Clerc Classic
Encyclopedia
The Clerc Classic Basketball Tournament originated at the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in 2000 under Athletic Director, Michael Weinstock,who envisioned a national basketball tournament bringing together outstanding athletes from top Deaf schools to one site and let them claim the championship. The tournament typically to occur during the second weekend of January. The school who wins that year's tournament often win the year's Deaf Prep National Championship.

Who was Laurent Clerc?

Laurent Clerc
Laurent Clerc
Laurent Clerc , born Louis Laurent Marie Clerc, was called "The Apostle of the deaf in America" by generations of American deaf people...

 was born on December 26, 1785. An accident struck him at a young age: one side of his face was burnt after he fell into a fireplace. The fever resulting from the burnt ended with Clerc becoming Deaf.

Clerc had such devoted parents who sought various medicinal cures before learning about the Royal Institution for the Deaf in Paris, France. Clerc’s parents enrolled him at the school where he was put under the guidance of the school’s director, Abbe Roche-Ambroise Sicard
Roch-Ambroise Cucurron Sicard
Roch-Ambroise Cucurron Sicard was a French abbé and instructor of the deaf.Born at Le Fousseret, Haute-Garonne, and educated as a priest, Sicard was made principal of a school for the deaf at Bordeaux in 1786, and in 1789, on the death of the Abbé de l'Épée, succeeded him at Paris...

. The school utilized sign language as the language of instruction which allowed many of Clerc’s hidden talents to emerge.

Clerc completed his study in seven years and was rewarded with the position of assistant teacher, in charge of the highest class at the Institution. He eventually moved up as teacher.

An event happened in 1816 during Clerc’s eight year of teaching which changed his life forever. He met a young idealist from America, Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet
Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet
Reverend Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, LL.D., was a renowned American pioneer in the education of the Deaf. Along with Laurent Clerc and Mason Cogswell, he co-founded the first institution for the education of the Deaf in North America, and he became its first principal...

, who was searching for an educational system for the Deaf. Gallaudet then observed Clerc working with students during numerous situations. Gallaudet ultimately asked Clerc to help him established the first school for the Deaf in America.

Clerc accepted and bade farewell to his family, friends, and boss. Gallaudet and Clerc set sail from France on June 18, 1816. During the 52-day voyage, they continued to share their knowledge with each other. Upon arrival in America, Clerc and Gallaudet began fundraising efforts by having Clerc present on instruction methods for the Deaf with Gallaudet assisting as interpreter. They traveled along the east coast, from Boston to Philadelphia, for nearly seven months. They taught and interviewed parents of Deaf children, garnering community support at the same time. Their efforts paid off with the establishment of the first school for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut on April 15, 1817. Clerc taught there for the next 41 years providing lessons in sign language and teacher training.

Clerc married a former pupil, Elizabeth Broadman, and fathered four children. Clerc died on July 18, 1869.

Our lives as Deaf people nowadays would not have been possible without Laurent Clerc. As the first Deaf teacher in America, he contributed greatly towards the development of our language, American Sign language and our education!

Host Sites

Clerc Classic I (2000) - Model Secondary School for the Deaf (Washington D.C.)

Clerc Classic II (2001) - Model Secondary School for the Deaf (Washington D.C.)

Clerc Classic III (2002) - California School for the Deaf, Fremont
California School for the Deaf, Fremont
The California School for the Deaf, Fremont is a school for deaf children in Fremont, California. The school educates deaf children from all over Northern California...

 (Fremont, CA)

Clerc Classic IV (2003) - Indiana School for the Deaf
Indiana School for the Deaf
Indiana School for the Deaf is a fully accredited school for the deaf and hearing impaired, located in Indianapolis, Indiana.-History:When the first school for the Deaf was established in Indiana, it was not called Indiana School for the Deaf...

 (Indianapolis, IN)

Clerc Classic V (2004) - Maryland School for the Deaf
Maryland School for the Deaf
The Maryland School for the Deaf is a school that provides free public education to Deaf and hard-of-hearing Maryland residents, from birth to age 18.-History:...

 (Frederick, MD)

Clerc Classic VI (2006) - California School for the Deaf, Riverside
California School for the Deaf, Riverside
The California School for the Deaf, Riverside is a school for deaf and hearing impaired children, and is located in Riverside, California. The school educates children from all over Southern California...

 (Riverside, CA)

Clerc Classic VII (2007) - Model Secondary School for the Deaf (Washington D.C.)

Clerc Classic VIII (2008) - Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf
Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf
The Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf is a public residential school serving deaf children in Minnesota. It is one of two Minnesota State Academies in Faribault and operated by the state for particular student populations.-History:...

 (Faribault, MN)

Clerc Classic IX (2009) - Maryland School for the Deaf
Maryland School for the Deaf
The Maryland School for the Deaf is a school that provides free public education to Deaf and hard-of-hearing Maryland residents, from birth to age 18.-History:...

 (Frederick, MD)

Clerc Classic X (2010) - California School for the Deaf, Fremont
California School for the Deaf, Fremont
The California School for the Deaf, Fremont is a school for deaf children in Fremont, California. The school educates deaf children from all over Northern California...

 (Fremont, CA)

Clerc Classic XI (2011) - Texas School for the Deaf
Texas School for the Deaf
Texas School for the Deaf is a state-operated primary and secondary school for deaf children in Austin, Texas. It was first opened in 1857 "in an old frame house, three log cabins, and a smokehouse." The school struggled under inadequate funding during the Civil War and its aftermath with the...

 (Austin, TX)

Clerc Classic XII (2012) - Indiana School for the Deaf
Indiana School for the Deaf
Indiana School for the Deaf is a fully accredited school for the deaf and hearing impaired, located in Indianapolis, Indiana.-History:When the first school for the Deaf was established in Indiana, it was not called Indiana School for the Deaf...

 (Indianapolis, IN)

Clerc Classic I

Boys Champions: Phoenix Day School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: California School for the Deaf, Fremont

Clerc Classic III

Boys Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic IV

Boys Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic V

Boys Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic VI

Boys Champions: California School for the Deaf, Fremont

Girls Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic VII

Boys Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: California School for the Deaf, Riverside

Clerc Classic VIII

Boys Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Texas School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic IX

Boys Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: California School for the Deaf, Riverside

Clerc Classic X

Boys Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Clerc Classic XI

Boys Champions: Maryland School for the Deaf

Girls Champions: Indiana School for the Deaf

Cheerleading Champions: Model Secondary School for the Deaf

External links

  • http://www.csdf.k12.ca.us/athletics/clerc10/ The Official Clerc Classic X Tournament Website.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK