NAD Establishes Ad Hoc Committee on National Deaf History Month

Andrew Lange, president of the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), announced the establishment of an ad hoc committee on National Deaf History Month.  The purpose of this committee is to have the president of the United States proclaim Deaf History Month to be observed annually from March 13 to April 15.

President Lange appointed Alice L. Hagemeyer to serve as chair of the committee.  “Alice is the perfect person to lead this effort, “said Lange, “her loyalty and dedication to the NAD continues to be a shining example for all of us to follow.”

The committee’s charge is to develop a resolution for the US President’s proclamation; a Deaf Culture Calendar; and a plan for publicizing and celebrating this special event.  In agreeing to serve as chair, Hagemeyer said, “I thought about my colleagues and library supporters who have the same passion I do for bringing the diversity of the deaf community and library resources to the public’s attention. They will now have the opportunity to help the committee reach its goal to have National Deaf History Month proclaimed by President Bush in 2006. This is a wonderful opportunity for me to work with members and friends of the NAD and with the American Library Association.”

Hagemeyer is uniquely qualified to serve as chair. Before taking an early retirement from the D.C. Public Library in 1991, she was Librarian for the Deaf Community for the last 15 years of her 34 years employed there. Hagemeyer, who has her Masters in Library and Information Science, has long been an active member of the American Library Association and the White House Conference on Library and Information Services Task Force. A long time faithful and involved member of the NAD, she is also a member of several national and local organizations, particularly the National Literary Society of the Deaf. .In 1986, Hagemeyer founded the Friends of Libraries for Deaf Action whose mission is to promote library access and quality resources for the deaf community.

Serving on the committee with Hagemeyer are Thomas R. Harrington, Gallaudet University Library; Washington, DC; Joan Naturale, Rochester Institute of Technology, Wallace Library/Deaf Studies, Rochester, NY; Abigail Noland, Coventry Branch Library, Cleveland Heights, OH, and Gary Wait, American School for the Deaf Archives and Museum, West Hartford, CT.