Caption Consulting

A story published by Gallaudet University on May 13 highlights something that is quietly changing in Deaf healthcare: more Deaf and hard-of-hearing students are entering medical fields, and they are building community around it. Seven Gallaudet students recently attended the Association of Medical Professionals with Hearing Loss conference in Orlando, then returned to campus to share what they learned with peers in a panel discussion moderated by biology professor Dr. Alicia Wooten. The conference, whose theme was "Back to Basics: Shoring up our Foundation," brought together Deaf and hard-of-hearing professionals and students across medicine and public health to network, mentor, and support one another. Gallaudet's Director of Student Services, Dr. James Huang, who currently serves as AMPHL president, noted that while the number of Deaf individuals in healthcare is growing, it remains small. "If you can't see it, you can't be it," he said, referencing the power of representation in professional spaces. One student described hearing from Dr. Philip Zazove, the third Deaf doctor in America, and Dr. Judith Ann Pachciarz, the first Deaf woman with both an MD and PhD. "It was fascinating to hear their stories, the challenges they faced, and the barriers they fought to get through med school. That gave me chills." Another student reflected on a panelist's advice that stuck with them: "Your confidence in the workplace shows your colleagues that they can trust you." At Caption Consulting, we are inspired by every Deaf and hard-of-hearing professional who walks into a field where they have rarely seen themselves represented. Stories like these remind us why access to mentorship and community is as important as access to education. Source: Gallaudet University https://lnkd.in/gUdCZy5W #DeafHealthcare #DeafCommunity #AMPHL #Gallaudet #DeafProfessionals #HardOfHearing #Representation #CaptionConsulting

With summer just around the corner, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association published a timely guide on May 11 to help families of deaf and hard-of-hearing children navigate the season safely. Nearly 15 percent of school-aged children in the United States have some degree of hearing loss, and summer activities like swimming, outdoor play, and travel bring specific considerations that parents and caregivers may not always think through in advance. At the water, kids who use hearing devices often remove them before swimming, which means they can miss lifeguard whistles, instructions, and other warnings. Pediatric audiologist Michelle Hu, who is herself profoundly deaf and a cochlear implant user, recommends dressing children in bright, highly visible swimwear and adding language like "I'm Deaf" or "I'm Hard of Hearing" in bold letters so lifeguards and other adults know immediately that shouting may not get a child's attention. For travel and overnight stays, the guide recommends talking with children in advance about where they are going, what the rules are, and how to advocate for themselves by letting people know when they have not understood something. Teaching self-advocacy, ASHA notes, is one of the most lasting tools any family can give a child with hearing loss. At Caption Consulting, we believe that preparing children to communicate confidently in the world around them is one of the most important investments a family can make. Tips like these make summer safer and more joyful for everyone involved. Source: ASHA / PR Newswire https://lnkd.in/gdEK5WQg #DeafChildren #HardOfHearing #SummerSafety #DeafFamily #HearingLoss #DeafEducation #ASL #CaptionConsulting

A story published in the UK reinforces an issue that advocates have been raising since Keir Starmer became Prime Minister. Despite commitments to inclusion and years of pressure from the Deaf community, Starmer continues to deliver major speeches and public addresses without British Sign Language interpretation. His most recent address, in which he publicly criticized the status quo following Labour's local election results, was shared online without any BSL access, continuing a pattern that has persisted throughout his time in office. The Royal National Institute for Deaf People offered its own interpreter for Starmer's very first speech as Prime Minister, which he did not take up. Since then, interpreted press conferences have been sporadic. An Information Commissioner's Office decision notice confirmed that in-person BSL interpretation for major government speeches was "not being taken forward" by the Cabinet Office, though it had "not been completely closed out." RNID's advocacy manager Michael Quinlan responded directly: "The Government must do more to ensure deaf BSL users feel engaged, informed and included in political decisions that affect them, including by ensuring all major announcements are available in British Sign Language." At Caption Consulting, serving clients across the US, UK, and Canada, this matters. When a government leader speaks to the nation, that communication should reach everyone. BSL users are not a niche audience. They are citizens who deserve to hear their Prime Minister. Source: Liam O'Dell https://lnkd.in/eXy3TnE2 #DeafRights #BSL #UKDeaf #CommunicationAccess #SignLanguage #Inclusion #DeafCommunity #CaptionConsulting

