships and career planning. Students are not limited to any one particular area and are encouraged to take courses and participate in seminars that expand or contribute to their research interests.

The doctoral concentration is designed to prepare students to pursue leadership positions in special education or related fields. This includes those who seek a career in the academy, or as field-based researchers, government/policy specialists, public and private agency/organization directors, program developers, and special education consultants and advocates. The majority of our graduates seek our academic positions as faculty at colleges and universities.

Burton Blatt (1927–1985) was a former dean and faculty member in special education at Syracuse University. A staunch advocate of deinstitutionalization, Blatt called for programs to integrate students with disabilities into public schools and the community. His groundbreaking exposé, Christmas in Purgatory (1966), provided a horrific portrait of life in a mental institution and brought national attention to the abuse of people with mental retardation in American institutions.  Burton Blatt’s paper are archived at http://archives.syr.edu/archives/collections/faculty/blatt.html

Wolf Wolfensberger is credited with originating the idea of normalization and social role valorization theory (the societal devaluation of groups & individuals) Much of his work has been concerned with services to people with developmental disabilities and their families.

William Cruikshank was a faculty member at Syracuse University in the 1960s and 1970s.  Cruikshank developed some of the earliest educational programs for children who would later be labeled with attention deficits (ADHD).  His book, A Teaching Method for Brain Injured and Hyperactive Children (1961) focused on perceptual motor training as the basis of more complex mental development.  Cruikshank maintained that learning disabilities were caused by neurological and perceptual deficits.

Inclusive Education provides a way for all learners to gain meaningful access to the general education curriculum and participate as full members of the general education classroom.  Syracuse University was an early and influential pioneer of the Inclusion Movement.

Center on Human Policy (CHP) was founded in response to widespread abuse of and discrimination against people with disabilities in society. The Center's philosophy and activities grew out of the institutional exposés of is founder and first director, Burton Blatt. The Center on Human Policy's priorities and activities have progressed over the years to meet the evolving challenges facing people with disabilities. During its early years, Center staff members confronted the mass warehousing of children with disabilities and school exclusion through investigations, community education, legal advocacy, and the development of model programs. Throughout its history, the Center has been deeply involved in strengthening disability and parent groups and creating positive attitudes toward people who have disabilities.

The Center, which is now called the Human Policy, Law, and Disability Studies (CHPLDS), is a network of academic programs, centers, student organizations, and affiliated faculty whose research, teaching, and advocacy seeks to promote the rights of people with disabilities locally, nationally, and globally, and to facilitate a critical examination of disability as an aspect of diversity in society. Today, the staff devotes attention to promoting inclusive education, employment opportunities, and full community participation for people with disabilities.