Parent leaders - Janet DesGeorges

Janet DesGeorges - Boulder, Colorado, US

Janet lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband Joe and is mom to three daughters, including Sara, a young adult who is deaf/hard of hearing. Janet is a co-founder and part of the staff at Hands & Voices Headquarters, serving as the Executive Director since September 2011.  Janet has presented to groups worldwide about the experiences of families as they journey through life with a child with deafness or hearing loss. Ms. DesGeorges is the author on the chapter for Family Support in the NCHAM e-Book, the co-author of the book Educational Advocacy for Students who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing: The Hands & Voices Guidebook, and many other publications.

As an advocate, Janet believes in the principles and guiding philosophies of Hands & Voices towards a parent-driven, professionally-collaborative approach when supporting families in the early years. Her areas of interest include Leadership Development for parents who participate in systemic improvement; Deaf Education Reform and Improvement; Children’s Safety and Success (preventing child abuse and neglect); Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Systems.