Adelaide Watson
Dr. Adelaide Watson is an Assistant Professor of Deaf Education. Dr. Addie is a three-time Converse graduate, earning all her post-secondary degrees at Converse. She graduated with her B.A. in Special Education: Deaf and Hard of Hearing in 2013, her M.Ed. in Elementary School Administration and Supervision in 2017, and her Ed.D. in Professional Leadership in 2022. Her passion for the education of Deaf students, the value of the Deaf community, and the importance of the residential setting created the foundation for her doctoral dissertation, “Preserving the Residential School: The Influence of Relationships, Marketing, and Academic Programs When Addressing the Decrease in Student Enrollment at Residential Schools for the Deaf.”
Before her position at Converse, Dr. Addie spent her entire professional career teaching Deaf and hard-of-hearing students and being an active ally in the Deaf community. For one year shy of a decade, she worked as a classroom teacher at South Carolina School for the Deaf and Blind’s Cedar Springs Academy. She taught preschool, elementary, middle, and high school-aged Deaf+ students. She also has experience teaching and working with typical Deaf students. She was active in her school’s Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports (PBIS) committee, the leader of several professional learning committees and school events, and the 2019 Teacher of the Year.
Dr. Addie has spent time abroad in Africa at the Liberia School for the Deaf, teaching students and providing instructional strategies, support, and training for the school’s teachers. While in Africa, she led community American Sign Language (ASL) classes and interpreted church services for the Deaf community.
Dr. Addie also privately teaches English to school-aged and adult students in Asia, Europe, and Canada. She worked with a company for three years as an English-language teacher before starting her private tutoring service.
When not working, Dr. Addie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, her two four-legged children, painting at Hearts of Clay, and dancing it out to Beyoncé and BTS.