Board of Directors from the National Association of the Deaf Tour DHH Program

Photo: NAD President Chris Wagner, Handwave winner Lori Wakat and DHHDepartment Chair Patricia Even. Submitted by Hinsdale Township High School District 86.

Hinsdale Township High School District 86 welcomed the Board of Directors for the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) to tour the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) program.

The LaGrange Area Department of Special Education (LADSE) DHH program is housed at Hinsdale South High School and is the second-largest in the state. During the visit, the NAD Board presented Hinsdale South DHH teacher Lori Wakat with the April 2015 Handwave award for over 30 years of loyal dedication to deaf and hard-of-hearing youth.

The National Association of the Deaf is the nation’s largest civil rights organization for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. The NAD Board requested a tour to see the wide range of offerings that encompass the DHH program, including the deaf drama production of “The Giver,” Special Olympics teams and student-run businesses operated through the Transition Center. Another reason for the visit is Hinsdale South’s active chapter of the junior National Association of the Deaf Club as part of its extra-curricular options, which provides many service projects and social activities for District 86 students as well as those in other school programs in the Chicago area.

NAD CEO Howard A. Rosenblum and DHH student Nannette Leyva

Chicago-area native Howard Rosenblum, NAD’s Chief Executive Officer, shared information about the organization and the Board members’ roles to DHH faculty and staff. At the end of the visit, the Handwave Award was presented to Lori Wakat, the District’s Junior NAD Club sponsor. Ms. Wakat is retiring in May and will be handing over the responsibilities of the club.

For additional information about NAD, please too to www.nad.org.

For additional information about the NAD Handwave award, please go to http://nad.org/April2015-handwave-Lori-Wakat

ALSO ON PATCH