More than two decades ago, Catonsville Community College spear headed one of the first programs in the state of Maryland providing support services for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. The program started in 1978 with a grant from Gallaudet University. Every year the college has continued to serve 20-30 deaf and hard-of-hearing students each semester.

The college provides extensive interpreting services for all classes and campus activities, and assistive listening devices are available for hard-of-hearing students. Notetaking services are provided, and tutoring is available for students who may have difficulty in their coursework. Students are also able to seek individual counseling in reference to academic, career, or personal concerns. In addition to the credit-bearing courses, the college also offers continuing education classes consisting of basic English, reading, and math. This division also offers training programs for individuals seeking new job skills.

During the fall of 1997, the college implemented the C-Print speech-to-print transcription system through the NETAC grant, enabling the college to broaden options for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. C-Print is currently being used for five classes. NETAC/ Maryland offered a regional C-Print training at Catonsville Community College the week of October 5-9, 1998.

Through NETAC, during the past year a statewide consortium was established with colleges and other agencies that serve students who are deaf and hard of hearing. One focus of this group has been to improve literacy and support services for deaf and hard-of-hearing students across the state. This goal has been accomplished through workshops, teleconferences, and conferences. NETAC/ Maryland has been an exciting opportunity for Catonsville Community College to work with other professionals in examining and improving services for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals.

The Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI), the largest public two-year degree granting college in New England, has offered services to deaf and hard-of-hearing students since 1977. Through a three-year grant from the Rhode Island Department of Education, the institution hired a full-time coordinator and provided advising and sign language interpreters to an initial group of 8-12 deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

CCRI was the first of the state's colleges and universities to offer services to this population on a formal basis. When the grant ended, CCRI institutionalized the coordinator's position and expanded services to all students with disabilities while retaining a focus on deaf and hard-of-hearing students. A line item was included in the regular state account to provide sign language interpreters, and this established the foundation from which later services to all students with disabilities grew.

Today, the college offers an array of academic accommodations to deaf and hard-of-hearing students, including interpreters, assistive listening devices, and adapted computer systems. In addition, two grant-funded programs, Access to Opportunity, a TRIO-funded student support services program, and Transitions, a Perkins-funded program, provide additional support to eligible students with disabilities.

NETAC complements CCRI's mission to assist other agencies in the enhancement of their educational programs and to provide adult residents with open access to postsecondary education. Through the NETAC grant, CCRI offers its experience and expertise in working with deaf and hard-of-hearing students in reaching out to assist neighboring institutions.

NETAC's focus in Rhode Island has been two-fold: to promote a greater awareness of the needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing students among postsecondary institutions and to better prepare these students for mainstream college environments by offering technical assistance and programs to secondary level educators and administrators.

To date, NETAC-RI has developed a valuable survival guide and resource library for consortium members, provided a local site for three national teleconferences, conducted several workshops at Rhode Island institutions regarding effective classroom accommodations for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, and offered a full-day workshop addressing transition issues from secondary to postsecondary environments. NETAC looks forward to continuing these efforts in building a solid, smooth road to postsecondary education for students with hearing loss in Rhode Island.