ThinkSelf Minnesota Deaf Adult Education and Advocacy Information

ThinkSelf Minnesota Adult Education and Advocacy is a Minnesota-based 501c3 nonprofit organization. Formerly known as CSD Minnesota, we have been offering Adult Basic Education (ABE) classes to Deaf individuals since 1989, and the Advocacy program has provided some form of services to survivors of domestic abuse since 1997. Our Adult Basic Education program is the only stand-alone Deaf adult education program in the country. We strive to ensure that deaf adult learners in Minnesota have the chance to learn English in a safe and nurturing environment, which increases their self-confidence and ease of learning a language that they have never fully heard. The Advocacy program is a statewide service that strives to end harassment and violence against and within the Deaf Community in Minnesota. We work with survivors of abuse to develop safety plans to empower them to regain control over their lives by creating opportunities to build an effective support system. This often includes healing through the provision of crisis intervention, advocacy, counseling, community education and outreach. We approach our work via an intersectional lens that acknowledges and honors participants’ many layered identities.