Credential Programs

Project ACCESS

Financial and academic support for scholars from underserved backgrounds pursuing a career in special education

Mission and Vision

We embrace a culture of diversity, internationalization and inclusion in the field of education.

Through democratizing access to success for all students to earn their teaching credential and Master's degree in Special Eduation, Project ACCESS is designed to increase teachers of color and diversity to serve children with disabilities who have high intensity needs in California.

Project ACCESS provides selected Scholars with scholarships ($13,000-plus) to match unmet financial need.

Factors that place students at a disadvantage (e.g. low-income, first generation, minority and/or disability) often overlap and compound one another. An integrated program of financial and academic support is best to counteract the compounding challenges the Scholars may face.

Scholars receive support services for four years, from entering the Special Education program (junior year) through their senior year and the two years of the Master’s program.

sustained faculty mentoring
peer mentoring by peers who share and honor the Scholars’ cultural and linguistic backgrounds
coursework that incorporates evidence-based practices and leverages technology; and
a Leadership Initiative to develop Scholars’ leadership capacity

Become a Scholar

Project ACCESS Scholars are undergraduate and graduate students working towards an Education Specialist (ES) Credential and Master’s Degree in Special Education. For the 2024-25 academic school year, Project ACCESS is proud to serve 16 scholars at Fresno State. To apply, follow the steps below:

Project ACCESS Interest Form

To be considered for the program, click here complete the Project ACCESS interest form by March 31, 2024.

Credential Program Application

Complete the Education Specialist credential program application the semester of your graduation before the deadline.

Now accepting interest forms until the cohort is filled. Juniors in fall 2024 or individuals with a teaching credential seeking to add an ES Credential are eligible for funding through Project ACCESS.

Contact the Program

Project ACCESS is housed in the Special Education Program within the Kremen School of Education and Human Development.

Dr. Kristina Rios
Director, Project ACCESS
krios@mail.fresnostate.edu

Dr. Mike Mahoney
Co-Project Investigator, Project ACCESS
Coordinator, Special Education
mwmm@mail.fresnostate.edu

Dr. Kimberly Coy
Co-Project Investigator, Project ACCESS
kcoy@mail.fresnostate.edu

Special Education Faculty
William Garnett
Dana Powell

Advisory Board

Monthly Zoom meetings from 6 to 7 p.m. open to parents of children with disabilities, high school students with disabilities and interpreters for ASL, Spanish, Hmong and Punjabi to provide input into our Special Education Teacher Preparation Grant.

January 30 (Parents only)
February 27 (Parents and students)
Next: March 19 (Parents only): Access Link
April 23 (Parents and students)