Gallaudet University holds its 156th Commencement on May 15, 2026, and the speaker lineup reflects exactly the kind of leadership the Deaf community has built over generations. Nyle DiMarco, Gallaudet class of 2013, will deliver the undergraduate address and receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. DiMarco made history in 2025 as the first Deaf filmmaker nominated for an Emmy in a directing category, for co-directing the Apple TV+ documentary Deaf President Now! alongside Academy Award-winning director Davis Guggenheim. The film chronicles the 1988 student-led protest at Gallaudet that led to the appointment of the university's first Deaf president and helped ignite the disability rights movement that produced the Americans with Disabilities Act. DiMarco first gained national visibility as the first Deaf winner of America's Next Top Model in 2015 and Dancing With the Stars in 2016, using both platforms to bring Deaf culture and ASL to mainstream audiences. Through the Nyle DiMarco Foundation, he has since worked with organizations including the United Nations and the World Economic Forum to advance bilingual education, language access, and resources for Deaf children and families worldwide. His memoir, Deaf Utopia, was a bestseller. That a student who graduated from Gallaudet just over a decade ago is now returning to deliver the commencement address and receive an honorary degree says a great deal about how much can be built from one place and one community. At Caption Consulting, we are proud to work in a field shaped by advocates like Nyle DiMarco, who have spent their careers insisting that Deaf voices belong at every table. Congratulations to the Gallaudet Class of 2026. Source: Gallaudet University https://lnkd.in/ejHxQpC8 #Gallaudet #NyleDiMarco #DeafCommunity #DeafCulture #ASL #Commencement #DeafLeadership #CaptionConsulting

A survey published in mid-April by RNID and DeafATW found that over 40 percent of deaf people using the UK's Access to Work scheme have missed out on training and career development opportunities because they did not have the interpreter support they needed. Access to Work is a government programme that funds communication support, including British Sign Language interpreters, for deaf employees. But the survey of more than 350 users found serious gaps: nearly a third waited four months or more for an application outcome, and close to one in five said delays forced them to reduce their work or change how they did their jobs. Particularly striking was the finding that over a third of BSL signers renewing their awards had their support reduced by the Department for Work and Pensions despite no change in their circumstances, and half of those received no written explanation for why. Only 37 percent of working-age BSL users in the UK are employed, compared to 77 percent of non-disabled people. RNID's head of policy Robert Geaney said the findings highlight a "serious gap in support," adding that without adequate interpreter funding, "people whose first language is BSL cannot communicate with their colleagues or fully participate in the workplace." At Caption Consulting, serving clients across the US, UK, and Canada, this issue resonates directly. Interpreter access is not just a workplace accommodation. It is the difference between a deaf professional being able to do their job and not. The data from this survey makes the stakes very clear. Source: Liam O'Dell / RNID https://lnkd.in/gFPPv26F #DeafWorkplace #BSL #InterpreterAccess #DeafCommunity #HardOfHearing #EmploymentAccess #UKDeaf #CaptionConsulting

On April 30 and May 1, students at the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind performed The Wizard of Oz at the Berger Performing Arts Center in Tucson. It was the last theater production the school will ever stage there. Due to falling enrollment and budget pressures, ASDB is relocating to a smaller campus in Oro Valley, and the music and theater program is being cut along with more than 70 staff positions. Music director Kate Scally Howell, who has been part of the annual production for 15 years, learned her program was cut when she was called into the office and placed on the Reduced in Force list. She still drove to the board meeting to speak in defense of the program, and she still made sure the final show happened, partnering with Saguaro City Music Theatre to bring The Wizard of Oz to the stage one last time. The production featured two ASL interpreters on stage for the audience and an additional interpreter in the orchestra pit for deaf and hard-of-hearing cast members. Choreographer Dena DiGiacinto said watching the students perform was deeply moving. "You can see how proud they are of their work. Just seeing them so confident and knowing that they have the power to make an entire audience full of people laugh or cry. That is pretty powerful stuff." The curtain may have come down on ASDB's theater program, but Scally Howell is not done. She announced plans to continue the program through Saguaro City Music Theatre, unaffiliated with ASDB, serving blind and visually impaired community members. She and DiGiacinto are actively working to find a venue for 2026. At Caption Consulting, that kind of determination is exactly what we celebrate. When a program ends, the people who built it find a way to keep the work alive. Source: AZPM / Arizona Public Media https://lnkd.in/gMDSrXHr #DeafEducation #DeafCommunity #ASL #HardOfHearing #DeafArts #DeafSchool #Arizona #CaptionConsulting

