The Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program (GROD) is a public school program founded in 1899 that resides within the Grand Rapids Public School System and serves the entire Kent Intermediate School District.  Its mission is to enable children with hearing loss to gain the skills necessary to perform at the same level as their normal hearing peers using the auditory verbal method of teaching. The GROD Program is built on the belief that auditory is the fundamental basis for continuing “the earnest and persistent effort to teach the deaf to speak.” - Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922)

A Team Approach

Parents in the Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program are an integral part of the educational team. Parent involvement is encouraged through parent support meetings, parent education meetings, classroom observation and triangle times (teacher/student/parent).

A Listening Foundation

Current hearing aid and cochlear implant technology provides an optimal auditory signal for learning speech and language through listening for students with hearing impairment. The Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program emphasizes hearing and listening as the foundation of learning.

Expertise and Caring

The staff at the Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program is dedicated to the auditory approach for the education of children with hearing loss. Staff members participate in Professional Development workshops and conferences on a regular basis to stay current on auditory-based teaching strategies and amplification technology. The Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program was selected as the National Alexander Graham Bell Association’s (AGB) Program of the Year in 1979 and in 1997.

Successful Mainstreaming

A primary goal of the Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program is to prepare students to be mainstreamed into their neighborhood school as early as possible. The GROD Program has a record of mainstreaming over 75% of their students into their neighborhood schools by the age of six.The program is located in a regular education elementary school, offering on-site opportunities for mainstreaming from preschool through later elementary grades. It is estimated the GROD Program saves taxpayers more than $1 million dollars every year in special education expenditures through early mainstreaming.

Support Where It Is Needed

In addition to home and classroom programming, the Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program provides the following services:

• Audiological Management
• Social/Emotional Evaluations and Counseling
• Physical Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Psychological Evaluations
• Bilingual Interpretation and Translation

An audiologist, social worker, translator, physical therapist and occupational therapist are on staff.

Solid Commitment

The Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program is committed to ensuring that each student develops auditory, speech and language skills necessary for them to achieve their maximum potential academically, socially and emotionally.