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National Deaf Life Museum
History
The Deaf President Now (DPN...
Deaf President Now: Profiles and viewpoints
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Bridgetta Bourne-Firl Student Activist
Jerry Covell Student Activist
Greg Hlibok Student Activist
Tim Rarus Student Activist
Phil Bravin Board Member
Elisabeth Zinser Hearing Presidential Candidate
Jane Spilman Board chairperson
President’s Council on Deafness Special Advisory Group
Jerry C. Lee Former President
Dr. I. King Jordan Former President
In their own words…Personal accounts of DPN events of 1988
Notable Quotes
In March 1988, Gallaudet University experienced a watershed event that led to the appointment of the 124-year-old university's first deaf president. Since then, Deaf President Now (DPN) has become synonymous with self-determination and empowerment for deaf and hard of hearing people everywhere. The Issues A...
Resource Type: History
Tim Rarus, a government major from Arizona, was the most politically experienced of the "Gallaudet four," the students who quickly rose to leadership positions during the DPN protest. The other three were Greg Hlibok, Jerry Covell, and Bridgetta Bourne. As the outgoing Student Body Government...
One of just four deaf Board of Trustee members in 1988, Bravin was chair of the presidential search committee responsible for the selection and screening of finalists. A 1966 graduate of Gallaudet and an IBM executive, Bravin became the intermediary between student leaders and the...
The following quotes were made during, or shortly after, the DPN protest of March 1988. The source for these and other quotes used throughout this website are from either the book by Jack Gannon, The Week the World Heard Gallaudet or Gallaudet in the News...
Only three years after being named the seventh president of Gallaudet University in 1984, Jerry C. Lee announced he would be leaving to take a job as vice-president of Bassett Industries. His resignation began an intense debate about the need for a deaf president. A...
"Deaf people are not ready to function in a hearing world." are the words Jane Bassett Spilman, Chair of Gallaudet University's Board of Trustees, is reported to have said on the night Elizabeth Zinser was chosen as president. Spilman denied saying this, and many contended...
Yoon Lee, student photographer "On the 8th Day of the DPN Movement, around 8 p.m. some students were running toward the Field House and signing, 'WE WON! WE WON! EVERYONE GO TO THE FIELD HOUSE!' I was already tired from taking pictures every day and...
"My all-day interview happened on Saturday. It was very intensive, and when it was over, I felt confident. I knew I had done well. I went home that evening and told Linda that I was sure I would be offered the job. On Sunday, I...
Elected president of the Student Body Government only a day before the March 1 rally, Greg Hlibok found himself thrust into the spotlight as the official student leader of DPN. A member of a close-knit New York deaf family, which included two older brothers who...
An impassioned speaker and activist, Gerald "Jerry" Lee Covell was well known at Gallaudet for his involvement in campus politics and extracurricular activities. He was tagged as the protesting students' "spiritual leader" due to his fire-and-brimstone speaking style. He had just completed an unsuccessful bid...
As vice-chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, the Meadville, Pennsylvania native, Elizabeth Zinser, was named president of Gallaudet University on March 6, 1988. This sparked a protest by many students, alumni, faculty, and staff who felt that although she was a qualified...
A government major in 1988, Bridgetta Bourne-Firl was heavily involved with college politics and once ran as Jerry Covell's running mate in a bid for Student Body Government leadership. A soft-spoken yet charismatic student and a natural leader, she joined forces with the new SBG...