TRIPOD Legacy Archive

TRIPOD was founded in 1982 by Megan Williams, the mother of two young children- deaf and hearing-  to meet the complex educational needs of deaf children and their families.  Inspired by her own family’s experience, Megan developed the concept of a holistic learning environment where communication was no longer a barrier. The children’s father, film producer Michael Shamberg, enlisted the help of Hollywood to make the vision a reality. 

From inception, TRIPOD was fully inclusive with Deaf, hard of hearing and hearing individuals participating as members of the board of directors, as administrators, in the classroom as teachers and among students and their families.  At TRIPOD deaf parents with hearing children were as welcome as hearing parents with deaf children. 

With the support of two well-known educators of the deaf (Carl Kirchner from California State University, Northridge and Cindy Murphy from Gallaudet University, Washington D.C.) and with the help of community leaders and educational professionals, TRIPOD established a model educational program where deaf and hard-of-hearing children learn together with their hearing peers and siblings in a Total Communication setting.  In this natural environment, hearing children model English for deaf children and all children develop sign language skills together. The Montessori approach was chosen because it is child centered as opposed to teacher directed, and a Total Communication philosophy was followed. (TRIPOD recruited and paid for deaf teachers to acquire a Montessori teaching credential.)  Classes are team taught by regular and deaf education teachers who volunteer for the assignment.  To foster communication, hearing teachers who learn ASL receive bi-lingual pay. 

In February of 1984, with just four children, the first TRIPOD Montessori Preschool opened its doors in a small house in West Hollywood, California. In 1989 TIRPOD moved from a private school setting to a private/public program within the Burbank Unified School District. It wasn’t long before families moved into Burbank to enroll their children. Soon, ASL communication was common at local restaurants and events! The TRIPOD Model School Program grew grade by grade along with its first student, ultimately serving over 120 children from birth through high school in public school classrooms.

In June of 1998, seventeen years after TRIPOD's creation, the founding student graduated from Burbank High School along with his friends, both hearing and deaf. Today TRIPOD graduates are successful professionals; some of their hearing classmates have gone on to become professional interpreters.  The TRIPOD Model School Program is now recognized world-wide and is replicated in numerous public schools throughout the country.

Family Sign Program History

The ability of a family to communicate with their child is basic to their child's development. Deaf and hard-of-hearing children, 90% of whom are born to hearing parents, begin life with the tremendous barrier of not having a common language. A young child who fails to develop some language capabilities will be severely impaired in his/her ability to learn to read and write. Deaf children who have not acquired a linguistic system such as American Sign Language (ASL) and/or English, begin school with profound deprivation of language and learning skills.

It is not surprising then, that many deaf children perform far below grade level in school. TRIPOD's Family sign Language Program provided free in-home ASL classes to families new to the TRIPOD program, for 30 weeks during their first year of enrollment in TRIPOD. These classes were taught by Deaf adults who were often the first deaf individuals met by the family. Families were encouraged to invite extended family members and friends to participate in the class, at no cost. The instructors were generally deaf students enrolled in California State University, Northridge. In addition to the instruction which they provide, these young deaf people served as role models for the families. The curriculum was designed to be appropriate for families with very young deaf children. 

TRIPOD Captioned Films

TRIPOD Captioned Films (TCF) was a non-profit, community outreach project of the TRIPOD Model School Program in Burbank, California. In the early 1980’s TCF was the only source for first run open-captioned feature films, TCF brought together Hollywood studios, national movie theatres and a captioned film audience of over 28 million deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans.

Box office hits “Dances With Wolves” “Titanic”, “Jurassic Park”  and “Star Wars: Episode 1-The Phantom Menace”  were among hundreds of films captioned.  TCF distributed over 50 films annually to 250 plus cities nationwide. Studios participating included Buena Vista Distribution, DreamWorks, MGM/UA, New Line Cinema, Paramount Pictures, Sony, 20th Century Fox, Universal, and Warner Brothers.

Outreach

TRIPOD welcomed over one hundred visitors from around the world annually. Visitors included parents, teachers of the deaf, Special Education Directors, and State Superintendents.

Megan Williams

Ms. Williams is a former television journalist who was an avid volunteer. She produced Language Says It All, a film for parents and educators of deaf children. The film describes the impact of deafness upon young children and their families, and was nominated for an Academy Award in th Documentary Short Subject category. Ms. Williams was named 1984 "Woman of the Year" by the Greater Los Angeles Council on Deafness, and received the "Lee Katz Award", the highest honor bestowed by the American Society for Deaf Children. 

Michael Shamberg

Mr. Shamberg is an independent motion picture producer whose credits include "A Fish Called Wanda", "The Big Chill", and "Club Paradise". Along with his wife, Megan Williams at the time, Mr. Shamberg has been actively involved in TRIPOD's fundraising and financial affairs. 

