Taking Language from The Rich and Giving it to the Poor:
Lessons Learned in Nottingham

“Inspirational and informative.”

“Very inspiring and humorous.”

“A home run.”

These are just a few of the accolades typically showered on Jean Irwin-Hatfield, a Deaf Educational Specialist and long-time advocate of the hearing impaired who is returning to District 6040 as keynote speaker for the 2018 Foundation Dinner.
 
Some 20-plus years ago, Jean received an Ambassadorial Scholarship that allowed her to do the groundbreaking research into reading and deafness which earned her a Master’s Degree from Nottingham University in England. Her commitment to that cause – and to Rotary – has been unwavering ever since. She has spoken at hundreds of Rotary Conferences and received numerous awards, including Rotary’s Service Above Self Award in 2009.
 
Jean considers one of her most important roles was serving as a grassroots coordinator for the passage of a Nevada bill requiring mandatory testing of hearing before a newborn can leave the hospital. Because hearing is so critical to language development, this assessment is particularly important. In the first two years after this bill was passed, Nevada moved from 36th to 8th in the nation for children tested at birth for hearing loss.  
 
 “Her inspirational stories of helping children will have you laughing and still feeling the tug on your heart strings.” says District Governor, Julie McCoy who invited her speak at this year’s dinner. “She inspires Rotarians to do more in the literacy area of focus. Every Rotarian interested in youth and education should attend to hear her presentation.”
 
Jean and her husband, David, live in Rancho Cordova , California. David is past-president of the Rotary Annes.