1904 - 1996
Photo Courtesy of Museum of disABILTY.org
Samual A. Kirk
Samuel A. Kirk is considered an influential individual in the history of special education. He earned his bachelors and masters degrees in psychology from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in physiological and psychology at the University of Michigan. Kirk began working with disabled children at the Oaks School in Chicago in 1929 and also worked at the Wayne County Training School in Michigan. At the University of Illinois, Kirk helped to develop a special education program for undergraduates and graduate students and was the Director of the Institute for Research on Exceptional Children. Kirk was a leading advocate for the passage of federal legislation establishing contemporary special education laws. The 1969 Learning Disabilities Act can be contributed to Kirk's work with the learning disabled. He was the first recipient of the International Award in Mental Retardation presented by the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation. In 1964 Kirk was appointed the director of the Division of Handicapped Children and Youth under what is now the U.S. Department of Education.
During his time at the Wayne County Training School Dr. Kirk helped establish the Homestead Program. A description of this can be found in his book, Educating The Retarded Child.
Photo Courtesy of National Arcives/Photographer Abbie Rowe
President John F. Kennedy visits with the recipients of the first Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., Foundation International Awards in Mental Retardation. Left to right: Head of the Department of Microscopic Anatomy at the University of Western Ontario, Dr. Murray L. Barr; Director of the Institute for Research on Exceptional Children at the University of Illinois, Dr. Samuel A. Kirk; President of the National Association for Retarded Children, John Fettinger; President Kennedy; former professor of medicine of the University of Olso, Dr. Asbjørn Følling; Dr. Jérôme Lejeune, of the National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS) in France; Dr. Joe Hin Tjio, of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C. Copyright Status Public Domain Credit Line Abbie Rowe. White House Photographs. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston
Photo Courtesy of National Arcives/Photographer Abbie Rowe
President John F. Kennedy visits with the recipients of the first Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., Foundation International Awards in Mental Retardation. Left to right: Director of the Institute for Research on Exceptional Children, Dr. Samuel A. Kirk; two unidentified women; President of the National Association for Retarded Children, John Fettinger; President Kennedy; former professor of medicine of the University of Olso, Dr. Asbjørn Følling; unidentified; Head of the Department of Microscopic Anatomy at the University of Western Ontario, Dr. Murray L. Barr; Dr. Jérôme Lejeune, of the National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS) in France (partially hidden); Dr. Joe Hin Tjio, of the National Institutes of Health (NIH); and Inga Tjio. Unidentified persons may include: Ruth Barr, Gwendolyn Fettinger, and Winifred D. Kirk. Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C. Copyright Status Public Domain Credit Line Abbie Rowe. White House Photographs. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston
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Educating the Retarded Child 1951 PDF