NTID president accepts Mayoral proclamation

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Communications Bureau, City of Rochester, NY

Gerry Buckley, RIT vice president and dean, and NTID president, far left, accepted a proclamation Monday from Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren in celebration of International Deaf Awareness Week. Also in attendance were, from left to right after Buckley, Ahmed Mahmoud, president, Junior National Association of the Deaf, Rochester School for the Deaf; Antony McLetchie, superintendent and CEO, Rochester School for the Deaf; Warren; Candi Daviton, president, Deaf Women of Rochester; Elaine Spaull, councilmember, City of Rochester; and David Justice, International Programs Director and co-founder, Discovering Deaf Worlds.

Gerry Buckley, Rochester Institute of Technology vice president and dean, and president of the university’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf, accepted a proclamation Monday from Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren in celebration of International Deaf Awareness Week. Buckley attended the ceremony at Rochester’s City Hall with Thomastine Sarchet, director of NTID’s Center for International Educational Outreach.

Also at the ceremony were representatives from We The Deaf People, Discovering Deaf Worlds and Rochester School for the Deaf.

“Thomastine and I are pleased to represent RIT/NTID and our deaf and hard-of-hearing community at this special event and we are proud to celebrate a great partnership with the City of Rochester,” said Buckley. “The Rochester area is home to one of the nation’s largest per-capita populations of deaf and hard-of-hearing people, and the presence of NTID plays a significant role in bringing quality students to our region and providing a strong job base for deaf and hard-of-hearing professionals. Deaf Awareness Week is a wonderful opportunity to shine a spotlight on the achievements of our deaf and hard-of-hearing alumni, students, faculty and staff at RIT/NTID.”

During the event, Mayor Warren announced the city’s ongoing initiatives to make City Hall more deaf friendly, including a new web page that communicates city resources and information about accessing city government for the deaf community.

“I want to make sure that City Hall is as accessible as possible for Rochester’s strong deaf community and that resources are readily available to meet their needs,” said Mayor Warren, in a news release. “We’re working hard to create safer, more vibrant neighborhoods, more jobs and better educational opportunities in our city and we want to make sure every resident in Rochester can be actively engaged in these efforts.”

Following International Deaf Awareness Week in Rochester, local organizations, including RIT/NTID, will host a full schedule of activities throughout the community for Deaf Awareness Week, Sept. 25 to Oct. 2. For more information, go to http://www.cityofrochester.gov.