We are often asked, how did the Deaf Cultural Center first get started. Here is a little bit of information about our beginnings:

Who came up with the idea of building the Deaf Cultural Center? (DCC)

When a highway sign was set up on I-35 showing the location of the Kansas School for the Deaf, more people stopped by the school asking for information about their families, about former students, or former workers at the school in addition to information about deafness and other related topics. Since KSD was not able to provide this service on a regular basis, board members brought up the idea of setting up a center to provide all of these services for the general public as well as for alumni members, and friends of the KSD, KSDAA [Kansas School for the Deaf Alumni Association] and KAD [Kansas Association for the Deaf].

 What was the purpose of building the DCC?

In addition to the Museum, there was a recognized need to educate the general public about various types of hearing loss and to share this wealth of information. The Sign Language program was one of many ideas. Another idea was to set up an office for research / information for alumni and friends of deaf organizations. Offices were also included in hopes of attracting non-profit organizations and businesses that serve people with hearing loss.

 What is the history of DCC and how it was started:

In 1992, KEF [Kansas Educational Foundation] was looking to expand it’s horizons to include the entire population of people with hearing loss significant enough that it affects their life significantly, regardless of age. Designing the DCC building followed and fund raising projects took place. Construction of the DCC building started in September of 2000 and was completed in June of 2001. The purchase of the land was $240,000 with the total construction cost at $794,000. Total costs for land, building and miscellaneous expenses was $1,052,000. The total square footage of the building is 6,000 sq. ft. The land and building are both paid for completely.