American School for the Deaf

American School for the Deaf
Location
Map
West Hartford, Connecticut
Coordinates41°46′16″N 72°44′50″W / 41.7710°N 72.7473°W / 41.7710; -72.7473
Information
TypePrivate[1]
EstablishedApril 15, 1817; 207 years ago (1817-04-15)
SuperintendentJeffrey S. Bravin
Staff328
GradesK–12
Number of students174
Color(s)Black and orange
AthleticsSoccer, Volleyball, Basketball, Track & Field, and Softball
MascotTigers
Websitewww.asd-1817.org

The American School for the Deaf (ASD), originally The American Asylum, At Hartford, For The Education And Instruction Of The Deaf, is the oldest permanent school for the deaf in the United States, and the first school for deaf children anywhere in the western hemisphere.[2] It was founded April 15, 1817, in Hartford, Connecticut, by Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, Mason Cogswell, and Laurent Clerc and became a state-supported school later that year.

History

The first deaf school in the United States was short-lived: established in 1815 by Col. William Bolling of Goochland, Virginia, in nearby Cobbs, with John Braidwood (tutor of Bolling's two deaf children) as teacher, it closed in the fall of 1816.[3]

Gallaudet Memorial by Daniel Chester French (1925) at American School for the Deaf

During the winter of 1818–1819, the American School for the Deaf became the first school of primary and secondary education to receive aid from the federal government when it was granted $300,000 (equivalent to $8.47 million in 2023).[4][5][6] As a result of its pivotal role in American deaf history, it also hosts a museum containing numerous rare and old items. While it is situated on a 54-acre (22 ha) campus, the ASD has a small enrollment – as of 1981, the ASD had graduated approximately 6,000 graduates.[7]

The impetus behind its founding was the fact that Alice Cogswell, the daughter of a wealthy local surgeon (Mason Fitch Cogswell), was deafened in childhood by fever at a time when the British schools were an unacceptable substitute for a local school. Cogswell prevailed upon the young Gallaudet (who had recently graduated from Yale University's School of Divinity and had begun studying at Andover). Gallaudet met young Alice in Hartford, where he was recovering from a chronic illness.

Laurent Clerc Bust by Carl Conrads

Cogswell and nine other citizens decided that the known 84 deaf children in New England needed appropriate facilities. However, competent teachers could not be found, so they sent Gallaudet in 1815 on a tour of Europe, where deaf education was a much more developed art. After being rebuffed by the Braidwoods, Gallaudet turned to the Parisian French schoolteachers of the famous school for the Deaf in Paris, where he successfully recruited Laurent Clerc.

On the strength of Clerc's reputation, the ASD was incorporated as the "Connecticut Asylum for the Education of Deaf and Dumb Persons," as it was originally known, in May 1816. When it opened in 1817, there were seven students enrolled: Alice Cogswell, George Loring, Wilson Whiton, Abigail Dillingham, Otis Waters, John Brewster, and Nancy Orr.[8] The original name of the school was: The Connecticut Asylum (at Hartford) for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons.[citation needed] John Brewster Jr., was a 51-year-old itinerant portrait painter.[relevant?]

Gallaudet was principal until 1830. His son followed in his legacy, establishing Gallaudet University, which followed the ASD's lead and taught students primarily in American Sign Language (derived from the methodical signs and Parisian sign language of the French Institute for the Deaf).

In 2021, the ASD launched its "Online Academy" for students ages 12–16, which is the first virtual enrollment option offered by the school. The program is intended to provide services to students in other parts of the U.S. as well as international students. It also enrolls homeschooling students and hearing students who want to learn American Sign Language.[9]

National Theater of the Deaf

In 2004, America's National Theatre of the Deaf (NTD) moved its corporate headquarters to the campus of the American School for the Deaf.[10]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ Falcone, Amanda (September 24, 2011). "American School For Deaf Adapts To Changing Landscape". Hartford Courant. Retrieved July 9, 2019.
  2. ^ "American Sign Language, Center for Global Studies - Wesleyan University". www.wesleyan.edu. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  3. ^ Camp, Ted (1999). "Deaf Timelines: History and Heritage". In Loth, Calder (ed.). Virginia Landmarks Register (4th ed.). University of Virginia Press.
  4. ^ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  5. ^ Dewey, John (1917). Proceedings of the Twenty-First Meeting of the American Instructors of the Deaf. p. 50.
  6. ^ Gallaudet, Edward M. (1886). "History of the education of the deaf in the United States". American Annals of the Deaf and Dumb. 31 (2): 130–147. JSTOR 44468239.
  7. ^ Gannon, Jack (1981). Deaf Heritage – A Narrative History of Deaf America (PDF). Silver Spring, MD: National Association of the Deaf. p. 16. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 28, 2012.)
  8. ^ Buchanan, Bob, ed. (2002). Gaillard in America – Portrait of the Deaf Community, 1917. Gallaudet University Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-56368-122-6.
  9. ^ Blanco, Amanda (September 15, 2021). "American School for the Deaf launches virtual academy, extending reach to students across the U.S. and the globe". Hartford Courant. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  10. ^ National Theater of the Deaf (US): NTD moves to ASD in West Hartford, CT (2004); NTD/ASD press release: NTD moves to ASD campus
  11. ^ Edmund Booth. Gupress.gallaudet.edu. Retrieved on 2013-08-02.
  12. ^ "Connecticut Deaf History". viewer.mapme.com. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
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