Trice Koopman 

Trice Koopman served on the board of Tripod for 10 years, serving as president and vice president. She is the mother of twins, one of whom is hearing and one of whom is deaf. Her background in the entertainment field spans over 21 years where she has worked as both a talent agent and talent manager. She is the founder/owner of Koopman Management, which opened its doors in 1998 representing actors in Los Angeles and New York.  

Mark Freund

Husband of Trice Koopman. Bio not available at this time. 

Barbara Montan

Barbara Montan served on the Tripod Board in 1991 as its Vice President. She is also the founder of TRIPOD Captioned Films, a public service of TRIPOD, which offers first-run open-captioned movies to the Deaf Community across the nation. Her son, Spencer was a student at TRIPOD's Montessori Preschool/Kindergarten program. 

Chris Montan

Chris Montan is a veteran music executive for the Walt Disney Studios, a songwriter, recording artist, and record producer. During his 15-year association with Disney, including eight years as vice president and senior vice president of music for the film division, Chris has helped the studio win an unprecedented eleven musical Oscars over a seven year period. During the same time, Chris' most important work was going on at home where he faced the challenges that come with raising his deaf son, Spencer. Coming to TRIPOD in 1991, Chris and his family found a program where deaf children could go to school with hearing children and benefit from the same quality of education. As a beneficiary of the TRIPOD Program and President of the Board of Directors, Chris has worked to financially secure the TRIPOD Model Program, not only for families in Southern California, but for the many families throughout the country who face similar challenges raising their deaf and hard of hearing children. 

Jim DeCaro (Interviewer)

Dr. James DeCaro has been working at NTID since 1971. He was the first faculty member in NTID's Civil Engineering Technology Program. Since that time he has served NTID as a staff chairperson, instructional developer, department chair, and division director. Learn more about Dr. DeCaro.

The Ties that Bind Friendship Quilt

May 1995
In honor of Tripod, 1982-1995
made for Megan Williams

Referred to as Tripod’s first “hard drive”, this quilt is inscribed on both the front and the back with the names of every child, staff member and director of the board from its inception to 1995. Made of Smithsonian reproductions of early American cotton fabrics, it was hand tied around the edge by each Tripod family - a beautiful, thoughtful and lovingly created piece that represents the Tripod approach to deaf children and their families.

This quilt is a unique example of a tradition that goes back almost two hundred years when friendship quilts were all the rage. The expansion westward brought on the need for signing quilts and autograph books. Early signature quilts were based on friendship and made as memorials for the leaving family. The 1840's and 50's was the era of sentimentality. Poetry verses, autograph books, music and illustrations reflect a leaning toward the romantic and nostalgic. A look to one's mortality led to the desire to capture through the written word the essence of a friendship. Journals, diaries, scrapbooks, autograph albums, photos, and signed quilts reflect this sentimental time. Signature quilts as a phenomenon were popularized as early as 1839 when the first indelible inks became available.

There were other purposes for these quilts as well. When money was needed to help soldiers in the Civil War, women developed the practice of raising funds with quilts. More often a quilt was signed with hundreds of signatures and then raffled off, bringing in as many funds as possible from a single quilt.

Women were also known to place their political and religious beliefs on quilts. The Baltimore album quilts have sayings, bible verses, and drawings inked on many of the blocks. They were made as a special gift for a particular individual in the community who was respected for his/her contribution to the community in some way.

Friendship quilts have had a large role to play ever since they were first made. In every phase of a woman’s life and for events that took place in our country’s history there are friendship quilts to commemorate those times, both happy and sad.

Shelly Zegart
President, The Kentucky Quilt Project, Inc.
Executive Producer and Host, "Why Quilts Matter: History, Art and Politics"
Email: zegartquilt@gmail.com

TRIPOD parents get candid with Dr. Jim DeCaro. In 2012 Dr. DeCaro interviews three couples who were prime movers behind the TRIPOD project.

Watch the Interview Videos  

Access a sampling of archived TRIPOD articles, brochures, documents, images, and posters & flyers.

Sample Files from the TRIPOD Archive  

View photos from our archives including those for The TRIPOD Quilt, TRIPOD School Children, and TRIPOD School Children with Teachers.

View our Photo Galleries  

We have uploaded our archive inventory listings in the form of Excel files. You may download the files to review the content of our archives. To request specific items, contact Joan Naturale, jxnwml@rit.edu.

Finding Aid for theTripod Collection, 1971-2006

For an interactive finding aid, click here: https://archivesspace.rit.edu/repositories/2/resources/1076

In 2010, RIT and NTID partnered together to establish a Center on the RIT campus that provides a place for students, faculty, and staff to gather, interact, and learn about Deaf culture and heritage, as well as American Sign Language (ASL). That Center, the RIT ASL and Deaf Studies Community Center, is centrally located on campus. It offers a state-of-the-art classroom for teaching and learning, two offices, and a lounge area that promotes open and clear access to communication and interaction among Deaf and hearing peers and colleagues.

RADSCC website  

Contact form and contact person information