Department of Education

NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

Fiscal Year 2020 Budget Request

CONTENTS

Page

Appropriations Language ........................................................................................................ K-1

Analysis of Language Provisions and Changes.......................................................................K-2

Appropriation, Adjustments, and Transfers .............................................................................K-3

Authorizing Legislation............................................................................................................K-4

Appropriations History.............................................................................................................K-5

Activity:

National Technical Institute for the Deaf............................................................................ K-6
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Appropriations Language

For the National Technical Institute for the Deaf under titles I and II of the Education of the 

Deaf Act of 1986, [$77,500,000] $70,016,000: Provided, That from the total amount available, 

the Institute may at its discretion use funds for the endowment program as authorized under 

section 207 of such Act.

1

(Department of Education Appropriations Act, 2019.)

NOTES

Each language provision that is followed by a footnote reference is explained in the Analysis of Language 

Provisions and Changes document that follows the appropriation language.
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Analysis of Language Provisions and Changes

Language Provision Explanation

1...Provided, That from the total amount 

available, the Institute may at its discretion 

use funds for the endowment program as 

authorized under section 207 of such Act.

This language provides authority for the 

Institute to use funds from the general 

appropriation for the Endowment Grant 

program.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Appropriation, Adjustments, and Transfers

(dollars in thousands)

Appropriation/Adjustments/Transfers 2018 2019 2020

Discretionary:

Discretionar y budget authority: Appropriation ...........................................................$73,000 $77,500 $70,016

Discretionar y budget authority: Total, discretionary appropriation......................... 73,000 77,500 70,016
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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K-4

Authorizing Legislation

(dollars in thousands)

Activity

2019

Authorized

Footnote 2019

Estimate

Footnote

2020

Authorized

Footnote

2020

Request

Operations (EDA l-B).......................................................... ............. 0

1

$77,500 To be determined1 $70,016

Construction (EDA l-112).................................................................. 0

1

0 To be determined1 0

Endowment (EDA II-207)............................................................... 0

1 

(2) To be determined1

 

(2) 

Total appropriation............................................................................... 77,500 70,016

Portion of the request subject to reauthorization ........... 70,016

1

The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2015. Reauthorizing legislation is sought for fiscal year 2020.

2

Funding for the Endowment Grant program is provided together with funding for operations through a single appropriations amount. Appropriations language is 

included to authorize NTID, at its discretion, to use funds for the Endowment Grant program from the total amount available.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Appropriations History 

(dollars in thousands)

Year

Budget

Estimate

to Congress

House 

Allowance footnote

Senate 

Allowance

footnote

Appropriation

2011 $64,677 $68,4371$64,6772$65,5463

2012 65,037 65,546465,546465,422

2013 65,037 65,422565,422562,000

2014 65,422 N/A666,422 66,291

2015 66,291 N/A666,291767,016

2016 67,016 68,016869,016870,016

2017 70,016 70,016970,016970,016

2018 69,540 70,01610 70,01610 73,00010

2019 70,016 75,00011 76,50011 77,50011

2020 70,016

1

The level for the House allowance reflects the House-passed full-year continuing resolution.

2

The level for the Senate allowance reflects Committee action only.

3

The level for appropriation reflects the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 

(P.L. 112-10).

4

The level for the House allowance reflects an introduced bill and the level for the Senate allowance reflects Senate 

Committee action only.

5

The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect action on the regular annual 2013 appropriations bill, which 

proceeded in the 112th Congress only through the House Subcommittee and the Senate Committee.

6

The House allowance is shown as N/A because there was no Subcommittee action.

7

The level for the Senate allowance reflects Senate Subcommittee action only.

8

The levels for House and Senate allowances reflect action on the regular annual 2016 appropriations bill, which 

proceeded in the 114th Congress only through the House Committee and Senate Committee.

9

The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect Committee action on the regular annual 2017 

appropriations bill.

10 The level for the House allowance reflects floor action on the Omnibus appropriations bill; the Senate allowance 

reflects Committee action on the regular annual 2018 appropriations bill; the Appropriation reflects the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-141).

11 The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect Committee action on the regular annual 2019 

appropriations bill; the Appropriation reflects enactment of the Department of Defense and Labor, Health and Human 

Services, and Education Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L. 115-245).

