Dr. Martin Agran

Dr. Martin Agran
University of Northern Iowa

Dr. Agran is a a Departmental Head and Professor of Special Education at the University of Northern Iowa. He received his PhD from the University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana) in 1984. Prior to his present affiliation with the University of Northern Iowa, he was a Professor in the Department of Special Education at Utah State University.

Dr. Agran's research interests include the education of students with severe disabilities, self-determination/self-regulation, transition, and personnel preparation. He is strongly committed to the investigation of strategies that enable students with significant disabilities to direct and manage their own learning. He has authored nine books and has been published extensively in professional journals. He is the co-editor of the Innovations Research-to-Practice series published by the American Association on Mental Retardation, is on the editorial board of five refereed journals, and has served as a guest reviewer for nine other refereed journals. His research has been supported by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services and the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education.

His honors include being selected as a Distinguished Editor by the Journal of the Association of Persons with Severe Handicaps (JASH) in 1999, being awarded the Thomas Haring Excellence in Research Award in 2002, and having a self-determination transition model he developed selected as a Model Program by the National Transition Alliance. He has also received an Outstanding Research Award, University of Wyoming; Donald McKay Award, University of Northern Iowa; and Distinguished Research Award, Council of Exceptional Children, Division of Developmental Disabilities. Lastly, Dr. Agran served as a Fulbright Scholar in the Czech Republic.