Vinton G. Cerf and Donna L. Sorkin Join Gallaudet University Board of Associates

Washington, DC — [November 4] The Gallaudet University Board of Trustees announced the appointment of Vinton G. Cerf and Donna L. Sorkin to the university’s Board of Associates, a group of business and civic leaders who advise the Gallaudet administration on a variety of issues.

Cerf, widely know as one of the “Fathers of the Internet,” is vice president and chief Internet evangelist for Google. It is his responsibility to identify new enabling technologies to support the development of advanced Internet-based products and services from Google. In 1997, President Clinton awarded the U.S. National Medal of Technology to Cerf in recognition of his contributions to the design of the protocols and architecture of the Internet.

Sorkin is vice president of consumer affairs at Cochlear Americas. She leads a range of activities at Cochlear aimed at the broad life needs of people with hearing loss including the company’s widely acclaimed HOPE program. Sorkin formerly was executive director of Self Help for Hard of Hearing People [now the Hearing Loss Association of America] and also served and the executive director of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.

Gallaudet’s Board of Associates was launched in 1991 to build relationships with business and philanthropic leaders. The members help the university develop a high-quality network of employers and benefactors who, through their support, ensure the future success of both Gallaudet and its students.

Gallaudet University, federally chartered in 1864, is a bilingual, diverse, multicultural institution of higher education that ensures the intellectual and professional advancement of deaf and hard of hearing individuals through American Sign Language and English. Gallaudet maintains a proud tradition of research and scholarly activity and prepares its graduates for career opportunities in a highly competitive, technological, and rapidly changing world.