Gallaudet University's National Academic Bowl marked its 30th anniversary, drawing over 250 deaf and hard-of-hearing high school students from across the country to compete in a tournament that has quietly become one of the most important traditions in Deaf education. Under the leadership of alumna Casey Johnson-Pasqua, the event continues to grow in reach and significance, offering students not just a competition but a rare opportunity to be surrounded entirely by peers who share their language and experience. What makes the National Academic Bowl stand out is not just academic rigor but what it represents for students who spend most of their school year as the only deaf or hard-of-hearing person in their classroom. For many of them, Gallaudet's campus is the first place where signing is the norm, where they are not the exception, and where they can compete, socialize, and thrive entirely on their own terms. After 30 years, the tournament is a testament to what happens when deaf students are given an environment designed for them. At Caption Consulting, we believe access to education means more than accommodations in a mainstream classroom. It means spaces where Deaf students can see themselves fully reflected. The National Academic Bowl is one of the best examples of what that looks like. Source: Gallaudet University https://lnkd.in/gvdEFtri #DeafEducation #NationalAcademicBowl #Gallaudet #DeafYouth #DeafCommunity #ASL #DeafCulture #CaptionConsulting

Two Gallaudet University alumni made it to the final pitch of Shark Tank's most recent season, and they did not leave empty-handed. Melody and Russell Stein, both Gallaudet graduates, appeared on the show alongside their children and business partners Taysia and Rylan to pitch pi00a, their Neapolitan frozen pizza company. Iconic investor Lori Greiner invested $200,000 in the company after tasting the product and hearing the family's story. "I see you," she told them after agreeing to the deal. "And the world's going to see you, and they're going to know this pizza, and they're going to love it." The Steins' story goes beyond a great product and a great pitch. Their pi00a kitchen is staffed by deaf employees trained in the craft of Neapolitan pizza-making, and the family has been deliberate about building something that uplifts the broader deaf community. Russell also works at Gallaudet as part of the Gallaudet Innovation and Entrepreneurship Institute, where the BisonTank program offers deaf students and alumni the chance to pitch their own business ideas to a panel of deaf entrepreneurs for seed funding and mentorship. For the Steins, Shark Tank was not just a business milestone. It was a platform to show what deaf entrepreneurship looks like. At Caption Consulting, stories like this one remind us why representation across every industry matters. When deaf entrepreneurs are visible, they change what the next generation believes is possible. Source: Gallaudet University https://lnkd.in/emveME-k #DeafEntrepreneurs #SharkTank #DeafCommunity #Gallaudet #DeafCulture #Representation #DeafBusiness #CaptionConsulting

Happy National Interpreter Day! Today we celebrate the incredible interpreters who bridge communication, create connection, and make inclusion possible every single day. Your work changes lives. Your presence brings understanding. Your dedication creates access and equity for so many. From all of us at Caption Consulting, thank you for the heart, skill, and compassion you bring to your work every day. We are so lucky to have you on our team. #NationalInterpreterDay #InterpreterAppreciation #Accessibility #Inclusion #ASLInterpreter #CommunicationAccess #CaptionConsulting

A story out of SUNY Canton published April 21 is a good reminder that inclusion in college sports is about culture as much as accommodation. When Gallaudet University shut down its baseball program, Head Coach Ryan Stevens saw an opportunity. He had already coached against Gallaudet and knew two hard-of-hearing players there, Salvador Diaz and Johnathan Guerrero. He recruited both to come to Canton, and later added first-year student Jared Paone. The three now form the backbone of a team that has built an environment where communication access is simply part of how they play. On the field, SUNY Canton worked with its Accommodative and Disability Services Office to acquire PitchCom wrist devices, allowing the coach and players to communicate efficiently without violating NCAA regulations. The results speak for themselves. Diaz, the team captain and starting catcher, is batting .360 with five home runs this season, has been named to the D3baseball.com National Team of the Week and SUNYAC Athlete of the Week, and received the college's Phoenix Award for persisting through personal challenges to find success. "What initially drew me to Sal, Johnny, and Jared was how well they play the game," Coach Stevens said. "Their skill and competitiveness stood out right away. I wasn't thinking about their ability to hear." At Caption Consulting, that is exactly the kind of leadership we believe in. When the right environment exists, hard-of-hearing athletes do not just fit in. They lead. Source: Inform NNY / ABC50 https://lnkd.in/g_nAEKcv #DeafAthletes #HardOfHearing #CollegeSports #Inclusion #Baseball #DeafCommunity #AccessibleSports #CaptionConsulting