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HOWARD ROSENBLUM leads a life of advocacy Written by St . Cloud State University students : Tricia B . Simon and Jaime L . Jensen
Howard Rosenblum is a man who has so seamlessly comingled his personal and professional missions of advocacy for the deaf community that he plans his vacations around opportunities to travel the world to meet deaf people , engrossing himself in learning their sign languages and the nuances of their respective cultures . From his very first job as a camp counselor for children with cognitive disabilities , to his current role as CEO of the National Association of the Deaf ( NAD ), Rosenblum has been dedicated to advocating for human rights , for not only those in the deaf community , but for all persons with disabilities .
How does a young man from Chicago come to lead the nation ’ s premier civil rights organization of , by , and for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the United States ? He attributes it to having great parents .
At age two , Rosenblum lost his hearing due to a case of meningitis . His parents , who had not known any deaf persons prior to their son ’ s hearing loss , immediately immersed themselves and their young son in learning about his new community and ensuring he had the educational resources to achieve any goal he set for himself .
Like many parents , Rosenblum ’ s family had big dreams for their child . While they preached to him that he could be anything he wanted to be , they also not so subtly guided him toward becoming a doctor or lawyer . One of these “ nudges ” came when Howard was only 12 years old . In his words , Rosenblum ’ s parents ,