Notable Figures & Firsts

The Deaf French teacher who co-founded the first U.S. Deaf school in 1817 and helped seed American Sign Language. Often called the father of Deaf education in America.

President of the National Association of the Deaf who, in 1913, filmed himself signing to preserve ASL against the oralist tide — one of the earliest acts of Deaf-led media preservation.

The first deaf African American to earn a degree from Gallaudet, who went on to found dozens of schools for the Deaf across Africa — widely called the father of Deaf education in Africa.

Named Gallaudet’s first Deaf president in 1988 after the Deaf President Now protest, and a global symbol of Deaf leadership. Famous line: “Deaf people can do anything except hear.”

A Deaf leader who rose to head NTID, served as a U.S. assistant secretary of education under President George H. W. Bush, and later returned to lead Gallaudet as president.

Widely recognized as the first Black Deaf woman attorney in the United States, and a federal disability-policy advocate who served in the Obama administration.

Executive director who modernized the National Association of the Deaf in the 1960s and 70s, building the staff and capacity that powered the Deaf civil-rights victories of the following decades.

Bridgetta Bourne, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok, and Tim Rarus — the student leaders of the Deaf President Now protest that, in eight days, won the first Deaf president of Gallaudet University and reshaped Deaf self-determination worldwide.

Linguist and educator who coined the term audism in 1977 to name the discrimination Deaf people face, and co-authored landmark works on Deaf culture and identity.

MacArthur Fellow and linguist whose research on ASL and Deaf culture — including Deaf in America with Tom Humphries — reframed how scholars and the wider public understand the community.

Longtime CEO of the National Association of the Deaf and a disability-rights attorney who has led federal legal and policy fights for access across employment, healthcare, and communication.

Won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Children of a Lesser God — the first Deaf performer to win an Oscar — and has been a leading advocate for Deaf representation ever since.

Won Best Supporting Actor for CODA in 2022, becoming the first Deaf man to win an acting Academy Award — only the second Deaf actor ever to win the prize.

A founding member of the National Theatre of the Deaf who won a Tony Award originating the lead role in Children of a Lesser God on Broadway.

A pioneering Deaf performer, master of Visual Vernacular, and co-founder of the National Theatre of the Deaf, who brought Deaf theatre to stages across the world.

The Deaf actress who played Linda the librarian on Sesame Street for nearly three decades, introducing American Sign Language to millions of children.

Broadway and television actor who became the first Deaf superhero in a major studio film, playing Makkari in Marvel’s Eternals, after a Tony-nominated turn in Children of a Lesser God.

A celebrated Deaf comedian and storyteller whose decades-long career spans theatre, festival circuits, and films including Baby Driver, in which he played a leading Deaf role.

Featured in the Best Picture-winning CODA and a finalist on Dancing with the Stars, extending Deaf visibility into mainstream prime-time television.

Breakout star of the A Quiet Place films — horror built around silence and signing — and a powerful advocate for casting Deaf actors in Deaf roles.

Stars as Maya Lopez in Marvel’s Hawkeye and the title role of Echo — a Deaf, Indigenous, and amputee lead in a major Marvel series.

The deafblind writer and organizer who became the first deafblind person to earn a bachelor’s degree, and a worldwide advocate for disability and social causes for half a century.

The founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA in 1912, who lived much of her adult life with profound hearing loss and built one of the largest youth organizations in the world.

A Deaf botanical illustrator whose precise drawings for the Smithsonian and the U.S. Department of Agriculture set a scientific standard, with work still consulted by researchers today.

Pioneering astronomer who manually classified hundreds of thousands of stars and developed the spectral classification system still used today — working through significant hearing loss for most of her career.

Newbery Honor-winning author of El Deafo, a graphic-novel memoir of growing up deaf that has become a classroom staple and a touchstone for a generation of Deaf and hard-of-hearing kids.

Crowned Miss America in 1995, the first deaf woman to win the title, and a prominent public figure who used the platform to advocate for Deaf education and access.

The profoundly deaf South African swimmer who won an Olympic silver medal in 2000, starting his races from a strobe light rather than a sound.

The first legally deaf offensive player in the NFL, who won a Super Bowl as a fullback for the Seattle Seahawks and became a visible advocate for Deaf athletes.

A national collegiate wrestling champion and professional mixed-martial-arts fighter whose life inspired a feature film, The Hammer.

A deaf Major League Baseball outfielder who played eleven seasons in the big leagues and later became a coach at the college level.

Won both a major modeling competition and a celebrity dance contest, then turned his platform into Deaf-led media and advocacy through his production company.

The first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School, a disability-rights advocate and author working at the frontier of technology and access.

Tony-nominated for Tribes on Broadway, with a steady presence on prestige television including Fargo — bringing Deaf characters into leading roles.

A YouTube creator whose years-long advocacy reshaped expectations for accurate, complete captioning across the platform and the wider creator economy.