2024 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 17-19, 2024 • Denver, CO
| DHH Adult Consumer-to-Family Support Services: Exploring Parent Experiences and Perspectives
DHH Adult Consumer-to-Family Support Services: Exploring Parent Experiences and Perspectives
DHH adult consumer-to-family support services in early intervention is a critical component of EHDI because studies show positive social-emotional, language, and cognitive outcomes when parents engage with deaf adults. For example, deaf children with hearing parents who have access to deaf adults early have language gains (Watkins et al., 1998) and parents also feel more confident raising their deaf children (Hintermair, 2001). However, studies show that there is a need to increase deaf adult involvement (Gale et al., 2021; Ward et al., 2019). To explore parent experiences and perspectives related to DHH adult consumer-to-family support services in early intervention, parents of deaf children were recruited from around the country via email to participate in an online survey. Preliminary results from 165 respondents will be shared. Additionally, strategies to strengthen DHH adult consumer-to-family support will be shared.
- Describe DHH adult consumer-to-family support services
- Discuss parent experiences and perspectives related to DHH adult consumer-to-family support services
- Identify strategies for DHH adult consumer-to-family support services
Presentation:
3478265_16308ElaineGale.pdf
Handouts:
Handout is not Available
Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Elaine Gale
(Primary Presenter), Hunter College, CUNY, egale@hunter.cuny.edu;
Elaine Gale is an associate professor and program leader of the deaf and hard of hearing teacher preparation program at Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY). She is currently the chair of the Deaf Leadership International Alliance (DLIA), an organization established to advocate deaf adults collaborating with professionals and connecting with young deaf children and their families. Her research experiences include joint attention, theory of mind, and sign language development. At present, she is the Lead Investigator for the Hunter College consortium on a research project titled Family ASL: Bimodal Bilingual Acquisition by Deaf Children of Hearing Parents supported by the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Grants for Other activities from PI.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with .
Nature: National Institute on Deafness and Other
Communication Disorders (NIDCD) of the National Institutes of Health under award number 1R01DC016901.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Karen Hopkins
(Co-Presenter), The Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing/Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, karen.hopkins@mecdhh.org;
Karen Hopkins is the Executive Director of The Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing/Governor Baxter School for the Deaf and the principal investigator of Maine's HRSA grant. She brings over 30 years of experience as a collaborative teacher of the deaf, special educator, early interventionist and educational administrator to her work with Deaf and hard of hearing children. Her work with families, coupled with her own personal experience as a Deaf adult and parent of a daughter who is hard of hearing have inspired her to create systems that empower families. Karen oversees early intervention and statewide educational programming for children who are Deaf or hard of hearing birth to age 22 throughout the state of Maine. She is active in many organizations and boards in Maine, the Hands & Voices HQ Board of Directors and is involved with international FCEI programming including the Deaf Leadership International Alliance. Karen is the Board President of Hands & Voices Headquarters. Karen's current research as she finalizes her doctoral journey is focused on perspectives of family empowerment in early intervention systems for Deaf and hard of hearing children.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary,Grants for Employment from The Children's Center for Communication/ Beverly School for the Deaf.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with The Children's Center for Communication/Beverly School for the Deaf.
Nature: Employment.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Julie Rems-Smario
(Co-Presenter), California Department of Education, jsmario@csdf-cde.ca.gov;
Dr. Julie Rems-Smario, Ed.D works as an Early Language and Education Consultant in California at CORE, California School for the Deaf, a program of State Special Schools and Services at the Department of Education. Julie's work includes working as a co-director of California's Early Hearing Detection and Intervention, training Early Start professionals on how to develop language milestones goals for IFSP/IEP, supervising SB 210 data, developing resources for families of Deaf children, and providing technical assistance to Early Childhood Education professionals. During her free time, she volunteers as one of the Public Relations Director of a national campaign, Language Equality, and Acquisition for Deaf Kids (LEAD-K).
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with .
Nature: .
Nonfinancial -
Non-Financial relationship with .
Nature: .
Stephanie Olson
(Co-Presenter), Children's Hospital Colorado, stephanie.olson@childrenscolorado.org;
Stephanie Olson, B.A., is the Family Consultant for the Bill Daniels Center for Children’s Hearing at Children’s Hospital, Colorado. Stephanie has been in this position for 18 years and serves as a liaison between families and the audiology health care system. Previously she worked with families and children from birth to three through the Colorado Home Intervention Program and for Hands and Voices Headquarters.
Stephanie has traveled to Northern China, London, South Africa, Brazil and New Zealand and St. Petersburg, Russia, and FCEI Austria- Family Centered Early Intervention in 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2022. Stephanie’s passion is to increase the understanding and impact of deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the parenting journey and with the professionals who work with those families. Stephanie was identified deaf/hard of hearing at the age of three and brings a variety of perspectives into her work and presentations.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from Children's Hospital Colorado.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Children's Hospital Colorado.
Nature: Employment.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.