Kendall Demonstration Elementary School

“Connect with the world leader in deaf education. Because our kids deserve it.”

Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (KDES) is a federally chartered school for deaf and hard-of-hearing students serving preschool through 8th grade. KDES operates on the Gallaudet University campus at 800 Florida Avenue NE in Trinidad / Northeast, Ward 5, as part of Gallaudet's Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center.

Federally chartered

KDES and its sister middle/high school MSSD (Model Secondary School for the Deaf) were established by Congress as demonstration schools — model programs whose mission is to develop and disseminate best practices in deaf education nationally. Tuition is fully federally funded for eligible students.

Bilingual ASL-English instruction

Instruction at KDES is bilingual in American Sign Language (ASL) and English:

• Deaf and hearing teachers use ASL as the primary instructional language
• English literacy is developed alongside ASL fluency
• Students develop biliterate capacity from preschool onward

This model serves deaf students who would otherwise face limited language access in mainstream classrooms — a model used at relatively few schools nationally.

Programs

• Standard academic core (literacy, math, science, social studies, arts) delivered in ASL-English bilingual format
• Educational technology integration designed for deaf students (visual cues, captioning, video resources)
• Co-located with Gallaudet University — students benefit from proximity to the world's only deaf-and-hard-of-hearing-focused university

Admissions

Open to DC residents who are deaf or hard-of-hearing ages 18 months through 8th grade. Eligibility based on hearing status and audiological evaluation. No tuition for qualifying DC students. Some out-of-state students attend via tuition arrangements with their home districts.

Contact and resources

• Phone: (202) 250-2761
• School website: kdes.gallaudet.edu
• Parent organization: clerccenter.gallaudet.edu
• Gallaudet University: gallaudet.edu

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