Thomas P. Lombardi

Thomas P. Lombardi was inducted into the inaugural College of Applied Human Sciences Hall of Fame in the fall of 2025. He was previously inducted into the College of Education and Human Services Hall of Fame in 2014.

Lombardi joined the faculty of West Virginia University in 1971, serving in the Department of Special Education until his retirement in 2010. He was instrumental in expanding special education at WVU, helping to develop the state’s certification requirements for teaching students with specific learning disabilities. He also wrote and directed the Dean’s Grant, a federally funded initiative that laid the groundwork for special education curricula used for years by the Benedum Collaborative Five-Year Teacher Education Program.

A prolific author, Lombardi published more than 80 books, articles, and monographs, often in collaboration with colleagues, students, and his wife, Estelle. His research and presentations, including those published by Phi Delta Kappa, reached national and international audiences. He helped popularize the concept of ‘responsible inclusion,’ a term he used in publications and teacher training programs to emphasize intentional, well-supported integration of students with special needs.

Lombardi’s professional contributions were recognized through numerous honors, including a U.S. Fulbright Award to assist in the development of a special education teacher training program at Lusófona University in Lisbon, Portugal. He also served as a consultant to the Education Department in Bermuda, participated in national leadership roles with the Council for Exceptional Children and the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and represented West Virginia at the first White House Conference for the Handicapped.

A professor emeritus, he was a three-time recipient of the Outstanding Teacher Award from WVU’s College of Education and Human Services and was a finalist for West Virginia’s Professor of the Year Award, which recognizes faculty across all of the state’s higher education institutions. In retirement, Lombardi established scholarships for students pursuing special education.

Lombardi passed away in 2023.