SLS Interview: With I. King Jordan

SLS: The accident that caused your deafness must have been a life changing event. Can you put into words what this event has meant for your subsequent life?

IKJ: Often when I talk about what "happened to me" as a result of my becoming deaf, I say that if I were to make a list of all the good things that have happened and then a similar list of all the bad things, the good list would be far, far longer. Of course, such an answer sounds almost glib to people who are not deaf or who don't understand deafness, but I am very sincere when I say that. I met my wife after I was deaf. I found Gallaudet after I was deaf. My entire career has been in deafness. Most of my friends are either deaf or work with deaf people and communicate easily in sign language.

If I think back to 1965, when I first learned I was deaf, it was a miserable time. I was serving in the Navy and therefore received medical treatment at the U.S. Naval Hospital at Bethesda. The doctors there all told me that the deafness was a result of trauma from the accident and would be temporary. They encouraged me to think positively about my hearing returning and discouraged me from looking into learning more about "adjusting to deafness." I was basically a hearing person who could not hear.

Gallaudet changed my life. When I learned about Gallaudet and visited, I saw that there are many deaf people who are very happy and well adjusted. It took me some time, but finally I realized I was permanently deaf and began to learn how to be a deaf person.

Finally, it was very important that Linda Kephart came into my life. She had never known me as a hearing person, so she accepted me immediately for who I was. Nearly all of my long time friends and family continued to think of me as a broken hearing person.

SLS: What were some of the factors that influenced your decision to seek the Gallaudet presidency and who were some of the people who influenced it?

IKJ: I enjoy working at Gallaudet more than I can tell you. I have always enjoyed it. I was fortunate that a faculty position in the psychology department became available just when I was completing my PhD and more fortunate that Gallaudet chose to offer me the position. This was 1973, remember, and there was not any push to hire more deaf people for the faculty. Howard Roy had been my mentor when I was a student and I am very sure that he played a significant role in helping me get the job. I became department chair and learned a little about administration and people and budget management. I was named dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. When Jerry Lee announced his resignation, there was a lot of talk about a deaf president and many deaf people on campus encouraged me to apply. Many. Many of the long time deaf faculty members such as ABC and Leon Auerbach urged me to apply. Many younger people did also. Boyce Williams was the Doctor Doctor Chair holder at the time and encouraged me to apply. Mac Vernon and Bill Stokoe encouraged me and offered to serve as professional references. I got much more support than I expected from the campus. When I talked with my family, they were very enthusiastic in their support and very influential in my decision to apply.

SLS: Looking back after almost twenty years, how would you characterize the significance of DPN for Gallaudet and for the Deaf community?

IKJ: I can't begin to explain how significant it was. Quite simply, it changed Gallaudet, it changed the Deaf community here in the United States and around the world, and it energized and brought together all of the different disability groups. I remember when I was a student at Gallaudet (mid- Sixties) and how when groups of us would go out and about we would be careful to sign...