Deaf students are often overlooked in research conversations, but this year’s AERA Annual Meeting in Denver offers something different. Researchers from the National Deaf Center (NDC) are shining a spotlight on the gaps, challenges, and missed opportunities in postsecondary settings for deaf students. Join us April 23–27 at the Colorado Convention Center!
This year’s theme is, “Research, Remedy, and Repair: Toward Just Education Renewal”—and when we talk about “just education renewal,” we have to ask: Who’s still being left behind, and why? NDC is where deaf-centered research is happening, and below are the details on where you can find our data-driven presentations at this year’s AERA conference:
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2025 | 2:30–4:00 PM MDT
Disparate Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Deaf College Students
Location: Bluebird Ballroom 3C, Terrace Level
The COVID-19 pandemic spotlighted the question of institutional capacity to retain their most vulnerable students during this time of crisis. This paper explores findings from a secondary analysis of a National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) dataset, comparing pandemic-era disruptions among deaf and hearing college students. The outcome? Despite receiving similar levels of institutional communication and fewer economic hardships, deaf students were nearly twice as likely to withdraw or take a leave of absence. It’s a striking example of how traditional support systems may miss the mark—even when they’re working as designed.
Friday, April 25th, 2025 | 11:40 AM–1:10 PM MDT
Roundtable: Reading Between the Lines to Increase Belonging and Retention
Location: Four Seasons Ballroom 1, Ballroom Level
Despite advancements in higher education, deaf students continue to face significant challenges. Drawing from two datasets—one focused on deaf students, the other on the disability service professionals who serve them—this roundtable looks at where institutional systems are falling short. Key themes include unclear communication, conflicting feedback, a lack of tailored support for intersectional identities, and inconsistent accommodation practices. The discussion will highlight how more precise and responsive practices can directly impact retention and a student’s sense of connection to their campus.
Presenter:
Dr. Jeffrey Levi Palmer
Friday, April 25th, 2025 | 11:40 AM–1:10 PM MDT
Roundtable: Interpreter Burnout and What It Means for Deaf Students
Location: Four Seasons Ballroom 1, Ballroom Level
This research explores how burnout among postsecondary sign language interpreters—especially those from historically underrepresented backgrounds—can affect service consistency and deaf students’ academic experience. Burnout can lead to high turnover rates, exacerbating the shortage and impacting the quality of support available to deaf students. The roundtable will examine factors that increase burnout (race, age, disability status, gender, and more), and offer strategies to better support interpreters, which in turn helps stabilize the learning environment for deaf students.
Want to Connect with the NDC Team?
Let’s talk about what remedy and repair really look like—for all students. The NDC team will be in and around the Colorado Convention Center and headquarter hotels (Hyatt Regency, Hilton Denver City Center, and Grand Hyatt). If you are attending the AERA conference this year, we would love to connect with you in-person at the event! We hope to see you at the Deaf Hard-of-Hearing Intersectionalities and Perspectives SIG Business meeting, Thu, April 24, 7:15 to 8:45pm MDT, or reach out to help@nationaldeafcenter.org if you’d like to coordinate a meeting with our team. If you are not able to attend, but are still interested in connecting with us, we would love to discuss how your research connects to ours and share the resources that we’ve developed in the topic areas of our presentations. For more information on NDC’s attendance at this conference, follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, Bluesky, and Facebook!
