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Gallaudet’s Presidential Search Roundtable Discussion
Posted December 2005
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This article presents a conversational round robin among four (4) participants, with questions and comments made by each participant. Issues discussed include the composition of Gallaudet’s presidential search committee, desired qualifications of the next president, civil rights of deaf people, and the larger role of Gallaudet University in the global economy.
The four participants in this article were:
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Bridgetta Bourne-Firl
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Kelby Brick
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Jeff Rosen
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Slemo Warigon
Conversational Round Robin
Bridgetta:
Slemo, as an employee of Gallaudet University and knowing the climate there, what qualifications do the internal stakeholders want to see in the next president?
Slemo:
Bridgetta, I can tell you that Gallaudet students generally want to select a candidate who is deaf with sufficient administrative background in the education of deaf students. They also want the candidate to be able to raise funds, work well with Congress, and communicate effectively with internal stakeholders using sign language. Deaf faculty members have informally shared similar sentiments.
Kelby, as a deaf community activist, what qualifications do you consider desirable for the next president of Gallaudet University?
Kelby:
Slemo, you provided a nice baseline for basic qualifications, but the Presidential Search Committee should require a higher level of expectations.
This includes understanding the daily challenges faced by deaf people while pursuing a vision of teaching and promoting civil rights opportunities for deaf and hard of hearing people. This starts with an ideal candidate who appreciatively self-identifies as a deaf person and who will re-commit to preparing deaf and hard of hearing students for leadership and service to our nation and the global community similar to the role that is being served by historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) for African-Americans.
Gallaudet, as the world's only liberal arts university for deaf students, has a special responsibility for teaching students about the history and culture of deaf people in the same manner as HBCUs in teaching the history and culture of African-American people. This starts with having a deaf President who is a fluent user and proponent of sign language and communication access, while being a visionary on how to open opportunities for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the world at large. The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) has laid out some of those expectations in its letter to the Gallaudet Board of Trustees. This letter can be found at http://www.nad.org/GallaudetPresidentOpenLtr.
Jeff, as one of the highest ranking employees in the Federal Government, your career has been about creating opportunities for individuals with disabilities and leveling the playing field. How important is this position to the world at large and why should people who are neither students nor employees at Gallaudet care who is appointed?
Jeff:
Deaf people are currently at the crossroads of a new look at how policies and programs can effectively support rewarding and fulfilling careers. Through legislation and government, doors are being opened in our education, employment and access to public places and information. Yet, far too many barriers remain in our efforts to achieve successful breakthroughs. Consequently, far too many deaf people are still left behind because they are undereducated, underemployed and have a hard time getting equal communication access. Because of its role as a higher education institution and a leading center of deaf activism, Gallaudet has a critical part to play as a spokesperson to Congress and the Federal government about where we are and what more needs to be done. Selecting the right person to lead Gallaudet is, therefore, vital to creating equal educational, employment, and communication access opportunities for the deaf people.
Whether or not you are a Gallaudet student, employee or alumni, the universal sense is that it is a Mecca for the deaf. Deaf outsiders describe visiting Gallaudet as "going home." We must continue to build on the success of the Deaf President Now (DPN) movement so that Gallaudet truly represents the very best of the deaf community.
Bridgetta, Gallaudet students have expressed frustration about their inability to get their issues addressed in ways that recognize their role and responsibility as partners in the campus governance process. The lack of a student vote for the next President is an example that they’ve cited. As a former student leader in DPN, how can the students become more involved in the affairs of the University, including the selection of the next President.
Bridgetta:
Students must stick together, come up with basic and clear specifics on what their needs are, and follow through. Being politically savvy will be very helpful! Making friends with the key administrators will also help. But if nothing works, then students need to take a stronger stand.
First, the students need to clearly communicate to the entire Gallaudet community about what they want to see happen. Second, the students can use SBG, Student Congress, and Greek Organizations to build a coalition of partners with shared goals. Together, the students will be strong and Gallaudet administrators will have no choice but to listen!
Kelby, we know we want the next president to be someone who is intrinsically Deaf (notice the use of capitalized "D," which implies cultural and language characteristics) and be someone who is able to effectively lead Gallaudet for the next decade. How would you describe her/his desired qualifications?
Kelby:
Bridgetta, the easy criteria include being deaf, possessing an earned doctoral degree, being able to lead the University in academic excellence, being an effective fund-raiser, and establishing positive relationships with members of Congress. The more difficult criteria for the stakeholders to explore would include the candidate being able to:
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PROMOTE GALLAUDET AS BEACON OF HOPE
The next President needs to understand, as former Vice President George H. Bush, former Senator Bob Dole, and current President Jordan did, that Gallaudet has a unique mission; it not only serves as an institution of higher education, but also and most importantly as a beacon of hope for all deaf citizens of the world.
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UNDERSTAND DAILY CHALLENGES FACED BY DEAF PEOPLE
The next president, like Dr. Jordan, must also have a deep understanding of the challenges faced by deaf people every day in this country and worldwide. Jobs are still not easily available. Lack of communication access still exists in many areas of life. The next President needs to be able to understand these daily challenges and be able to convey this understanding both through words and deeds.