_____________________________________________________________________________________________
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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National Technical Institute for the Deaf

(Education of the Deaf Act, Title I, Part B and Section 207)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2020 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget authority: 

2019 2020 Change

$77,500 $70,016 -$7,484

1

The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2015; reauthorizing legislation is sought for fiscal year 2020.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Congress created the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in 1965 to promote the 

employment of persons who are deaf by providing technical and professional education. The

Department of Education is authorized to maintain an agreement with a host institution for the 

operation of a residential facility for postsecondary technical training and education for 

individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, and to provide a Federal subsidy to the National 

Technical Institute for the Deaf to provide postsecondary educational opportunities.

The Department maintains a contract with the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in 

Rochester, New York, for the operation of NTID. NTID is one of nine colleges of RIT. The 

purpose of the relationship with the host institution is to provide NTID students access to more 

facilities, institutional services, and career preparation options than could be otherwise provided 

solely by a national technical institute for the deaf. RIT provides NTID students with options for 

courses of study from its eight other colleges, along with health and counseling services, library, 

physical education, and recreation facilities, and general services such as food, maintenance, 

grounds, and security.

Academics: NTID offers a variety of technical programs at the sub-baccalaureate degree level, 

including certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees. Students enrolled at NTID can earn 

associate degrees in 21 accredited programs. Qualified students can also earn baccalaureaute, 

master’s, or doctoral degrees in approximately 200 programs offered by RIT’s other colleges in 

subjects areas including: Art and Design, Business, Computing and Information Sciences,

Engineering, Health Sciences and Technology, Liberal Arts, and Science. NTID offers a 

Bachelor of Science ASL-English Interpretation degree program to prepare sign-language 

interpreters for work in settings where deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing people interact and 

communicate. In addition, NTID administers a Master of Science program in Secondary 

Education to prepare students to help meet the national need for qualified deaf, hard-of-hearing, 

and hearing teachers and leaders in the field of deaf education as well as a Master of Science in 

Health Care Interpretation to meet the demand for specialized sign-language interpreters in 

health care settings.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Students with hearing loss who enroll in NTID programs are provided a wide range of support 

services and programs to help them prepare for careers, including tutoring, remedial and 

language enrichment programs, counseling, notetaking, interpreting, mentoring, specialized 

educational media, cooperative work experiences, and specialized job placement.

NTID conducts research designed to enhance the lives of deaf and hard-of-hearing people. 

Research and scholarship are organized into centers focusing on four strategic areas: teaching 

and learning, communication, technology, access and support services, and employment and 

adaptability to social changes and the global workplace. NTID also conducts training workshops 

and seminars nationwide for professionals who employ, work with, teach, interpret for, or 

otherwise serve persons who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Endowment Grant Program: The Federal Endowment Grant program is designed to assist in 

building NTID’s financial capacity and reducing the need for Federal funds by providing 

matching grant funds that serve as an incentive for private contributions. NTID has the 

discretion to determine the amount of funds it wants the Department to provide from the annual 

appropriation as matching funds, capped by the amount contributed to the fund from 

non-Federal sources. The Education of the Deaf Act (EDA) allows NTID to withdraw or expend

up to 50 percent of the income of the fund; the other 50 percent must be reinvested in the 

corpus. As of September 30, 2018, the market value of the Federal Endowment Grant program 

at NTID, including Federal, private, and reinvested funds, was $64.1 million.

Other Revenue: In addition to the Federal appropriation, NTID receives revenue from tuition and 

fees, private giving, grants, and contracts. In fiscal year 2018, NTID reported approximately 

$26.3 million in other revenue from tuition ($18.1 million), room and board ($7.2 million), as well 

as $249 thousand from student activity fees and $800 thousand from other sources, such as 

interpreting and captioning services provided to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and 

programs outside of RIT, the NTID Hearing Aid Shop, and fees from grant programs renting 

space. This represents a decrease of approximately $0.9 million in revenue from the $27.2

million NTID received from these sources for fiscal year 2017.

NTID also receives significant revenue from competitive grants and contracts awarded by the 

Federal and New York State governments. In fiscal year 2018, NTID received nearly 

$2.8 million in Federal and State grants and contracts, as well as $23,000 in private grants and 

contracts.

Regional Partnership: NITD established a partnership with the Alabama Institute for the Deaf 

and Blind in fiscal year 2016 to operate the NTID Southeast Regional Science, Technology, 

Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Center. The fiscal year 2019 appropriation provided 

NTID $5.5 million, an increase of $3.5 million, to expand the geographical reach of this 

partnership to improve access to postsecondary STEM education and employment for students 

in underserved areas who are deaf or hard of hearing.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2015.............................................................................. .... $67,016

2016................................................................................ .... 70,016

2017................................................................................ .... 70,016

2018................................................................................ .... 73,000

2019................................................................................ .... 77,500

FY 2020 BUDGET REQUEST

The Administration requests $70.0 million for the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID)

in fiscal year 2020, a decrease of $7.5 million from the fiscal year 2019 appropriation and the 

same as the fiscal year 2019 request. The request would provide substantial resources to NTID 

to help promote educational and employment opportunities for persons who are deaf or hard of 

hearing while also maintaining the fiscal discipline necessary to support the President’s goal of 

increasing support for national security and public safety without adding to the Federal budget 

deficit. 

