National Association of the Deaf

The programs of the National Association of the Deaf include the Law and Advocacy Center, Youth Programs, and the Described and Captioned Media Program. Every two years, the NAD convenes to determine membership priorities based on the vote of delegates from state association and organizational affiliates, and other groups. In between, regional conferences are held as well as leadership training conferences and other specialized activities. In addition, NADmag is published six times yearly. Electronic news (NADezine) is issued twice monthly, and video/text blogs are posted on a regular basis. The NAD also responds to thousands of inquiries and handles referrals throughout the year. For more information about the NAD, please visit www.nad.org. The Law and Adevocacy Center combats discrimination against deaf and hard of hearing children and adults and their families through advocacy on legislative and public policy issues, often in collaboration with other disability organizations. It is a highly respected and acclaimed national resource for general legal information and technical assistance about discrimination law. Since 1976, the NAD Law and Advocacy Center has protected the legal rights of deaf and hard of hearing people through the courts. It vigorously seeks enforcement of federal and state laws and to establish powerful legal principles of equality and equal access. Youth Programs of the NAD include the national Junior NAD chapter network, where high school students hone their scholarship, leadership and citizenship skills. Each summer, these students and others enrolled in mainstream educational programs take part in the Youth Leadership Camp to further hone their skills. The biennial College Bowl competition brings together the best and brightest college teams for the winning trophy. Young women partake in the biennial Miss Deaf America competition for the privilege of serving as NAD ambassador of goodwill. Leadership training conferences are also an important Youth Programs element. The federal Described and Captioned Media Program is administered by the NAD under cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Education, which includes education and outreach activities to promote increased use of described and captioned media technologies used by deaf, hard of hearing, blind, and visually impaired students in K-12 educational programs nationwide.