The New York Institute For Special Education

The New York Institute for Special Education(NYISE) is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonsectarian educational facility which provides quality programs for children who are blind or visually disabled, emotionally and learning disabled and preschoolers who are developmentally delayed.

The school was founded in 1831 as The New York Institution for the Blind as one of the first schools in the United States to provide an educational program for children who were blind or visually impaired.

Early in the twentieth century, the name was changed to The New York Institute for the Education of the Blind to emphasize the educational character of the school.

This website has an extensive history of the school, and a major collection of disability links called the Blindness Resource Center and hundreds of photos of our school activities. 

We run a Summer camp every year. Camp Wanaqua is the only free summer day camp for blind and visually impaired children in the New York metropolitan area.  A place where blind or visually impaired children can unwind, unplug and engage with their peers, Camp Wanaqua takes place on our main campus in the Bronx for six weeks in July and August, Monday – Thursday (9:00 AM – 3:00 PM).