Alaska School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Address
5530 E. Northern Lights Blvd Anchorage, Alaska 99504[1][2] United States
Information
Type	School for the Deaf
Established	1975 (49 years ago) (1975)
CEEB code	020407
Principal	Ann Curry [1]
Grades	Pre-K to 12[1][3][2]
Enrollment	35[1] to 50[3][2]
Language	American Sign Language, English[1]
Color(s)	Purple and white[1]
Mascot	Otter[1]
Website	www.asdk12.org/aksdhh

The Alaska State School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AKSD, previously abbreviated as ASSDHH) is a public school located in Anchorage, Alaska, United States.

Its affiliated schools are Russian Jack Elementary School, Orah Dee Clark Middle School, and Bettye Davis East Anchorage High School.^[4]

History

In 1972, the Alaska Department of Education, in collaboration with the Anchorage School District, established and funded the Alaska State Program for the Deaf (ASPD).^[5] In 1975, elementary school classes for ASSDHH began.^[5] In 1987, the school's name was changed to Alaska State School for the Deaf. Middle school and high school locations were added in 1992.^[5] An infant learning program also operated by ASSDHH between 1980 and 2002.^[5] In 1995, the school's current name was given, recognizing its inclusion of students beyond deafness.^[5]

For a period the school used ASSDHH as its acronym, but in 2016 it began using AKSD instead.^[6]

Description

ASSDHH has an enrollment of 35 to 50 students, ranging from pre-kindergarten to high school ages.^[1][3][2] Its facilities have been in multiple locations in the Anchorage School District,^[5] and are now educating its students at Russian Jack Elementary School, Clark Middle School, and East High School.^[7]

Students not from the Anchorage area stay with host families participating in the Hope Community Resources-Rural Deaf Student Support Program.^[8] The school previously cooperated with the non-profit organization ARC of Anchorage which operated the Student Living Center.^[9]