Georgia School for the Deaf is in the scenic Vann's Valley. It is Georgia's only residential school serving deaf and hard-of-hearing students. GSD was established in 1846 on the grounds of the Hearn Academy by one of its teachers, O. P. Fannin. A log cabin, a $5000 legislative grant, and four students began a more than 160-year-long tradition of service to children across the state. GSD was the eleventh residential school for the deaf established in the United States.
Campus
GSD has an extensive campus of over in the small community of Cave Spring. The relationship between Cave Spring and GSD is one-of-a-kind because many residents and business owners are able to communicate with sign language. GSD is currently based on the Perry Farm, just outside of Cave Spring, but was formerly based in Downtown Cave Spring in what is now the CaveSpring City Hall.
Mission statement
The Georgia School for the Deaf provides some of our state's most deserving students with a unique learning environment deliberately designed to enable them to become literate, productive and successful graduates ready to take their rightful place as important contributing members of American society and their community.
GSD's residential program lets students be accepted into the deaf/hard-of-hearing culture, create long-lasting friendships, develop appropriate social skills, and be involved in sports and after-school activities. Students are transported to their homes every weekend.
Athletics
Georgia School for the Deaf has a varsity basketball team for girls and boys, a football team, a soccer team, and a volleyball team. The female and male varsity basketball teams at GSD compete in the Mason-Dixon Tournament yearly. In 2008 the GSD Lady Tigers won the Mason-Dixon Tournament; it was their first win since 1980. The GSD football team competes against deaf and hearing schools. They use their hearing disadvantage to their benefit by using sign language in their huddles and mental rhythmic plays.
Athletes
Willie Brown played basketball at GSD. In his sophomore year he was 6'6" and averaged 28 points, 12 rebounds a game. He was voted the number one high school player in northeast Georgia. Brown holds the school record of 2,016 points over four years in basketball at GSD. After graduating, he pursued college basketball at Hofstra University in New York, where he played alongside hearing teammates.
Requirements
To be eligible to get into GSD, students must be between the ages of 3 and 21 and have an audio-metric hearing loss of 55 dB or greater in the better ear. To live on campus students must be between the ages of 4 and 21. Students under the age of 4 are eligible for day school admission.