The request would continue the policy of giving NTID discretion to determine the portion of 

appropriated funds used for the Endowment Grant program in 2020. The Department strongly 

supports the objectives of the Endowment Grant program—a permanent and increasing source 

of funds—and believes this program helps to promote NTID’s financial independence.

UNIVERSITY OPERATIONS DATA

(whole numbers)

Operations Data 2018 2019 2020

Undergraduate tuition (U.S. students) $15,730 $16,517 $17,161

Undergraduate tuition (International students) 31,4601,233,0341,234,3221,2

Graduate tuition (U.S. students) 17,375 19,190 19,938

Graduate tuition (International students) 34,750

2,3

38,3802,339,8762,3

Fees 560 577 594

Room 7,377 7,598 7,826

Board 5,498 5,663 5,833

NOTE: All data are provided by NTID.

1

Tuition rate increases are proposed by NTID annually. However, through an agreement with the Department, the 

increase may not exceed 10 percent in any given year.

2 Graduate students are charged a 10 percent surcharge above the tuition rate for undergraduate students.

3

A tuition surcharge for international students is required; the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 provides that 

NTID may develop a sliding scale model to reduce the surcharge, with different surcharge levels set depending on 

student need and whether the student’s country of origin is considered developed or developing.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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UNIVERSITY OPERATIONS DATA

(whole numbers)

Operations Data 2018 2019 2020

Enrollment (deaf students only – includes 

international students, excludes Master’s in 

Secondary Education program students):

Technical (Career Exploration Studies and 

Sub-Baccalaureate) deaf students onl y, incl udes inter national students

505 449 449

Professional Undergraduate deaf students onl y, incl udes i nternati onal students 520 506 506

Professional Graduate deaf students onl y, i ncludes inter national students 56 50 50

Total deaf studentsincludes inter national students 1,081 1,005 1,005

Degrees granted

Associate and certificate degrees granted 115 115 115

Baccalaureate and graduate degrees ranted granted 186 186 186

Total degrees granted 301 301 301

Co-op (work experience) placements 270 270 270

NTID faculty/student ratio1,2 1:7.7 1:7.7 1:7.7

NTID teaching faculty/student ratio2 1:9.1 1:9.1 1:9.1

NOTE: All data are provided by NTID.

1

Includes administrators and researchers who have faculty rank.

2

Faculty/student ratios do not include RIT faculty who teach the 42 percent of NTID’s students enrolled in RIT 

courses or RIT faculty teaching NTID students in pre-baccalaureate programs.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, GPRA 

goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of the 

progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based on 

the cumulative effect of the resources provided in previous years and those requested in fiscal 

year 2020 and future years, as well as the resources and efforts invested by those served by 

this program.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Goal: To provide deaf and hearing students in undergraduate programs and professional 

studies with state-of-the-art technical and professional education programs, undertake a 

program of applied research; share National Technical Institute for the Deaf expertise, 

and expand outside sources of revenue.

Objective: Maximize the number of students successfully completing a program of study.

Measure: The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking sub-baccalaureate and 

baccalaureate students who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous 

year and are enrolled in the current year.

Year

Sub-Baccalaureate 

Target

Sub-Baccalaureate 

Actual

Baccalaureate 

Target 

Baccalaureate 

Actual

2015 70% 75% 85% 93%

2016 70 70 86 83

2017 70 71 87 89

2018 75 90

2019 75 90

2020 75 90

Additional Information: Data for 2018 will be available in fall 2019. Comparisons with IPEDS 

data for 2-year public and private higher education institutions indicate that NTID's persistence 

rate of 71 percent for sub-baccalaureate students is higher than the rates for comparable 

institutions. Two-year public colleges and 2-year private colleges both have an average 

persistence rate of approximately 61 percent.

NTID's baccalaureate student persistence rate of 89 percent is also higher than those of other 

4-year public and private colleges. For example, IPEDS data show an average persistence rate 

of approximately 73 percent for 4-year public colleges and 81 percent for 4-year private 

colleges. The Department will consider adjusting targets for 2019 and beyond.

