Deaf and hard of hearing students’ perceptions of campus administrative support

ABSTRACT

Most students with hearing loss attend community college, yet very little research on this population of students exists in higher education. This research was conducted in order to gain a better understanding of how students who are d/Deaf navigate the mainstream postsecondary environment. Purposeful sampling was used to gather data from 19 individuals who attended postsecondary institutions not designed specifically for d/Deaf students. These participants were enrolled in an urban community college district in the southwestern United States and were receiving accommodations from their campus accessibility office.

Participants shared their perceptions of the campus accessibility office, the individuals within it, and campus administrative support. The results from this study help shed light on the experience of d/Deaf students in community college and provide insight on how to facilitate their success in postsecondary education. The author provides recommended practices for campus accessibility offices to adopt in order to effectively serve this student population, including specialized orientation for students and instructors, specialized advising, utilization of student feedback, and increasing campus and community awareness of services offered.