Deaf Boarding School
Boston School for the Deaf in Randolph, MA, was operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Being originally located in Boston, its deep roots in the city led the school to be strongly connected with the public school systems in Boston. Linking them as sister schools with other Deaf schools in the state and the greater Boston Area. This included the Horace Mann School for the Deaf. The relationship between schools is how John and Louise met, along with their group of lifelong friends they met through Deaf education and society.
Updated language and practices between Marie and Louise’s commencement years
Marie’s Commencement at Boston School of the Deaf, Randolph, 1937
Oral and Written English Grammar Book from The Boston School for the Deaf
During the late 19th and mid-20th centuries, Deaf education began to fully embrace the oral method, which discouraged and even excluded sign language within Deaf education entirely and pushed for spoken language and lipreading for the Deaf individual. All, if not most, Deaf Schools in these centuries adopted the oral method or its counterpart, the Simultaneous Communication Method (SimCom), which involves signing while speaking at the same time. Both of these methods aim to assimilate the Deaf person into a speaking society rather than creating a space for language development to fit the Deaf individual better. The signing method did not involve oral or SimCom teaching and did not become the mainstream form of Deaf Education until ASL was deemed a language in the late 1980s, despite the signing method being overall the preferred method of communication between Deaf people at the time.
At the Boston School for the Deaf, Randolph, the preferred practice of teaching the deaf was the SimCom method. The following grammar book has an oral leaning focus, exemplifying the institute’s bias towards adopting an oral approach; even if sign language was incorporated, it is largely overlooked and placed second to spoken language.
Louise’s Commencement at Boston School of the Deaf, Randolph, 1941
Marie Volpini’s Commencement at Boston School for the Deaf, Randolph, 1937. The program focused on class participants’ dances. There is not much detail on the graduating class or what makes this class unique from others.
Louise Volpini’s Commencement at Boston School for the Deaf, Randolph, 1941. One will notice there has been an addition of a class motto, a named class flower, class colors, and even made an addition of musical numbers like You’re a Grand Old Flag. Most likely, these song renditions were signed translations. Though the commencements are only a few years apart, there seems to be an increase in school pride, maturity, and personality within the class.
Day Deaf School; Horace Mann School, Boston, MA
Unlike Boston School for the Deaf, Randolph, John was educated at a Deaf school, where he was able to go home at the end of the day. The Horace Mann School for the Deaf strictly used the Oral Method until around 1970; the sign was not largely incorporated into the school. Signing was even punishable as disobeying the oralism being taught to Deaf children. It wasn't until the 70s that the school changed to a bilingual approach, the SimCom method.
John Horrigan (standing far left) and his classmates at Horace Mann School for the Deaf, 1931.