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April 11, 2006
AG Bell Launches Collaboration to Expand Auditory/Oral Education in Los Angeles
From: AG Bell - Apr 11, 2006
For Immediate Release
AG Bell Launches Collaboration to Expand Auditory/Oral Education in Los Angeles
Partners to Provide Sound Education to Children with Hearing LossÂ
The LAUSD program will enable children who are deaf or hard of hearing from diverse backgrounds to learn to listen, talk and achieve academic success on par with their hearing peers. John Tracy Clinic, Echo Horizon School, Oralingua School for the Deaf and No Limits for Deaf Children – Los Angeles organizations specializing in spoken language education – will support the LAUSD program by sharing their resources and professional expertise.
“Nearly 70,000 school-age children in the United States have a hearing loss, and the vast majority of parents want their children with hearing loss to learn to listen and talk,†said K. Todd Houston, Executive Director/CEO of AG Bell. “AG Bell is proud to work with LAUSD and the partnering schools to ensure that children enrolled in the program receive the educational support they need to develop their listening and language skills.â€
“LAUSD is thrilled to work with AG Bell and our educational partners to provide services that will support the needs of children with hearing loss in the greater Los Angeles area,†said Marilyn Geffeney, Coordinator of the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing and Audiology Program. “With the support of the Associate Superintendent for Special Education, Donnalyn Jaque-Antòn, we plan to use the best practices we develop through this initial collaboration to expand services across the school district.â€
The programs involved in the program include:
Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) works with over 2,200 deaf and hard of hearing children in the greater Los Angeles area. With six schools dedicated to providing educational services that teach children with hearing loss to listen and talk, LAUSD is dedicated to bringing a great education to its students. The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Infant Program serves approximately 130 children, birth to age 3, through home visits in which professionals provide one-to-one support and teach families how to help their children with hearing loss develop their listening and language skills. Faced with the challenges of rapidly-changing technology and a lack of financial resources, LAUSD hopes this pilot program will help them provide needed services to its students. (http://dse-web.lausd.k12.ca.us/)
John Tracy Clinic, a private OPTION program founded in 1943 by Louise Tracy, the wife of actor Spencer Tracy, and located in Los Angeles, Calif., pioneered the parent-centered, speech and language education for babies and preschoolers with hearing loss. The Clinic is renowned for its accredited teacher education program as well as its correspondence courses, which annually reach over 2,500 families in as many as 140 countries. (www.johntracyclinic.org)
Echo Horizon School, a private OPTION elementary school located in Culver City, Calif., is for children in pre-kindergarten through 6th grade. Echo Horizon School educates children with both typical hearing and hearing loss in an inclusive environment that teaches self-reliance and mutual respect among peers. (www.echohorizon.org)
Oralingua School for the Deaf, a private OPTION school located in Whittier, Calif., is dedicated to the belief that children who are deaf or hard of hearing can learn to listen, talk, think, achieve and fully participate in the hearing world. Many Oralingua students move on to mainstreamed regular classrooms within their own school districts. (www.oralingua.org)
No Limits for Deaf Children, located in Culver City, Calif., offers four hours a week of auditory, speech and language therapy, a bi-weekly reading program, and weekly parent education courses to lower-income children with hearing loss enrolled in public schools at no cost to their families. It also has a national theatre company that allows children with hearing loss to develop the skills to speak confidently on stage in professional and original productions. (www.nolimitsspeaksout.org)
OPTION is an international council of private/independent schools offering auditory/oral education for children with hearing loss.
The Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is a lifelong resource, support network, and advocate for listening, learning, talking and living independently with hearing loss. Through publications, advocacy, training, scholarships and financial aid, AG Bell promotes the use of spoken language and hearing technology. Headquartered in Washington, DC with chapters located in the United States and Canada and a network of international affiliates, AG Bell's global presence provides its members and the public with the support they need – close to home. With over a century of service, AG Bell supports its mission: Advocating Independence through Listening and Talking!
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Contact:
Jessica Ripper
Senior Director of Marketing and Communications
Alexander Graham Bell Association
 for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
3417 Volta Place, NW
Washington, DC 20007
Office: (202) 337-5220
Direct Dial: (202) 204-4680
E-mail: jripper@agbell.org
Plan to attend the AG Bell 2006 Convention "Building Bridges, Connecting Voices" in Pittsburgh, Pa., June 23-27, 2006. Register online at www.agbell.org.
