UNC Charlotte Professor Honored for Helping
Special Needs Students Become Self-Sufficient

First Citizens Bank recognizes David Test with highest merit for scholarship and intellectual inquiry

April 12, 2004

CHARLOTTE - For more than two decades, David Test’s mission has been to help young adults with disabilities become self-sufficient and to help them successfully transition from high school into adulthood and the workplace.

Test, a special education professor and graduate coordinator in the College of Education at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, is known nationally for integrating research with applied behavior analysis in order to prepare adolescents and adults with disabilities for real-life environments such as competitive employment.

For his research and achievements, Test will receive the 2004 First Citizens Bank Scholars Medal on Wednesday, April 21, at the Westin Hotel in uptown Charlotte during a 6:30 p.m. ceremony. The award, established in 1987, is UNC Charlotte’s highest honor for faculty scholarship and intellectual inquiry.

“We are proud to present the annual First Citizens Scholars Medal to Professor Test and recognize his contributions to the field of special education,” said the bank’s Mecklenburg Area Executive William Braddy, who will present the award. “His research and teaching are making an amazing difference in the lives of young people - helping them to improve daily living skills, so they can become independent, successful adults.”

UNC Charlotte Chancellor James Woodward agrees.

“There is, perhaps, no greater satisfaction in education than helping those students with special needs discover their own potential to live full and enriching lives,” Woodward said. “Dr. Test’s commitment to the field has had a profound and lasting impact on many young adults with disabilities who have benefited from his research. And for that, all of us are truly grateful. We are pleased that First Citizens Bank continues to honor and support faculty excellence and intellectual inquiry at UNC Charlotte.”

Test’s career began as a teacher at the Buckeye Youth Center, a juvenile facility in Columbus, Ohio. There he worked with students with disabilities who weren’t likely to return to high school after they were released. These experiences helped Test realize that he wanted to make a career of helping students acquire the skills necessary to be successful adults. As a result, he designed studies to teach students everyday life skills such as using a public telephone, using a calculator when shopping, doing their own laundry, obtaining a drivers’ license and completing employment applications.

“The ultimate outcome of what I do should improve the day-to-day lives of people with disabilities,” Test said. “It is always fun to run into students who are now working in the community who participated in one of my studies.”

According to Test, a distinguishing characteristic of special education is its focus on research-based instructional strategies.

“Because of our research, special educators have systematic teaching strategies for teaching individuals skills that will maintain over time as well as generalize to other situations and settings,” he said.

From the mid-1980s to early 1990s, Test studied methods used to teach individuals with disabilities how to perform new daily living skills. His research since has focused on self-determination and self-advocacy skills. Together, these studies were designed to improve people’s lives by helping them become more independent.

A UNC Charlotte faculty member since 1983, Test is a professor in the department of counseling, special education and child development. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in classroom management, transition to life skills, supported employment, secondary methods and materials, single subject research and internships. Test has administered and supervised both federally and state funded personnel preparation, research and demonstration grants. He currently serves as co-director on the Self-Determination Technical Assistance Centers project (with Wendy Wood) and the UNC Charlotte Doctoral Leadership Personnel Preparation Program (with Diane Browder), and as co-editor (with Bob Algozzine) of the journal called Career Development for Exceptional Individuals. Test received his doctorate and master’s degrees from Ohio State University and his bachelor's degree from Eisenhower College in Seneca Falls, NY.

About First Citizens Bank

First Citizens has served the people and businesses of Mecklenburg County for more than 40 years. First Citizens operates 337 branches in 200 cities and towns in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. The bank’s mission is to provide superior financial services to individual customers and small to mid-sized businesses.

About UNC Charlotte

A doctoral/research intensive university, UNC Charlotte is the fourth largest of the 16 institutions within the University of North Carolina system and the largest institution of higher education in the Charlotte region. The university comprises seven professional colleges and currently offers 12 doctoral programs, 58 master’s degree programs and 82 programs leading to bachelor's degrees. Enrollment exceeds more than 19,500 students.

Media Contacts:

Natasha Ashe (704) 687-6131 UNC Charlotte

Barbara Thompson (919) 716-2716 First Citizens Bank