DeafTEC Resource Center

Rochester Institute Of Tech, Rochester NY

Investigators

Abstract

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is the landmark civil rights legislation that prohibits discrimination and ensures equal opportunity and access for persons with disabilities. Although progress has been made, people with disabilities continue to be employed at rates much lower than the rest of the population. This lower employment rate is especially true of Americans who are deaf/hard of hearing (deaf/hh). Data from 2016 shows that approximately 54% of deaf/hh individuals age 25-64 participated in the labor force, compared to approximately 78% of hearing individuals. College graduation can provide major economic benefits for deaf/hh individuals who earn 2.6 times more than non-college graduates. Being employed in STEM provides an even greater benefit, since deaf/hh individuals in STEM occupations earn 34% more than their counterparts in non-STEM fields. The ATE Technological Education Center for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students, DeafTEC, works to increase the access of deaf/hh individuals to career information, to a technical education, and to gainful employment. DeafTEC is housed at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) within the Rochester Institute of Technology. DeafTEC will transition to an ATE Resource Center that will use and build upon the exemplary materials and network developed as the DeafTEC National Center. The DeafTEC Resource Center will: (1) leverage partnerships to broaden professional development opportunities on-site and online for high school teachers, community college faculty, and employers to improve access to learning and technician employment for deaf/hh students; (2) expand, enhance, and broadly disseminate DeafTEC's innovative online resources and curricula related to technical education and technician careers for deaf/hh students, including military veteran students with hearing loss; and (3) collaborate with and provide mentoring for prospective PIs and current ATE projects and centers on creating inclusive environments for deaf/hh students, including military veteran students with hearing loss. DeafTEC will broaden participation in STEM technician careers for deaf/hh individuals by providing resources that they and their teachers, counselors, employers, and co-workers can used to support success both in the classroom and on the job. The value of DeafTEC Center's resources on universal design, developmental math, and writing across the STEM curriculum extend beyond the deaf/hh community, with potential benefit to all STEM students who need additional resources and support to succeed. This project is funded by the NSF Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation's economy. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.