Getting to Know: Cochlear Limited
Deaf News Today You could have bought stock in Cochlear Limited at the turn of the century for about $10. A few days ago the stock was worth more than $133 a share.  Cochlear Limited is the biggest of the three companies that dominate the cochlear implant market. More than a quarter of a million people have a Cochlear implant. Based in Australia, Cochlear Limited does most of its bu...
Thu, Jul 02 2020 · 21 hours ago

On this day in history: 27 year ago
Deaf News Today It was 26 years ago today (July 1, 1993) that the FCC requires all U.S. analog television receivers with screens 13 inches or larger to include built-in decoder circuitry that could display closed captioning. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Wed, Jul 01 2020

MI company to pay $25K for ADA violations
Deaf News Today A Michigan company has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a federal disability discrimination lawsuit as well as ADA training and reports to the EEOC. The EEOC's lawsuit said Powerlink Facilities Management Services, instead of providing captioning in its orientation videos, didn't allow a deaf employee to begin work for several months. The failure to provide reasonable ...
Tue, Jun 30 2020

This day in history: 116 years ago
Deaf News Today Helen Keller graduated with honors from Radcliffe College on June 28, 1904, 114 years ago today, becoming the first deaf and blind person to graduate from college with a B.A. Radcliffe was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a part of Harvard University. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sun, Jun 28 2020

Whatever Happened to.. Jane Fernandes
Deaf News Today image from guilford.edu Jane Fernandes has announced she will step down as president of Guilford College after this academic year. She spent seven years at the school and will leave a year before her contract expires. In taking the position at the private Quaker college, she became the first deaf woman to lead a U.S. college or university. But alumni of Gallaudet U...
Sat, Jun 27 2020

Happy Birthday, Signmark
Deaf News Today Deaf Finnish rap artist Signmark (Marko Vuoriheimo) was born on this day (June 26) in Helsinki, Finland in 1978. The child of deaf parents, Signmark stumbled into Hip Hop music while translating songs into sign. He felt a connection between the rappers hand gestures and sign language. He now works with other artists who sing as he signs, becoming the first deaf rapper...
Fri, Jun 26 2020

Website accessibility study
Deaf News Today Many websites are not accessible, according to a company called accessiBe. They tested 10,000,000 websites for accessibility compliance and found: 98% of menus failed83% of buttons71% of forms 52% of images89% of pop-ups. Read more here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Wed, Jun 24 2020

Videoconferencing Tips
Deaf News Today Here are some tips from Carolyn Ginsburg Stern, the assistant director of outreach and strategic initiatives at the Center for Hearing and Communication, published in The Hearing Journal, about making videoconferences more accessible: Sit in a well-lit space to brighten your face and avoid backlighting, such as light shining through a window behind a workstation. El...
Mon, Jun 22 2020

Marvel is looking for a Deaf Actress
Deaf News Today Marvel is reportedly searching for a deaf, Native American First Nations, Indigenous or Latinx actress for a role in an upcoming Disney+ series. Speculation is that Disney could be planning to introduce the Daredevil character Echo to one of its shows. Originally an adversary for The Man Without Fear, Echo became a hero herself, becoming Avenger Maya Lopez in the New...
Sat, Jun 20 2020

Masks & VRIs can prevent Deaf individuals from...
Deaf News Today Bridget Nitsch opted for a natural birth but wasn’t due for a few days--but the baby came anyway. But Bridget Nitsch and her partner, who are both Deaf, couldn’t reach 911 until connecting with Bridget Nitsch’s mother through a video call. By the time the paramedics arrived, the baby’s head was halfway out. Bridget Nitsch and her partner can read lips with ...
Mon, Jun 15 2020

On this Day: First Deaf Computer PhD
Deaf News Today image from Gallaudet.edu It was on this date, June 15, 2008, that Karen Alkoby became the first deaf woman in the U.S. to earn a Ph.D. in computer science. She graduated from Chicago's DePaul University, helping to pioneer a computer-animated dictionary. Alkoby’s dissertation involved determining how the human brain interprets shapes like those made by hands in ASL...
Mon, Jun 15 2020

Deaf Black lives matter group honors Black deaf sanitation...
Deaf News Today Several dozen deaf black people joined together to march in Memphis yesterday. Besides protesting against police brutality and systemic racism, they also honored black deaf sanitation workers who marched before them. Read the full story at the Commercial Appeal here and watch the video below from WJHL-TV News channel 11. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sun, Jun 14 2020

