Toward Equal Access: A Model for Lay Advocacy Programs Serving People Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing.

Advocacy programs are prevalent among state government agencies around the United States that specialize in serving people who are deaf or hard of hearing. The work is crucial to ensuring equal access and equal opportunity, yet the lay advocacy profession is not yet formalized with certification, ethical standards, or training programs for advocates serving this population. Research was conducted to advance efforts to maximize these programs' effectiveness by compiling components of an ideal model for lay advocacy programs. Directors from state agencies that specialize in serving people who are deaf or hard of hearing refined the model and described the structure of their programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]