Credit: Library of Congress
In the 1800s, first private and then state- supported educational opportunities for disabled students evolved to include specialized schools for the blind, deaf, and hearing-impaired. Often these residential facilities reinforced a sense of social isolation while imparting special skills to help students assimilate into the mainstream. Founded in 1820, the Pennsylvania Institution for the Deaf and Dumb (today's Pennsylvania School for the Deaf) is the third oldest school of its kind in the United States.
