SHARON L. APPLEGATE, MPH, CSW-R
Sharon L. Applegate is the Executive Director of Developmental Evaluation
and Adjustment Facilities, Incorporated (DEAF, Inc.), in Boston, Massachusetts
with satellite offices in Salem, Middleboro, and New Bedford. Since itıs
founding in 1977, Massachusettsı first and only multi-service community-based
agency has been operated by and for Deaf, Deaf-Blind, Hard of Hearing
and Late-Deafened people.
In its 30 years of operation, DEAF, Inc. has served more than 20,000 members of the Deaf community of Massachusetts and the Northeast. The organization provides comprehensive services not only to Deaf, Deaf-Blind, Hard of Hearing, and Late Deafened people, but also to their families, friends, and employers as well so as to encourage and enable consumers to participate effectively and productively with those around them. DEAF, Inc. offers educational programs, information and referrals, advocacy, skills assessment, and training tailored to consumer needs in a supportive community environment - one that is linguistically and culturally accessible to Deaf and Hard of Hearing people from diverse backgrounds.
A former Assistant Executive Director of the New York Society for the
Deaf, Ms. Applegate managed various New York City-wide comprehensive behavioral
health, social, and rehabilitative services, such as the Ryan White HIV-AIDS
Case Management Program, OMH-licensed Mental Health Clinic and Psychiatric
Treatment Apartment Program, OSAS-licensed Substance Abuse Program, and
the OMRDD-licensed Individual Residential Alternative. In 1997 she started
as the Assistant Executive Director and held broad leadership, executive,
administrative, and financial management responsibilities for NYSD a
not-for-profit organization with 80 staff, 3,000 consumers, and an annual
budget of $10 million. Prior to her role as Assistant Executive Director,
she worked for NYSD as the Director of Behavioral Health and Clinical
Services for one year. Before working for NYSD, Ms. Applegate worked as
a social worker in the Inpatient and Outpatient Deaf Unit at Rockland
Psychiatric Center for nearly nine years.
Ms. Applegate holds two masters degrees from Columbia University (social
work and public health) and a bachelorıs degree in sociology from Columbia
University. She is a resident of Framingham, where her daughter Louise
(age 9), also Deaf, is a student at The Learning Center for Deaf Children.
Sharon L. Applegate is an exceptionally versatile, multi-disciplined
and accomplished executive with almost 20 years of increasingly responsible
positions in agencies serving Deaf and Deaf-Blind populations. Highly
regarded by her peers, she is deeply involved in her profession and a
major contributor to the civic life of the Deaf community.
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Board of Directors
President
Rickey Tom
Fidelity Investments
Vice President
Karen Schwartzman
Polaris Public Relations
Secretary
George Balsley, AIA
Kuhn Riddle Architects
Treasurer
Thomas Keydel
Consultant
Board members
Michael Gardener, Esq.
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
Janice Hoffman
William Raveis Real Estate & Home Services
Diane Simon
Horace Mann School for the Deaf
Kevin Nolan, Jr.
Massachusetts Dept. of Education
Brian Pogorek
Renaissance Insurance Group
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