hard of hearing Ministry Model for
Dioceses and Parishes for the
Catholic Mass
Many dioceses use a private Deaf school model for
administration, decision making in determining access, compared to the
mainstream compulsory ADA model in the public secular world that requires
everyone to be permitted equal, effective, appropriate and reasonable
accommodations. (Rarely is CART provided)
Sign language is often the de facto communication
access even though the majority of the deaf/HOH do not use sign language. 90%
are often underserved, unrecognized in these ministries, or provided outdated,
or substandard communication access.
Providing sign language at Mass, while extremely important to some, is
not fully inclusive to all the deaf and hard of hearing population.
Leaders and staff are often sign language interpreters
or are culturally Deaf (including parents, siblings or children of culturally
Deaf people). While wonderful, this often presents conflict of interest to the
broader and diverse needs of all the deaf and hard of hearing, with the central
focus of the services geared only towards the culturally Deaf.
Inclusive Framework for Catholic deaf and hard of hearing Ministries for Dioceses
Represents all the needs of the deaf and hard of
hearing by providing ‘effective’ communication access allowing the deaf and
hard of hearing to participate in the life of the church.
Respects social, cultural and linguistic communication frameworks. We are diverse.
Respects multiculturalism and diversity and provides equal and effective
communication access to the Mass / other parts of church life according to the users communication framework.
Supports spiritual and community connection and access to the Mass and
other parts of church life like conferences with effective and equal
communication access.
Provides qualified/certified CART providers and Oral Interpreters, along with ASL Interpreters.
What does 'effective communication' mean?
ADA standard for ‘effective communication’ is the
model.
2010 Standards for Accessible Design have been
implemented as a revision of the 1990 law.
It took effect in March 2011.
A snapshot of this revision is:
“The goal is to
ensure that communication with people with these disabilities is equally
effective as communication with people without disabilities.” (Examples:
Qualified ASL and Oral/Cue interpreters, CART, ALDs, captioned phones etc.)
Considers the method of communication used by the
individual, along with the nature, length, and complexity of the communication
involved and the context in which the communication is taking place (large
group/small group/one-on-one). The person’s communication framework depends on
their primary language, age, any co-occurring disabilities and so forth.
See CART demo at
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