Admission Criteria

The California Schools for the Deaf (CSD), located in Riverside and Fremont, recognize that language and communication are central to providing quality education to Deaf children. The CSDs are intended to serve students who require specialized, or intensive educational or related services related their hearing loss.

Every Deaf and hard-of-hearing person between the ages of 3 and 21 years, who is a resident of the state, and who meets the eligibility criteria set forth in the proposed regulations is entitled to an education at a CSD at no cost to parents or students. Priority in admission to the CSDs shall be given to:

• Elementary age Deaf and hard-of-hearing students who meet admission criteria and reside in sparsely populated regions; and,
• Secondary age Deaf and hard-of-hearing students who meet admission criteria and are in need of a high school program, for whom appropriate comprehensive educational facilities and services are not available or cannot be reasonably provided by their local school district or county educational agencies (Education Code section 59020)Unique Educational Needs of CSD Student Population

Deaf and hard-of-hearing students have needs for a unique environment that provides access to:

• direct and incidental learning and participation opportunities in all components of the educational process including, but not limited to, academic, career technical education, extracurricular, social and athletic activities
• ongoing opportunities to appropriately increase proficiency in English and American Sign Language
• teachers, related service personnel, administrators and other professionals who understand the unique nature of deafness, are trained to work with Deaf and hard-of-hearing students,
• a sufficient number of peers with whom they can communicate directly and spontaneously and who are of similar ages and ability levels
• in-depth exposure to a broad spectrum of Deaf adult role models
• opportunities to participate in self-esteem building activities that promote self-awareness and an understanding of Deaf heritage and Deaf culture

Since the purpose of the CSDs is the education of the Deaf (Education Code section 59001), the programs and services are designed and funded to serve students whose primary educational needs are due to their severe hearing loss and not to other disabilities. Thus, CSD teachers and other professionals are hired based upon their expertise in education of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing, not based upon their experience in the areas of emotional, behavioral, or cognitive disabilities. The proposed admissions criteria, therefore, reflect that students served by the CSDs have a severe hearing loss as the basis for their primary educational need.

Admission Services

The CSDs provide intensive, specialized services to students with or without additional disabilities whose primary education needs are due to their deafness. The services provided include:

• Comprehensive elementary educational programs, including related services for Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals (Education Code section 59002).
• Regional secondary educational programs providing comprehensive secondary education, including a full-range academic curriculum, appropriate pre-vocational and vocational preparation opportunities, and non-academic and extracurricular activities (Education Code section 59002).

Staff and Contact Information

Pamela Esparza

Office Technician, Admissions
email: pesparza@csdr-cde.ca.gov
phone: (951) 782-6539

Jennie Machado
Student Services DirectorÂ
email: jmachado@csdr-cde.ca.gov 

Carol Klier
Office Technician, Student Records
phone: (951) 248-7700 ext. 6301
email: cklier@csdr-cde.ca.gov

Cynthia Szabados
IEP Coordinator
phone: (951) 782-6538
email: cszabados@csdr-cde.ca.gov

Robin Bandy
Admissions Coordinator
phone: (951) 321-4597
email: rbandy@csdr-cde.ca.gov