Reviewing Gallaudet University, Washington, D. C.

In the 1850's a wealthy philanthropist donated several acres of land in southeast Washington, D. C. to be used for a facility for the education of the deaf and blind. The following year classes were started at what was then called Columbia Institution for Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb and Blind. In 1864 the United States Congress , in the midst of directing the Northern effort in the Civil War, found time to pass legislation authorizing this school to confer college degrees on its students. President Abraham Lincoln signed the bill into law. As it grew and developed in its academic offerings it was renamed first Gallaudet College and then Gallaudet University after Edward Gallaudet, the schools first superintendent. Today students attending Gallaudet continue to receive diplomas signed by the President of the United States and certainly more importantly a superior educational experience.

The Symbolism of a Washington, D. C. Address. - Students who attend Gallaudet University get to enjoy life on a campus in the nation's capital for four years. This means they will have four years of access to all of Washington's monuments, museums, government buildings and public events. Washington D. C. is also a city filled with student life. Gallaudet students will meet and come to know students from George Washington University, American University, Howard University, Georgetown University and other smaller schools in the district.

But for those students who are reviewing Gallaudet there is great symbolism in placing Gallaudet University in our nation's capital. Of any American city, Washington certainly is one place where students should hope to find a place where they will experience the equal opportunity to receive a quality education despite their hearing impairment. In fact Gallaudet University is the only four year liberal arts university, not just in this country, but in the world that provides all classes and college activities designed exclusively for the deaf and hard of hearing.