Alan Hurwitz

Got a question for Dr. Hurwitz?

NTID is pleased to offer an online question-and-answer connection with Dr. T. Alan Hurwitz, CEO of NTID and RIT Vice President and Dean. Use the form below to send Dr. Hurwitz a question. Once a week, a question will be selected for the VP/Dean to respond to on this web page. Whether you're a prospective student, current student, alumnus, parent, or friend of the institute, Dr. Hurwitz looks forward to reading and responding to your questions!

Don't forget, you can always go directly to the source with your questions for a more immediate response. For example:

Recently answered questions:

  • (Posted May 7, 2008) I would like to know whether business-related courses like B.Com., M.Com. or MBA are available for deaf students at NTID? See Alan's answer
    Alan's response: NTID offers students associate-level degrees as well as a Master's of Science Program in Secondary Education. However, hundreds of qualified NTID students routinely take courses at RIT towards bachelor's degrees or in RIT's graduate programs, including MBA programs. Deaf or hard-of-hearing students in RIT classes receive access services as needed, including interpreters, C-Print captionists or note takers.
  • (Posted April 22, 2008) I hope this doesn’t seem too trivial. A friend who is an RIT graduate student is going to be attending NTID with plans to eventually teach. I want to give her a gift that would be useful in her studies there or as a teacher. I am thinking in the $100 range. I appreciate your suggestions or a redirection to another source. Thank you so much. See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    For this answer, I consulted with faculty members in NTID’s Master of Science Program in Secondary Education. They pretty much agree that many graduate students can use a hand with expenses for their books and school supplies. It may not be as personal as you’d like, but students would probably appreciate a gift card to our book store, which is operated by Barnes & Noble. Any Barnes & Noble gift card is accepted there for books, clothing and other school supplies. They may also pick out a frame for their diploma there. Another suggestion for student teachers working in a new city - they like to eat! Gift cards to restaurants are also welcomed by most students.

  • (Posted April 11, 2008) I'm deaf and will be graduating from a community college here in the Midwest next spring. Can I transfer to RIT with my associate's degree, or would I have to start all over at NTID? See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    Good question. RIT has agreements with many community colleges around the country, and it’s likely your credit can be applied to a four-year degree. If you desire access services, such as interpreting or note taking, those services are offered through NTID, but you don’t have to enroll in NTID classes. Approximately 500 of our 1,100 deaf or hard-of-hearing students attend RIT classes with hearing students.

  • (Posted April 2, 2008) I need your email, telephone number or any contact information where I can reach you. Our school is looking for a graduation speaker and I am recommending that you be considered. Regards. See Alan's answer
    Alan's response: Thank you for asking. My schedule is pretty full for the next several weeks but I try to find time to speak with students whenever possible. Please contact my office and my assistants will be happy to see what we can do. My mailing address is: RIT/NTID, 52 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, N.Y. 14623. My office phone is (585) 475-6317 V/TTY. Feel free to use the Ask Alan Website you used to contact me in the future.
  • (Posted March 25, 2008) I saw President Destler talking about the Imagine RIT festival on May 3 and he expects 30,000 people to be on campus. This sounds exciting, but I’m wondering how people are going to find their way around campus? It’s hard enough for those of us who are here regularly. See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    President Destler believes 30,000 visitors to the RIT campus for the Imagine RIT Innovation and Creativity Festival isn’t unreasonable. There are that many RIT alumni in the Rochester area. We’re providing a unique and educational experience to attract families. And it’s free!


    There are excellent plans in place to handle the visitors, including many signs, maps and volunteers. There will be 5,000 parking spots available at Monroe Community College, and 4,000 parking spots at the south end of The Marketplace mall. Shuttle buses will take visitors to the RIT campus, where volunteers will welcome them. There will be people movers to shuttle visitors around, from the LBJ building to CIMS and places in between.
    Check for details at the festival’s Web site.

  • Thanks for the opportunity to ask you a quick question despite your busy schedule! As an instructional faculty member at NTID, I've attended three plays and performances held in the NTID Panara Theatre recently in the past year. Unfortunately, during those three times I've attended, the theater was not packed despite all of the shows being of outstanding and mesmerizing quality. This is different from the days when I attended as a student at NTID in the 1980's. Those shows were often sold out. I realize that times have changed - the need to socialize decreasing in light of technological advances such as the Internet, pagers, IM chats and such. However, a number of us can boost our attendance numbers during those NTID plays and performances in various ways. Let me know how we can achieve this goal. See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    I, too, am impressed by the quality of work that appears on the stage of the Robert F. Panara Theatre. And I am sure the performers would enjoy playing to a capacity audience each time the curtain rises. But selling all the tickets is not the main goal. As our foremost goal, our productions provide valuable experiences for students studying theater, dance, costume and set design. They learn about lighting, sound and special effects. Each year, about 500 of our students take theater classes. So our students are involved, even if they aren’t in the audience.

