SMART 911” Could Save Your Life!


Smart 911 is a FREE online resource.


With Smart911, you can add key information about hearing loss for yourself or members of your household in the event of an emergency, whether the call is from the home or any mobile phone. You create a profile, add relevant information such as address, phone number plus optional information. You can add additional phone numbers that are associated with your household, cell or landline, etc. Most importantly, you can include information about your medical condition, disability, etc.  

Once a profile is submitted, Smart 911 forwards that information to the appropriate PSAP (public safety answering point) which is the local 911 call center that services the phone numbers associated with your profile. When a 911 call is placed from any of those numbers, all submitted information (including medical, disability or access and special needs) is displayed on the screen at the 911 center and will be communicated to the responding agencies. 


This service is free of charge. For more information go to www.smart911.com

A THREAT TO THE DEAF COMMUNITY? Gene Therapy

Teresa Blankmeyer Burke considers the problematic nature of gene therapy research aimed at eliminating hereditary deafness.
"Members of the signing Deaf community argue that research which aims to eliminate or cure deafness is a form of cultural genocide. The argument goes like this: the use of gene therapy to cure hereditary deafness would result in smaller numbers of deaf children. This, in turn, would reduce the critical mass of signing Deaf people needed for a flourishing community, ultimately resulting in the demise of the community."
Read on .... HERE


How The Simple Yet Powerful Listening Check Became Known As The Ling Test.

I want to commend Ellie White, MS MAEd, CED and Jenna Voss, Ph.D., CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd for including in their book, Small Talk: Bringing Listening and Spoken Language to Your Young Child with Hearing Loss (pg. 148) how the simple yet powerful listening check became known as the Ling Test. I am confident many of the LSL professionals today never knew Dan or were taught by him. He was a tremendous friend and without Dan’s early referrals I may not be in private practice today.

Some of our members in the Community may not be familiar with, The Ling Consortium named in honor of the foundational work and extraordinary contributions of the late Dr. Daniel Ling, O.C. a pioneer of Auditory-Verbal practice for children with hearing loss. It is an international consortium of professionals developing and delivering globally recognized university-based courses on listening and spoken language for children with hearing loss.


 The  Consortium offers videos from Dr. Daniel Ling at the Auditory Verbal Learning Institute (AVLI) at the University of Ottawa in 2002. 


Video 1 - Assessment of speech
 https://vimeo.com/110440477

 Video 2 - The speech signal in acquiring listening and spoken language
 https://vimeo.com/110440478

 Video 3 - Crucial bases of the Ling System
 https://vimeo.com/110440479

Auditory Verbal Graduate Accepts Illinois Academic Scholarship

I am honored that Auditory Verbal Graduate, Teja Vontikommu invited me to accompany him as he accepted the Jacki Marcus Memorial academic college scholarship awarded by the Illinois Teachers of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. I am privileged to have guided his parents along the AVT journey. Teja and a rich future and will major in business or pre-med.

Jacki Marcus Memorial Academic College Scholarship

In 1992, the ITDHH Executive Board established a student scholarship fund to recognize deaf and hard of hearing high school seniors who wish to continue their education in a college, pre-college, or vocational program.  In 2009, the scholarship was renamed in memory of Jacki Marcus, who served deaf and hard of hearing students in Illinois in many capacities throughout her career and was a long-standing board member of ITDHH.  Jacki was instrumental in the development and continuation of this scholarship, and her legacy of advocating and supporting deaf and hard of hearing students in Illinois will continue.  The scholarships are based on the motivation and future plans of the students. These monetary awards may be used for tuition, room, and board, or classroom materials. 

World Hearing Day and THIS IS SOMEONE YOU SHOULD KNOW!

Written by Emma Claire Richards, 14

Congratulations to all of the children, adults, and families who struggle every day with a hearing impaired loved one.  Today is our day!

I was born with hearing at birth in 2002, in 2005 I was diagnosed with a sensorineural hearing loss in which I wore hearing aids until they couldn’t help me hear anymore.  Within the next few years, I became profoundly deaf and was implanted with cochlear implants by Dr. Nancy Young at Lurie Children’s Hospital here in Chicago.

With the help of Dr. Young along with Mrs. Lynn Wood, my auditory verbal therapist, from the Auditory Verbal Center of Wheaton in IL  who gave me a chance at life by hearing again! 

For all of the doctors, specialists, community teachers, advocates and my friends that once told my parents that I would have a hard life living as a deaf child, I may be shunned by not staying in the deaf community, people may give up on me, friends may turn their backs on me due to an impairment and disability, and the outlook as I grow older would be bleak, this is what I’d like to say to all of them… hear me now!

I am in 8th grade at McClure Junior High in Western Springs, Illinois.  I live a normal life like any person with hearing except I have to work a bit harder every day to hear somewhat normal.   I played the piano, I played the violin,  I was an All-Star on my softball team, I was in my school’s play, I attend dance classes, I love to swim, I win awards for my art, I play on The Chicago Highlands Golf Club’s PGA, Jr. golf league and I am a competitive equestrian rider with the IDTCA and IEA.  I love to hang out with my friends that believe in me, I love my parents for teaching me to be me and I love my brother that argues with me every day as if I was normal even though I can tune him out and turn my ears off.

I’m Emma Clare Richards, 14  “Nothing will hold me back, not even being deaf”!