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| JEAN MASSIEU ACADEMY |
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ABOUT US
Jean
Massieu Academy (JMA) is an open-enrollment charter school that was opened
in August 1999 to serve deaf or hard of hearing students and their non-deaf
siblings or peers. JMA is unique because we are a school of choice providing
all instruction in American Sign Language (ASL) creates an equitable communication
environment for our students and staff. At JMA, all staff and students,
whether deaf or not deaf, communicate freely using ASL. This billingual
environment removes communication barriers that normally exist for deaf
and hard of hearing students within the traditional public school systems.
We believe that the billingual communication environment that exists at JMA has greatly benefited and enhanced our students' academic performances. Our students also benefit from exposure to the large number of professional deaf or hard of hearing adult role models on our instructional staff. This is clearly evidenced by the "can-do" attitude among our students. Another evidence for the success of our instructional program is the awarding of a Recognized rating from the Texas Education Agency for the years 2000-2001 and 2002-2003.
Jean
Massieu (1772-1846) was the first deaf person to teach deaf and hard of
hearing children. He taught at the school for deaf children in Paris,
France. Several of his proteges founded schools for deaf and hard of hearing
children using the sign language method of instruction in several
countries,
including America. One of the protege was Laurent Clerc, who co-founded
the first school for deaf children in America. The American School for
the Deaf established in Hartford, Connecticut in 1817 and is still in
existence today.
