BEGINNINGS offers emotional support and technical support to families with deaf or hard of hearing children and deaf parents with hearing children and professionals serving those families. BEGINNINGS is the place to start when you have questions about the hearing of your child ages birth to 21. Anyone can call BEGINNINGS directly to ask for information or assistance.

The primary activities of BEGINNINGS for Parents of Children Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, Inc. are:

Serve as the first contact for all families with newly identified children who are deaf or hard of hearing to provide the family with objective information and emotional support;

Provide impartial information about all communication approaches and educational settings;

Offer emotional support, resources, assessment and referrals for families;

Assist families in obtaining appropriate services for their child through referral and advocacy;

Provide consultation, seminars/workshops and technical assistance to Local Education Agencies, University training programs and other service providers promoting the understanding and success of families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing;

Work in collaboration with state agencies and professional organizations, audiologists and hospitals to promote Universal Newborn Hearing Screening programs and early intervention;

Provide information and support to parents regarding educational rights and procedures;

Develop and collect resource materials on topics related to education and development of deaf and hard of hearing children, parenting issues and assistive technology for use with/by parents and professionals;

Serve as a national resource regarding children with hearing loss;

Provide advocacy and resource services to families, schools and other agencies where service delivery may be in dispute