The Hearing and Speech Agency of Metropolitan Baltimore (referred to as HASA) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization located in Baltimore, Maryland that specializes in facilitating communication. Established in 1926, the organization provides special education services through Gateway School, audiology and speech-language services through its Clinical Services Department, and interpreting services for the deaf through its CIRS Interpreting Department.
History and mission
Established in 1926 as the Speech Reader's League of Baltimore by Dr. Olive A. Whildin, the League began as a community center for the hard of hearing. In 1930 the League was renamed the Baltimore League for the Hard of Hearing, then the Baltimore Hearing Society in 1948, and finally the Hearing and Speech Agency of Metropolitan Baltimore in 1966. HASA legitimized itself over time with connections to state and national organizations. In 1927, the League was inducted into the American Federation of Organizations for the Hard of Hearing. Though initially rejected from the Community Fund (now United Way) in 1936, the League was granted membership upon re-application in 1940.
For the next twenty years, the League (known as the Society starting in 1948) continued with its audiology services until 1960 with the inauguration of its speech-language clinical program. Three years prior, Gateway School was started as a pilot program by the Association for Children with Communicative Disorders (which was merely the board of directors at the Society). With some success, Gateway became an independent partner program of the Society in 1960 in conjunction with the Society's new speech clinic. However, the two programs had limited success separately, and based on the 1965 recommendations of the Health and Welfare Council of Baltimore, Gateway School and the Baltimore Hearing Society merged in 1966 to create The Hearing and Speech Agency of Metropolitan Baltimore.