Judge rules on lawsuit filed by deaf inmates in Illinois
Deaf News Today The Illinois prison system is not following through on its agreement to accommodate deaf prisoners. That's the finding of a federal judge who says the Illinois Department of Corrections is out of compliance with a 2018 settlement agreement. It said that deaf prisoners would get auditory exams after failed hearing tests. The judge is ordering the dept. of corrections t...
Fri, Jun 12 2020

Deaf demonstrators say they face dangers at protests
Deaf News Today Members of Portland's deaf community are taking to the streets like many others do. But as KATU-TV has learned, safety can become a concern. Below is a video report or read the story here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Wed, Jun 10 2020

Black Lives Matter signs
Deaf News Today ASL interpreter Rorri Burton breaks down how to sign “Black Lives Matter” in ASL and explains why not everyone signs it the same way. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Mon, Jun 08 2020

The lockdown's impact on deaf children in the UK
Deaf News Today The Covid-19 pandemic has meant access to many support services is limited, and deaf youngsters are even more vulnerable, write a group of health and disability experts. Read more in the Guardian here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sun, Jun 07 2020

Getting to know: Canada's first deaf Priest
Deaf News Today Matthew Hysell Canada's first deaf Roman Catholic priest was ordained in 2012. Raised a Baptist in Michigan, Matthew Hysell lost his hearing after a bout with meningitis as a toddler. He made the decision to become a priest as a teenager after reading about the priesthood in school. He graduated from City University in New York, then earned a master's in theology fro...
Sun, Jun 07 2020

A Video of Life in a 1950s Deaf School
Deaf News Today Here is a video filmed in 1954 at the UK's Royal School for Deaf Children in Margate. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Fri, Jun 05 2020

33 years ago: Implant history
Deaf News Today image from Cochlear.com  On June 4, 1987 Holly McDonell (now Holly Taylor) of Sydney became the first child to receive a commercial multi-channel cochlear implant system (Nucleus made by Cochlear, LTD). The four-year-old became profoundly deaf from bacterial meningitis. Holly still has her original implant and had several sounds processor upgrades. The Daily Telegra...
Thu, Jun 04 2020

Tips on How to Speak to Deaf People
Deaf News Today * Make sure you have eye contact with the person before speaking* If there is an interpreter, speak to and look at the deaf person—not at the interpreter* Face the person to whom you are speaking (that helps with lip-reading)* Stand in good lighting and avoid standing so that light is on the face of the deaf person* Avoid background noise whenever possible* Move you...
Wed, Jun 03 2020

Louisiana School for the Deaf Gets New Director
Deaf News Today Heather Laine is the new Director of Louisiana School for the Deaf. She earned a degree at Gallaudet University and later earned an advanced degree in deaf education at Cal State Northridge. She worked as a teacher of the deaf in Los Angeles before eventually becoming principal at Arizona's Sequoia Deaf School. Here is the official announcement. Read More at DeafNe...
Tue, Jun 02 2020

Hotel Settles Service Dog complaint
Deaf News Today A Connecticut Quality Inn has reached a settlement over its refusal to allow a guest to bring a service dog into its dining room. The settlement includes $1,000 in compensation and requires: The Quality Inn Mystic-Groton to permit service animals in all areas of the hotel that members of the public and other hotel guests are allowed to go, including in its dining ro...
Tue, Jun 02 2020

More than 110 years ago
Deaf News Today Here is a bit of history. The paragraph below as published in the June 1907 issue of Scientific American magazine—more than 110 years ago: The loss of the sense of hearing should not necessarily mean deprivation of the power of speech. Is it only within recent years that we have come to realize this fact, and in up-to-date institutions the old –fashioned finger al...
Tue, Jun 02 2020

On this day: the 1st Deaf NFL Player was Born
Deaf News Today Bonnie Sloan On this date (June 1) in 1948, Bonnie Sloan was born in Tennessee. At the age of 25, Bonnie would become the first deaf player in the NFL when he ran onto the field for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Philadelphia Eagles in 1973.  His career only lasted one season, thanks to knee injuries, but he had made his mark. The 6-foot-5, 260-pounder came ou...
Mon, Jun 01 2020

