Robert Panara First-Day-of-Issue Stamp Dedication Ceremony at RIT/NTID

The First-Day-of-Issue dedication ceremony for the Robert Panara two-ounce Forever stamp took place on Tuesday, April 11, in Panara Theatre at Rochester Institute of Technology.
The U.S. Postal Service’s 16th stamp in the Distinguished Americans series honors Robert Panara (1920-2014), an influential teacher and a pioneer in the field of deaf studies. He inspired generations of students with his powerful use of American Sign Language to convey works of literature. In 1967, Panara helped found the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at RIT and became its first deaf faculty member. For the next 20 years, he taught English to both deaf and hearing students at NTID.
Panara is the fifth person with ties to Rochester, N.Y. to appear on a U.S. postage stamp, joining Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, George Eastman and Chester Carlson.