Like many of his classmates, Rob Nutt '98 returned from the Foreign Study Program in Edinburgh speaking like a Scotsman. But Nutt has never heard a Scottish accent.
Nutt, the only deaf student at Dartmouth, learned the accent by watching natives' lips as they spoke. Every time he encounters a new accent or dialect, Nutt must learn an entirely new "language," which, he says, complicates understanding international professors, like Judaic Studies Professor Ahud Benor.
In many ways, Nutt is not so different than his peers: he belongs to a fraternity, he plans to attend medical school and he has been an undergraduate advisor. In other ways, Nutt has little in common with his classmates: Nutt is writing an autobiography and he describes himself as a diplomat for the deaf.
"In some way my life job is to bring the deaf world and the hearing world to a better understanding of each other," he said. This is the primary topic addressed in Nutt's writings, which have attracted the attention of Education Chair Andrew Garrod, who is collecting works written by college students with disabilities.
Garrod called Nutt's writings "fluent, ... courageous and thoughtful. "
Nutt says the main goal of his writing is to help the reader understand how hearing disabilities changes the educational experience in and out of the classroom. He said he has sometimes felt like a "token deaf student."
"I know I am iconizing myself," Nutt said. "At the same time, I want to remain my individual self."
Nutt said he felt so out of place his sophomore Fall that he considered transferring to Gallaudet College, an all-deaf school, or the Rochester Institute of Technology, which hosts the National Institute for the Deaf, where he could find people able to relate to his experience.
But Nutt decided to instead immerse himself in campus life and try to make the best of Dartmouth. "I am at an Ivy League school," he said. "This is the best education I can get."
Nutt became a UGA in Ripley hall and joined Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, where he says he has found a group of people who understand him. At weekly meetings, brothers sit in a circle to facilitate Nutt's lip reading.
But Nutt says he misses certain aspects of "deaf culture."
"There are certain things about the deaf community that lead them to claim that they are a cultural minority, as opposed to disabled community," Nutt said. "In that sense deaf people take pride in their deafness."
Nutt attends the same classes as other Dartmouth students, but has a somewhat different experience. Nutt follows lectures through a combination of lip reading and the use of an "auditory trainer," a wireless amplifier that helps Nutt understand the professor. A student assists Nutt by transcribing lectures for him.
Because he understands by reading lips, it is often difficult for Nutt to learn the unfamiliar, technical words prevalent in his science classes. A religion and biochemistry major, Nutt is considering a career in ophthalmology, because sight is the sense he relies upon most. He said he would like to help people who are losing their vision.
Nutt said America's deaf population is no different than other minority groups, and they should be represented on the Dartmouth campus.
"What we need to do now is to appreciate the deaf community's contribution to diversity and diversity's contribution to society," he said. "You should appreciate that students with disabilities contribute in very much the same way that ethnic groups contribute to intellectual, cultural and social diversity. That is essential for every community."
Academic Skills Center Student Disabilities Coordinator Nancy Pompian said she has known two other deaf students who graduated from Dartmouth, Ken Glickman '77 and John Stanton '93. She said a deaf woman has already been accepted early decision as a member of the Class of 2001.
Pompian said she has come to see Nutt as a good friend.
"I feel pleased for him and proud of him when he goes on an FSP," she said. "It's just so satisfying to see the natural progress he made from the campus to Edinburgh."
Nutt said his mission is not only to raise awareness of the experiences of deaf students, but also of the experiences of students with any disability, physical or otherwise.
