The Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center’s mission is to preserve Nebraska Deaf History, Culture and American Sign Language for Posterity.

The vision of the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center is to promote Deaf culture and American Sign Language awareness to the public through education and service so that the Deaf people shall enjoy full benefits as citizens of Nebraska.

 

We value Teamwork. At the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center, we put importance in the work of many people who come together in common interest of building for a better future for Deaf people in Nebraska.

We value Integrity. At the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center, we strive for a higher truth of interpreting and presenting fair and balanced information to the public.

We value Growth. At the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center, we favor any efforts to stimulate local economy through education.

We value Empowerment. At the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center, we believe people will make rational decision after given informed choices.

We value Relationship. It is essential that all stakeholders shall be recognized for their dedication to the vision of the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center.

We value Support. We believe in reciprocal relationship among various communities to ensure the success of the Nebraska Deaf Heritage Museum and Cultural Center.

The Nebraska School for the Deaf Museum was founded in 1985 in the old Infirmary above the Administration Building at Nebraska School for the Deaf (NSD) under the guise of Dr. George Propp (NSD ‘40).

When the Nebraska Department of Education closed the school in 1998, Nebraska School for the Deaf Alumni Association (NSDAA) quickly moved to preserve what could have been lost to the red tape. With the generosity of the new owner of the campus, The Turning Point, NSDAA was able to reestablish NSD Museum at the Training Center, formerly known as the old Thompson Dormitory.

The NSD Museum reopened its door on August 4th, 2001 on the 100th anniversary of the Association.

The exhibits at the Museum includes a timeline of NSD along with local and state histories, and four display of various rooms representing a dorm life in the seventies, a school room in the thirties, an athletic display, and a Teenage Club in the fifties.

Topics concerning the communication and education controversy, contributions that Deaf people made to the American society, and many more are discussed. Art and woodwork done by students in early 20th century are also on display.

Welcome to the NSD Museum! When you come and visit, you will find the museum is filled with the display of rich historical stories and exhibits of the Nebraska School for the Deaf from the establishment of the school in 1869 to the closing in 1998. In the near future, we will include the history of ALL deaf and hard-of-hearing experience in Nebraska that span from the Nebraska territorial days to the present.

We strive to make the museum an educational experience for all of our visitors so that you will feel like you have benefitted from the visit and have gained an appreciation for the Deaf citizens of Nebraska, past and present, of the struggle and our triumph over various adversaries, and our heritage and the American Sign Language.

If you wish to make any kind of donations or contributions, please feel free to contact our treasurer for more information. If you wish for information about the museum, please contact me. However if you have any information or items that you feel could help the museum, please do feel free to let us know!

Thank you for your interest in the NSD Museum and our history!

Daniel R. Darnall, (NSD '90) Historian
Nebraska School for the Deaf Alumni Association, Inc.