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The Cochlear Implant Education Center is a unit of the Laurent
Clerc National Deaf Education Center at Gallaudet University. The
Center investigates, evaluates, and disseminates effective practices
related to cochlear implant technology and its role in the education
and lives of deaf children from birth through high school. The
Center does not provide cochlear implant surgical services.
Debra Nussbaum, an audiologist certified by the American Speech-Language
and Hearing Association on the Clerc Center staff for the past
27 years will serve as the Center Coordinator. She has extensive
experience designing and implementing programming related to auditory
and speech skills for deaf students who use sign language.
3. What is the focus of the Center?
- On-site services: The Center investigates effective
educational practices and studies outcomes for students with
cochlear implants enrolled at the Clerc Center Demonstration
Schools, Kendall Demonstration Elementary School and the Model
Secondary School for the Deaf, both located on the campus of
Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C. Classrooms and support
services are designed to address the individual needs of each
student with an implant. Equipment is available to facilitate
monitoring, adjusting, and troubleshooting of cochlear implants
on-site. Ongoing family education and staff development programs
are provided.
- Nationwide outreach: The Center networks with educational
programs and hospital based implant centers throughout the nation
to identify and share effective practices related to the education
of children with implants.
- Collaboration with Gallaudet University: The
Center works closely with units throughout Gallaudet University
in the areas of research and training of University students.
 The
Center addresses issues related to educational programming for
children with cochlear implants, including, development and use
of both spoken language and signed language. The philosophy of
the Clerc Center Demonstration Schools is to provide a "linguistically-rich
environment for the acquisition of American Sign Language and English..."
The goal of cochlear implant technology is to provide deaf children
with increased access to sound. An important focus for students
with implants is, therefore, to maximize this access to sound toward
the development and use of spoken English. We equally believe that
students with cochlear implants should be provided with the opportunity
to develop skill in American Sign Language and knowledge of Deaf
culture.
Our Center focuses on facilitating the overall development of
students with cochlear implants. As with all deaf students, our
goal for students with cochlear implants is to ensure full access
to language to support high levels of literacy development and
access to a challenging educational curriculum.
5. What services are offered to students
with cochlear implants at the Demonstration Schools of the Clerc
Center?
Our services for students with cochlear implants is evolving based
on the enrollment and identified needs of students. Students with
cochlear implants are integrated into already existing educational
teams, with necessary program modifications to a child's existing
program determined through the Individualized Family Service Program
(IFSP)/ Individualized Educational Program (IEP) process.
The Center has been established to investigate the unique educational
needs of young children and adolescents with implants. Direct services
to students with cochlear implants at the university level are available
through various units on campus, including the Hearing and Speech
Center and the Mental Health Center. These centers also provide
services for persons with cochlear implants in the Metropolitan
D.C. community. For further information regarding services of these
units, contact the Hearing and Speech Center at 202-651-5328 or
the Mental Health Center at 202-651-6080.
For further information, contact:
Debra Nussbaum
Cochlear Implant Education Center Coordinator
Laurent Clerc National
Deaf Education Center
Kendall School Room 2418
Gallaudet University
800 Florida Ave. NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-651-5638
E-mail: Debra.Nussbaum@
gallaudet.edu.
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