Saint Paul -- Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Jean D. Martin to the Rehabilitation Council for the Blind.

Martin, of Rochester, is a Director and Education Specialist II at the Minnesota Department of Education. In this capacity she serves as Director of the Minnesota Resource Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Martin previously served as Director of Regional Special Education Projects for the Northeast Educational Cooperative Service Unit in Virginia, Minnesota.

Martin received a B.S. from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and a M.A. from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado. She is appointed to a Council position for a representative of the state special education agency. Martin will serve a term ending January 7, 2008. She fills the Council seat formerly held by Eric Kloos.

The Rehabilitation Council for the Blind gives advice and recommendations to State Services for the Blind and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development concerning products and services for the blind. The Council consists of eighteen members appointed by the Governor, as well as an ex-officio member from the State Services for the Blind.