Archives: Clarke Speaks Up

“Pop culture is such a great educator,” says screenwriter Alexandra Dean Grossi. “And there is so much confusion around the deaf experience… I want to show there’s no right way to be deaf.”

“All of the characters in my book represent one or several students that I’ve had throughout my career in deaf education,” says Jessica Jordan-Hogan, teacher of the deaf and children’s author.

Like most caregivers who discover their child was born with a hearing loss, Nina and Spencer worried at first how their infant daughter would communicate and if she would struggle academically and socially.

Clarke preschoolers received a visit from NASA scientist Dr. Mike Hecht in 2021 and had the opportunity to ask questions about outer space.

Kindergarten is a major transition for young children and their families, and the skills required to take this exciting step won’t be established with last-minute worksheets and number games. At Clarke, preparation for kindergarten begins when a family enrolls in our early intervention (EI) services—and ideally before a baby is even six months old.

Clarke may be best known for its expertise in helping children with hearing loss develop their listening and spoken language skills, but this process takes place within a larger framework of support to develop many other crucial skills, like executive function and interpersonal communication.

Educational audiologists, like those at Clarke, help with the pragmatic skills kids need to gain confidence and autonomy regarding their hearing loss and hearing technology.

Already a fierce advocate for the deaf, Anita Diemand left Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, in 1970 to enter Clarke’s teacher training program in Northampton, Massachusetts.