Living through a pandemic without sound
Deaf News Today There are 300,000 people in Northern Ireland affected by hearing loss. The BBC spoke to some of the about their experiences during the coronavirus outbreak here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sun, May 31 2020

Gally gets new swim coach
Deaf News Today image from Galluadet.edu Nick Pezzarossi is the new men’s and women’s swimming and diving head coach at Gallaudet University. Pezzarossi, who is deaf, was twice an assistant coach at the school—three years under former head coach Bill Snape (2004-07) and one year under former head coach Rosemary Stifter (2003-04). The most recent head coach, Larry Curran, recen...
Sat, May 30 2020

Online Education Resources for the Deaf Community
Deaf News Today Voice of America's Calla Yu has a video report on teachers who are creating online resources in American Sign Language. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Thu, May 28 2020

ADA law & wearing a mask in a business
Deaf News Today Does ADA law require businesses to allow people into stories if the customer has a disability? Some experts say the answer is 'no.' KMIR-TV in Palm Springs has a video report below or read the story here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Mon, May 25 2020

Complaint says AP exams discriminate
Deaf News Today New Jersey high school student Kaleigh Brendle has filed federal complaints saying the AP exams discriminate against the blind and deaf. A junior at the Scholars’ Center for the Humanities, Kaleigh is legally blind and has been reading brail since she was 3 years old. Find our more about why she says the test isn't set up properly in the New York Post here. Read Mor...
Mon, May 25 2020

Temporary Layoffs at Michigan School for the Deaf
Deaf News Today The Michigan School for the Deaf is cutting its staff down to four days a week. There will work for them on Fridays through July. This includes all academic, office, residential and administrative staff. Read more here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Mon, May 25 2020

Deaf woman’s social media post goes viral, raises...
Deaf News Today Kimberly Fugate Kimberly is using a story of something that happened to her at a grocery store to raise awareness about what the Deaf and Hard of Hearing face every day. Her Facebook post recounting that moment has more than 30,000 shares. WTVQ-TV in Lexington, Kentucky has a video report. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Tue, May 19 2020

Meet Gov. Cuomo's Terp
Deaf News Today Arkady Belozovsky, an NTID (National Technical Institute for the Deaf) graduate is the sign language interpreter you will see on-screen alongside New York's governor during coronavirus briefings. Read more in a lengthy article published in the Democrat & Chronicle here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Mon, May 18 2020

Deaf Man dies after being trapped in fire
Deaf News Today A Maryland man on the outskirts of Wash., D.C. who is deaf died after his home caught fire early Sunday morning. Firefighters rescued 55-year-old Norman Rogers III but he later died at the hospital. Rogers graduated from the Maryland School of the Deaf. Read more here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sun, May 17 2020

The ASL Advantage
Deaf News Today The Maryland School for the Deaf superintendent sees ASL as an advantage in the fight to remain healthy during the pandemic. WDVM-TV has a video report or you can read the story here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Thu, May 14 2020

Deaf actress dies on this date
Deaf News Today from CBS Photo Archive One of the first deaf actresses to have a major role on a TV series died on this day (May 13, 2015) in Fremont, California. Audree Norton was 88 years old. A founding member of The National Theatre of the Deaf, Norton appeared on the CBS show Mannix in 1968 and later on The Streets of San Francisco and Family Affair. When she was cut out of a r...
Wed, May 13 2020

Judge: Cuomo briefings must be more accessible to deaf
Deaf News Today Disability Rights New York has gotten a preliminary injunction against the governor of New York over his failure to broadcast a sign language interpreter during his daily Covid press briefings. Last night, a Manhattan federal judge, Valerie Caproni, ordered New York Governor Cuomo to include an interpreter in the state-provided TV signal of his briefings. The governor...
Tue, May 12 2020

How a Texas school is connecting with its students
Deaf News Today The Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children in San Antonio is working to stay connected to its students. Preschool teacher Holly Mason says: I record instructional videos every day and then send it to the parents so that they can view those videos at their convenience...We are shifting greatly to parents who are having to take the primary seat. But what parents for...
Sat, May 09 2020

Musical collaboration
Deaf News Today The duo called the Skivvies has joined with deaf actor Joshua Castille and others who work with Deaf West Theatre to perform in a short video of I Am What I Am from La Cage Aux Folles. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Thu, May 07 2020