    Yes, years ago there were fewer alternatives for entertainment for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, and our three annual productions were heavily attended. Now, there are six annual productions in Panara Theatre. Musicals, Shakespeare and children’s productions are still popular, but we also offer a more diverse range of shows. Sometimes it is difficult to fill the 466 seats in the theater. But our theater “lab” shows remain popular; the 80 seats are usually filled for each show.

    Our productions are usually promoted here with fliers, announcements and a dedicated Web site, as well as with ads and calendar listings in the local media. Discounts on tickets are available for students, who are often encouraged by faculty members - or even assigned - to attend productions. I hope all of us will continue to support the productions and help spread the word about “Rochester’s little gem.”

  • Since RIT/NTID is a prestigious school whose focus is on general technology upon which members of the deaf community rely, it is for that reason that led me to ask you this: knowing you have a quite impressive resume under your belt that essentially pertains to the deaf community to which you can (naturally) relate, I would truly appreciate if you would be so kind as to explain in a simple way how technologies are affecting that community and how it is untapped potential for growth, say, mobile technology for instance. How many people are in this target customer universe – both on a domestic and global scale, how many regularly use this technology and how much to they annually spend? Also, it would be great if you would provide me some examples where companies in other industries have used this type of segmentation to be industry leaders, ideally – or generally – focusing on the deaf community with respect to such technology as a whole. See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    Unfortunately, I do not have access to market research on many of the questions you ask. But from a personal point of view, mobile technology has been a boon for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. It has greatly simplified communications when compared, for example, to the TTY. Deaf and hard-of-hearing men and women now carry communications devices on their belts or in their purses. Communication is at their fingertips. This has provided extensive freedoms to deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. Many young individuals fortunately will never know how tethered older deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals were to TTYs, or how dependent they were on using hearing individuals to facilitate many interactions. It is my hope that services like video relay soon be widely available on mobile devices, which will be another great step forward. This is one area where one or more technology companies can demonstrate their leadership to the entire deaf and hard-of-hearing population.

  • What is the difference between NTID, CSUN and Gally? What is the number of deaf population in each of the three? Do NTID courses transfer to Gally? Are NTID and Gally private schools? See Alan's answer
    Alan's response:

    All three schools – RIT’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf, California State University, Northridge and Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. offer programs and services to deaf and hard-of-hearing college students. NTID offers career-focused associate-level programs, a baccalaureate degree program for interpreters and a master’s program in science in secondary education. NTID also offers access and support services to 492 of its students who are pursuing baccalaureate and graduate programs at RIT.

    As long as a college is accredited – and all three that you mention are – credits may be transferred from one college to another depending on specific program requirements. NTID is strengthening our relationships with community colleges across the country to allow their deaf and hard-of-hearing students to transfer more easily to RIT after completing their two-year degree.

    Regarding student figures: There are 1,343 students attending NTID or receiving support services at RIT. Of those, 1,102 are deaf or hard of hearing; 130 are hearing students in our American Sign Language-English Interpretation Program. We have 110 graduate students, including 51 deaf and hard-of-hearing students in the other colleges of RIT and 59 hearing, deaf and hard-of-hearing students in the Master of Science program in Secondary Education. There are 14,646 hearing students throughout the RIT campus.

    CSUN reports there are currently 300 deaf or hard-of-hearing students on their campus, along with more than 35,000 hearing students. Gallaudet reports as of Fall 2007 that they have 1,633 students, including 1,080 undergraduate students, 414 graduate students and 139 professional studies students. Approximately 250 Gallaudet students are hearing.

    CSUN is a public college. Both NTID and Gallaudet are private but receive most of their operating budgets from Congress. Because of that funding, deaf and hard-of-hearing students attending RIT pay about one-third of the tuition that hearing RIT students pay.

  • I’m in Chicago and am seeking a qualified CADD Tech graduate to fill an opening at our architectural office this summer. Is there a contact person I can work with to interview potential candidates from NTID? See Alan's answer
    Alan's response: Yes! And thank you for thinking of us! I have forwarded your question to our NTID Center on Employment and they have been in touch with you to identify upcoming CADD graduates who will be looking for co-ops this summer. If other companies would like to consider offering co-ops, our staff at NCE would be glad to help set one up. Contact them here.
  • I love this "Ask Alan!" site! I'll ask you a question. Will there be a kids' program during the 40th reunion? I’ve got three kids, ages 9, 12, and 14. :-) See Alan's answer
    Alan's response: Thanks for your question. I’m glad you asked! Yes, plans have been made to have activities for children, according to age. Those 5 to 8 can participate in RIT's Margaret House program which will provide a lot of hands-on activities. More in line with your children’s ages, those 9 to 12 can swim and we’re looking into possible field trips to an amusement park and bowling. Those 13 to 16 will do the same as the 9 to 12 year olds, but will be supervised by a different set of volunteers. And there will be times during the day when children will join their parents to enjoy family activities. So bring the kids – they are sure to have a good time as well! By the way, registration forms will be mailed in the next week or so, and an on-line application will also be available soon for the reunion on June 26 to 28.


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