Measure: The percentage of first-time, full-time degree seeking sub-baccalaureate students and 

baccalaureate students who graduate within 150 percent of the program-based length of time. 

Year

Sub-Baccalaureate 

Target

Sub-Baccalaureate 

Actual 

Baccalaureate 

Target

Baccalaureate 

Actual

2015 37% 39% 64% 76%

2016 38 39 65 75

2017 39 37 65 66

2018 41 76

2019 41 76

2020 41 76

Additional Information: Data for 2018 will be available in fall 2019. An IPEDS analysis of 

public and private not-for-profit 2-year institutions indicated graduation rates of 24 percent and 

57 percent, respectively, for full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students within 150 

percent of normal time to completion. NTID’s sub-baccalaureate graduation rate of 37 percent

falls roughly halfway in between. IPEDS data indicate 4-year public colleges have an average 
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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graduation rate of 55 percent and 4-year private colleges have an average graduation rate of 64

percent. NTID has a higher baccalaureate graduation rate of 66 percent.

Measure: The percentages of graduates who are employed, in advanced education or training, 

or are neither employed nor enrolled in advanced education or training during their first year 

after graduation.

Year

Employed 

Target

Employed 

Actual

Advanced Ed 

Target

Advanced Ed 

Actual

Neither 

Target

Neither 

Actual

2015 50% 58% 45% 31% 5% 11%

2016 50 49 45 42 5 9

2017 50 53 45 42 5 5

2018 50 45 5

2019 50 45 5

2020 50 45 5

Additional Information: Data for 2018 will be available in fall 2019. Any graduate who was 

simultaneously employed and in advanced education or training was placed into the one 

category that best described their status.

Efficiency Measures

Objective: Improve the efficiency of operations at NTID as defined by the cost per successful 

student outcome, where the successful outcome is graduation.

Measure: Total Federal cost per NTID graduate.

Year Target Actual

2015 $218,030 $226,200

2016 222,827 191,200

2017 222,827 221,200

2018 222,827

2019 N/A

2020 N/A

Additional Information: Data for 2018 will be available in fall 2019. The Federal cost per 

graduate, as reported by NTID, includes graduates who receive sub-baccalaureate, 

baccalaureate, and master’s degrees. The measure is calculated by averaging the Federal 

appropriation for a particular year and the previous 5 years, and dividing the figure by the 

number of graduates for that school year. Federal student aid, vocational rehabilitation 

payments, other Federal support for students, Federal grants and contracts, the Federal 

Endowment Grant Program tuition, and other private funds received by NTID are not included in 

this calculation.

This measure focuses on graduates, because it is a key program outcome for NTID. However, 

the Department recognizes that the measure is flawed by its aggregation of degree types and 

assumption of a 6-year time-to-completion regardless of degree obtained. Consequently, the 

Department will reconsider this measure and targets for 2019 and beyond to account for 

disaggregation of data by program type.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

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Measure: Total educational cost per NTID graduate.

Year Target Actual

2015 $261,973 $277,100

2016 267,737 237,300

2017 267,737 272,800

2018 273,895

2019 N/A

2020 N/A

Additional Information: Data for 2018 will be available in fall 2019. The measure is calculated 

by averaging the total annual student expenditures for a particular year and the previous 5 

years, and dividing the figure by the number of graduates for that school year. Graduates 

include students receiving certificates, diplomas, associates degrees, baccalaureate degrees, 

and master’s degrees. The cost is composed of the total program budget excluding 

expenditures associated with research, public services, auxiliary enterprises, and construction. 

This measure looks at the total cost of educating a student at NTID as an indication of how 

efficiently the University operates. 

Both efficiency measures use existing cost data reported to the Department as part of NTID’s 

budget submission. The Department will continue its discussion with NTID about how best to 

use these measures as a basis for examining the cost per student, the subcomponents of the 

expenditures, and whether efficiencies can be achieved. The Department will use IPEDS data to 

look at cost components of similarly sized Carnegie Level IV institutions as a basis for 

comparison. 

The Department reached an agreement with NTID on a methodology that accounts for future 

inflation by using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) with the goal of limiting increases on the 

Federal cost per graduate and the total cost per graduate to less than those of the CPI. The 

Department maintained the 2016 target in 2017, but increased the 2018 target based on the 

CPI. As updated information becomes available regarding the projected inflation rate for the 

next fiscal year and outlying years, the targets will be adjusted accordingly. The Department 

plans to reconsider this measure and targets for 2019 and beyond to account for disaggregation 

of data by program type.