FEATURE
EDUCATION ADVOCATES: How It All Started and Future Plans
Tawny and some students smile for the camera. Photo credit: Lexington School for the Deaf
BY TAWNY HOLMES In April of 2012, the community was concerned. Due to the economic recession, nearly all schools for the deaf faced budget cuts, as high as 20% of their entire budget. That meant that the schools, already facing dwindling enrollment due to the federal policies and laws that preferred mainstreamed schooling, were at a higher risk for closure. That also meant that deaf and hard of hearing children all over the United States would have less educational options where they could succeed academically with their peers and adult role models. The community couldn’t accept that. Education Advocates, a grassroots organizing campaign, was established by the National Association of the Deaf. The first step was to invite state associations to send a designated Education Advocate to the Biennial NAD Conference in Louisville, KY, in 2012. During that conference, there was an orientation and a list of workshops focusing on education, language needs, policy, and more that representatives were encouraged to attend. Twelve states participated and received the first Education Advocate handbook with information 20
on their roles and the program itself. People started asking what an Education Advocate was and wanted one for their state. More states immediately joined the campaign. For the next two years I continued to serve as a volunteer coordinator for the Education Advocates program until I got a full-time fellowship with the Equal Justice Works organization, funded by Morgan, Lewis, & Bockius, LLP., an international law firm. The fellowship during 2013-2015 meant I could work at the NAD Headquarters focusing on Education Advocacy! To meet the goals of the fellowship, I provided 5-10 trainings for parents, families, community members, teachers, administrators, and students every six months. As a result, the number of state associations with an Education Advocate grew, along with several affiliate organizations. With a growing number of Education Advocates, a webpage was established. Information about education advocacy for deaf and hard of hearing children from the NAD’s viewpoint grew and expanded in over 40 locations all over the country.
