Claire Sanders Elected Chair of Willie Ross School for the Deaf Board of Trustees

LONGMEADOW — Willie Ross School for the Deaf (WRSD) announced a new chair of its board of trustees. Claire Sanders is the second deaf chair of the board in the school’s history, following the late George Balsley II, who served as chair until his passing in early 2025.

Sanders, who has been teaching in the field of American Sign Language and deaf studies for more than 25 years, serves as a Deaf Studies department chair and a professor of Language and Culture at Holyoke Community College. She has also taught at numerous colleges, including Hampshire College, Keene State College, Mt. Wachusett Community College, River Valley Community College, and Greenfield Community College.

“One of the reasons our school has been so resilient and successful since our inception is the quality of our board of trustees and trustee leadership,” said Bert Carter, president and CEO of WRSD. “Claire brings experience in deaf education to the position, and we welcome her to this new leadership position.”

Sanders holds a master’s-level national certification from the American Sign Language Teachers Assoc. In addition to her service on the WRSD board, she is a board member of the Western Massachusetts Assoc. for the Deaf and has led workshops related to the growing field of deaf studies.

“I felt honored to be invited to be on the board of trustees at WRSD in 2019, and am now also honored to serve as the school’s second deaf chair. As chair, I will provide my steadfast support for deaf, deafblind, and hard-of-hearing children at WRSD, for they so deserve the opportunity to receive the best education and experience available,” Sanders said. “As a deaf person with a master’s degree in deaf education, reconnecting in the field of deaf education enables me to continue my involvement in the betterment of the lives of WRSD students.”