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PURSUE VISION OF TEACHING AND PROMOTING CIVIL RIGHTS AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
Even with the advent and the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), deaf people nationwide continue to struggle to exercise their basic civil rights including access to basic government programs and services. The next president must continue Dr. Jordan's legacy with a keen understanding of the civil rights movement and its emphasis on equality, educational opportunities, and economic advancement in a way that the current and future generations of deaf and hard of hearing Gallaudet students can accomplish their lifelong goals. The entire campus – both within and outside the classrooms – must also be geared toward the pursuit of this civil rights vision.
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PROMOTE TEACHING OF HISTORY AND CULTURE OF DEAF PEOPLE
Gallaudet University serves a role for deaf and hard of hearing students similar to that of HBCUs for African-Americans. Gallaudet and its next president must re-commit to preparing deaf and hard of hearing students for leadership and service to our nation and the global community. The University must also continue to be a place where students can come to study, free of oppression. Gallaudet, as the world's only liberal arts university for deaf students, has a special responsibility for teaching students about the history and culture of deaf people in the same manner as HBCUs in teaching the history and culture of African-American people.
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APPRECIATEIVELY SELF IDENTITIFY AS A DEAF PERSON
Dr. Jordan has been and continues to be a role model, projecting a positive image of a successful deaf person in a significant position of leadership. The next president must also take on the responsibility of serving as an exemplary leader who appreciates the uniqueness of being deaf, being content with his/her identity as a deaf person, and having a thorough knowledge of deaf culture and history. Edwin Booth who chaired the first NAD national convention in 1880 stated, "We have interests peculiar to ourselves, which can be taken care of by ourselves." Accordingly, Gallaudet must have, as its next president, a recognized member of the deaf community who will promote an expanded vision for Gallaudet in the coming years.
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FLUENT USER AND PROPONENT OF SIGN LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION ACCESS
Gallaudet University, from the very beginning under its first president Edward Miner Gallaudet, has been a proponent of sign language. Accordingly, the next president of Gallaudet must continue to be a fluent user and proponent of American Sign Language and be committed to communication access throughout the campus as well as in its affairs off campus.
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BE A VISIONARY AND COMMITTED TO OPPORTUNITIES
Following in Dr. Jordan's footsteps, the next president must also be a visionary in promoting academic excellence, as well as committed to diversity in hiring and promoting qualified deaf administrators, faculty, and staff members.
Slemo, what is the perception of the campus community of the makeup of the search committee? Presumably the campus community knows the search committee members better than those outside the campus community. Is there a sense of confidence that the search committee appropriately reflects the campus community and can help in conducting an effective presidential search process?
Slemo:
Kelby, sentiments on this issue are pretty much mixed. Some have stated that the current 17-member presidential search committee adequately represents key Gallaudet's stakeholders, and that the selected members would most assuredly justify the confidence reposed in them by the campus community.
Conversely, some felt that that the composition of the presidential search committee leaves much to be desired in terms of representation. For instance, certain minorities have expressed concerns that they were not represented on the committee. They went further to assert that issues such as support for ASL, audism, racism, concerns for international students, and resistance against paternalistic administration philosophy will not be sufficiently addressed by the committee members during the presidential search process. They cited the seemingly passive personalities of campus representatives on the committee as a reason for their concerns.
Based on my informal conversations with various members of the campus community in social gatherings, it appears that the latter group is the most vocal on campus. That's not surprising. Helping in selecting the next president of Gallaudet is a monumental responsibility. The stakes are too high. Every move by the search community will be intensely scrutinized. Activists are galvanizing their bases for appropriate response to potential selection of an unsatisfactory presidential candidate.
Jeff, you are a well-traveled, passionate advocate and leader of deaf people operating outside Gallaudet. What are the outside people saying about the composition and transparency of the current presidential search committee? Do they feel that the committee could be better constituted? If so, how? Do they also have any concerns about the time frame for the selection of the next GU president?
Jeff:
Folks in my part of the village are not as locked into the makeup of the search committee as they are vested in the choices and information that will be produced by the committee. The time frame is also not an issue of public discussion. The trickle of information that we've seen posted on Gallaudet's website about the status of the Presidential search (http://pr.gallaudet.edu/presidentalsearch) indicates that the process has only started to ramp up. We understand that the committee members were a product of nominated candidates from stakeholder groups such as the students, faculty, staff and alumni. People express care about the process, mainly not due to a concern about those who were chosen, but that the choices they make result in a group of the most outstanding candidates.
Our community wants and needs Gallaudet's next president to be a leader of our people. While we know many deaf who are successful and fulfilled, our community has far too many stories about deaf people who are victims of low expectations in our schools, homes, workplaces and public life – causing many to feel imprisoned in a mental ghetto. It’s natural that many in our community call for the next Gallaudet’s president to be a shining light that they can move towards. If we were to poll deaf people about their deaf heroes, I would not be surprised if Dr. I. King Jordan is identified among the top of that list.
We brought about a revolution to show the world, including ourselves, that a deaf person can preside at Gallaudet. Now, we must ask the search committee to inform the Board which candidates are worthy of carrying forward that mantle.
Bridgetta, my question to you is, if you were on the search committee, what one question would you ask and why would you ask it?
Bridgetta:
Jeff, may I instead ask myself two very different questions?
First, what do you envision to be Gallaudet's role in Deaf Education during the next decade and how Gallaudet should take advantage of its being a higher education institution to influence and upgrade the current status of K-12 education of deaf children all over the U.S.?
I would ask this question or break it down into several questions asking about Gallaudet's future students who are babies now. The well-organized propaganda of oral education through the Alexander Graham Bell has been infiltrating on every level, from the physician’s office to audiologist's office, to advertising on city buses! Gallaudet has a great opportunity to become a valuable national resource for parents, pediatricians, and audiologists – advocating fully for use of American Sign Language for babies as soon as they are identified to be deaf.
Parents/families of newly Deaf babies are immediately drawn to oral education and sometimes to cochlear implants with an emphasis that oral education is the only way to go. Deaf adults like us have seen in our community many failed "adults" who became dependents on the government for income, healthcare, and other public welfare benefits essentially because they never had opportunities to acquire language of any kind. Oralism is NOT the way to go for all deaf children. This is a real nightmare in our country. Many parents with newly identified deaf babies receive advice from audiologists/pediatricians that they are to use hearing aids or receive cochlear implants without being informed of using American Sign Language or even other sign language "methods."
Since working at California School for the Deaf for nearly 10 years now and being a parent of deaf children, I have seen where children come to the school without language, without grade-level academic skills, and nearly zero social skills. Parents of those children were astonished to find out that there is a strong support of American Sign Language usage and how it can CREATE independent, working deaf persons. With such deaf children, it would be nearly too late as opposed to the other children who had early start in sign language – acquiring the necessary skills and education to prosper into tax-paying and contributing citizens of our community.
I also had a first-hand experience where an audiologist immediately recommended my 5 week old baby, who was newly identified as deaf, go to an oral school! Many other parents of deaf babies have shared similar stories. This began to happen routinely after the passage of legislation requiring all babies to be tested for hearing loss in hospitals.
On the other hand, Gymboree and many other institutions dealing with hearing parents and deaf babies are providing sign language classes to improve their IQs and communication skills. Unfortunately, parents with DEAF children who would benefit the MOST from using sign language are being told to NOT use sign language and to focus on speech (Spoken English) development and hearing training regardless of the severity of their deafness. What is wrong with this picture?
Gallaudet’s new President could play a BIGGER role in ensuring that Deaf children are not left behind after the recent developments on the early testing and identification of deaf babies in hospitals. Gallaudet needs to ensure a successful marriage between running its higher education programs with the responsibility for ensuring that its prospective students – who are being born daily – are getting early starts in sign language. In California, there were approximately 800 babies who were newly identified as deaf last year. Why can’t Gallaudet be involved in a national campaign effort organized specifically to increase the use of ASL/sign language for Deaf babies as well as older deaf students?
Second, how will you stay in touch with Gallaudet University student body and be in sync with their current desires and needs?
Some presidents would hold open-door policy. Some wouldn't. Often, leaders would be out of touch with what is really happening in the trenches. Being in touch with students here and there would provide the president with a glimpse of what goes beyond just looking through the office windows in order for him/her to truly feel the pulse of campus community. The President can demand that students who come in with issues should be able to make recommendations or suggestions for achieving satisfactory resolutions. Students need to know that their voices are being heard. Sometimes, just being heard would be sufficient. Sometimes, the President would not need to go further to get excellent insight/ideas than to meet with and listen to the students themselves.
I can recall from my days being a student when Dr. Jordan just became the president; I really felt comfortable walking into his office to talk with him. Later, when I left Gallaudet to live and work in California 10 years ago, I felt comfortable coming to him with typed recommendations on ways to improve the Gallaudet University Kellogg Conference Center where I last worked, and on some issues related to Deaf Employee Caucus that I chaired before I left. Dr. Jordan was open to them. I have no idea if he implemented any of my recommendations, but seeing that he was open and receptive gave me faith in his ability to listen and solve problems.
Biographies:
Bridgetta Bourne-Firl was one of four student leaders during the 1988 Deaf President Now protest and is currently working in Outreach Division at the California School for the Deaf in Fremont, California (http://www.csdf.k12.ca.us) as an outreach specialist and media relations coordinator.
Kelby Brick is a deaf attorney and the NAD’s Director for Law and Advocacy. He has also been active in numerous civic and rights advocacy organizations. Brick has co-authored the renowned book, Legal Rights: the Guide for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People, in addition to writing numerous articles that have appeared in various publications.
Jeff Rosen is a third generation deaf person who is actively involved in the disability movement. He is the general counsel and director of policy for the National Council on Disability (http://ww.ncd.gov), an independent federal agency providing advice to the President and Congress.
Slemo D. Warigon is a proud Gallaudet University alumnus. He is currently the Director of Audit and Management Advisory Services at Gallaudet University, Washington, DC. His educational and professional background information can be found at http://af.gallaudet.edu/auditslemo.asp.
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