Time to Care
Our national philanthropy, supported by both collegiate and alumnae chapters, is speech and hearing and The Painted Turtle camp. Delta Zeta's partnerships with The Painted Turtle and The
StarkeyHearing Foundation were announced at the 2006 National
Convention.
All of these important programs provide additional volunteer and giving opportunities for collegiate and alumnae members.
Our national philanthropic program is the Sound Beginnings Program. Chapters also support local and national speech and hearing organizations, such as Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., the only four-year liberal arts school in the world devoted wholly to the needs, instruction, and training of young people who are deaf, and the House Ear Institute, which is one of the world's foremost research, teaching, and treatment centers in the field of hearing.
Philanthropic Partnerships
The Painted Turtle:
Delta Zeta adopted The Painted Turtle as a national philanthropy at the Sorority's 2006 National Convention. The Painted Turtle is an innovative medical specialty camp and family care center for children who have chronic and life-threatening illnesses. Collegians and alumnae will be volunteering at the camp and collecting needed items for the philanthropy.
The Starkey Hearing Foundation:
The Starkey Hearing Foundation is an important part of Delta Zeta's national philanthropy for speech and hearing. Alumnae and collegiate chapters will collect donated hearing aids for the Foundation's Hear Now program, which assists deaf and hard-of-hearing persons with limited financial resources who permanently reside within the United States.
Sound Beginnings: Delta Zeta partners with the National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management (NCHAM) on this program. Collegians and alumnae provide videos and informational brochures, which emphasize the importance of follow-up testing for failed infant hearing screening, to local organizations, clinics, and doctors who work with mothers and infants.
House Ear Institute: In 1985, the House Ear Institute, located in Los Angeles, California, became a philanthropic partner. Our first project for the Institute was the furnishing of a parents' conference room.
Gallaudet University: Since 1954, Delta Zeta Sorority has partnered with Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. It is the world's only university with undergraduate programs accessible to hearing-impaired students. In 1995, the Delta Zeta Dance Studio at Gallaudet was dedicated.
