Formerly the Louisville Deaf Oral School, Heuser Hearing & Language Academy (HHLA) was established in 1948 through a joint sponsorship between the Women’s Club of Louisville and the Kiwanis Club of Louisville. It was a humble beginning with three children in the basement room of the Women’s Club. At that time, Miss Barbara Daugherty, Miss Alice Clark and Mrs. Ruth Browning were the only teachers who each volunteered to instruct learners on Saturday mornings. By the close of the first school year, 11 children had enrolled. The Louisville Deaf Oral School was the first school of its kind in the state of Kentucky. Today, HHLA remains one of the few schools that strongly supports a communication-focused approach to learning