[June 5, 2026 at 12:00 PM Eastern Time] – Austin, TX — Few appointments carry this much weight. Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD) is honored to welcome Karen Peltz Strauss to its Board of Directors. Her appointment opens new doors for CSD as the organization pushes forward for more access, opportunity, and communication equality, with Karen bringing exactly the experience and standing to take that work further. She is widely regarded as a legend in the telecommunications access community, having advocated for the rights of Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and DeafBlind Americans since the 1980s. 

“Karen Peltz Strauss brings something rare to CSD’s board. Decades of federal policy experience at the highest level, with proven knowledge of what it takes to turn access into law, and a warm, collaborative approach to serving our communities,” said Christopher Soukup, CEO of CSD. “Her work and ours have always pointed in the same direction. We are very pleased to have her with us.” 

Karen has directly shaped some of the most important laws protecting communication access in the United States. She helped write the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, authored the federal mandates for closed captioning in the 1996 Amendments to the Communications Act and the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), and helped pass the Hearing Aid Compatibility Act of 1988. She is currently working on new federal legislation to update accessibility laws for video and communication technologies, the Communications, Video, and Technology Accessibility Act (CVTA). 

Karen has served twice at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), most recently as Deputy Bureau Chief, where she oversaw disability policy and supervised accessibility rules across digital, wireless, and broadcast communications. She helped establish the FCC's Disability Advisory Committee and helped create the National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program, which provides $10 million a year in free communications equipment to low-income DeafBlind people. 

Earlier in her career, Karen served as Legal Counsel at the National Association of the Deaf and as a supervising attorney at the National Center for Law and Deafness at Gallaudet University, where she provided legal assistance to Deaf and Hard of Hearing people on civil rights, healthcare, and consumer issues. As a legal consultant, she has worked with consumer groups, private companies, research institutes, and organizations across the country. She founded and led the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology, a coalition of nearly 300 organizations nationwide that helped pass the CVAA. 

She has testified before Congress on telecommunications access, captioning, and disability rights. She has spoken at conferences across the US, Europe, Australia, Latin America, and the United Nations in New York. Karen is the author of A New Civil Right: Telecommunications Equality for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans and co-author of Legal Rights: The Guide for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People. 

She has received the FCC Chairman's Award for Advancement in Accessibility, the National Access Award from the Hearing Loss Association of America, the 21st Century Accessibility and Civil Rights Champion Award from the Benton Foundation, and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Gallaudet University. Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing presents a public policy award in her name every two years. 

“I am extraordinarily honored and excited to join the CSD Board of Directors. Throughout my career, I have deeply admired CSD’s longstanding commitment to advancing telecommunications access and equality for people who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing. I look forward to collaborating with my fellow board members to build on CSD’s remarkable legacy and help shape its continued impact into the future,” said Karen Peltz Strauss. 

With Karen Peltz Strauss on the board, the next chapter for Deaf communication rights and access is in good hands. Her work has already changed the lives of millions, and now she brings that lifelong experience and impact to CSD. 

For more information about CSD and our leadership team, visit csd.org/about. 

About Communication Service for the Deaf CSD is the largest Deaf-led social impact organization in the world. Since 1975, CSD has been a leader in creating and providing accessible and innovative solutions for Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities. Today, CSD continues its work to create opportunities for personal and economic growth, specifically addressing leadership and employment. For more information, visit csd.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. 

For media inquiries, contact Maria Wilson: mwilson@csd.org