On this date in history: Frederick Barnard dies
Deaf News Today Frederick Barnard It was on this date (May 5) in 1889 that Frederick Barnard died at the age of 80. His full name was Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard. The deaf American educator was quite the renaissance man. Besides teaching college students, he was a scientist, writer and mathematician. Barnard served as president of the University of Mississippi, then took the s...
Tue, May 05 2020

Show me a Sign
Deaf News Today A new historical novel called Show me a Sign follows the life of an 11-year-old girl on Martha’s Vineyard in the 19th Century. Intended for children ages 8 to 12, author Ann Clare LeZotte, who is deaf herself, takes the reader into a group of deaf residents who were descendants of English colonists and have developed their own sign language. At one point the girl te...
Thu, Apr 30 2020

The Deaf-Blind Fear That Doctors Won’t Save Them...
Deaf News Today The president of Gallaudet University, Roberta Cordano says, “My worry is that the pandemic planning has completely missed" the deaf-blind community. “To be frank, there is no mechanism on a national scale to support the deaf-blind in the current American health-care system.” At least fifteen of Gallaudet students are deaf-blind. The New Yorker has more in a new...
Wed, Apr 29 2020

How Do You Sign ‘Don’t Drink Bleach’?
Deaf News Today image from the New York Times Rorri Burton has been interpreting the Los Angeles news conferences about Covid-19. She tells the New York Times that the attention she has gotten on social media is “unwanted and unexpected.” Particularly when celebrity blogger Perez Hilton "set her moves to music" and "comedian David Spade called her Covid-19 interpretation 'kooky....
Tue, Apr 28 2020

Deafverse: An ASL-accessible Video Game
Deaf News Today Austin's National Deaf Center has developed a fully ASL-accessible game. Deafverse is a "browser-based ongoing-narrative adventure about navigating the world as a deaf teenager." Arstechnica says: Although Deafverse is primarily designed for deaf teenagers of high school age (in service of the NDC's primary goal of supporting deaf young people's transition into acti...
Sat, Apr 25 2020

Implant Activated Remotely
Deaf News Today A toddler in England has just had her cochlear implant activated for the first time during a remote telemedicine session between her house and the clinical team. Read more about it on Medgadget here or watch the video about the procedure below. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Sat, Apr 25 2020

Deaf Man Sues Plasma Co.
Deaf News Today An Illinois deaf man is suing CSL Plasma over ADA issues. Mark Gomez says the blood plasma company not only wouldn't accept his plasma, it refused to provide him with an interpreter. Read the full story here. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Fri, Apr 24 2020

White House urged to use Terps at Briefings
Deaf News Today The National Association of the Deaf and the National Council on Disability have sent letters urging the White House coronavirus task force to use ASL interpreters during its daily briefings. The White House did not provide a comment to CNN on whether it had received the letters or whether it would consider using an interpreter. Read the full story here. Read More at ...
Thu, Apr 23 2020

What deaf truckers have to fear from the Trump...
Deaf News Today The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is about to issue a ruling that could prevent deaf and hard-of-hearing commercial truck drivers from working. The National Association for the Deaf filed a petition this year arguing that the hearing tests are not a valid requirement for a commercial driver's license. Sara Novic filed an opinion piece with CNN about the ...
Tue, Apr 21 2020

A struggle at Trader Joe's
Deaf News Today Good Morning America spoke with Matthew Simmons, a Trader Joe's cashier in Vancouver, Washington about the difficulties he faces communicating with customers--especially with everyone wearing masks. "I rely heavily on using my lip-reading skills so customers wearing facial coverings is a problem for me," Simmons said. Read the full story here. Read More at DeafNewsTo...
Tue, Apr 21 2020

The Forgotten Victims of the Pandemic: the Deaf Community
Deaf News Today Ozy takes a look at the particular difficulties of being deaf during a pandemic outbreak in a story you can read here or see in ASL in the video below. Read More at DeafNewsToday.com
Mon, Apr 20 2020

On this date in History: A Deaf Astronomer Dies
Deaf News Today On this date (April 20) in 1786, John Goodricke died. Goodricke only survived to the age of 21, but the deaf astronomer made a major impact on his field. Working with Edward Pigott, Goodricke learned to measure the variation of light coming from stars. This would eventually lead astronomers to figure out the distance of galaxies from the earth. While still a teenager,...
Mon, Apr 20 2020