RIT/NTID Diversity Spotlight
[ID: The background image is black, green, yellow, and red. A smiling Black man has short black hair and wears rectangular glasses, an orange polo shirt, a grey sweater, and a white lanyard around his neck. The Diversity & Inclusion logo is in the top left corner. Text in white reads: Black Heritage Month Spotlight. John “JT” Reid.]
JT Reid
Admissions Counselor
NTID Admissions
John T. (JT) Reid is an Admissions Counselor in NTID Admissions.
What is your nationality/how do you identify?
I am African-American.
What or who has been your biggest cultural influence?
My parents were the main influence of my upbringing especially in black deaf culture which was hardly recognized during my childhood and college years. I was also influenced by a few white professors who were my deaf role models. Eventually, black deaf professionals/leaders as well as famed black leaders, celebrities and professional athletes came in the picture and influenced my adulthood.
What is your favorite cultural dish?
I have various favorite dishes such as seafood, sushi, spinach salad, spaghetti, sloppy joe, collard green, pad Thai, other ethnic foods.
What would you like people to know about your culture?
My culture is tied to the ancestors from Africa. In this country African Americans have gone through hundreds of years preserving their cultures. We simply request others to recognize and respect us as equal human beings. We are black and proud.
Do you have any resources to share for someone who would like to learn more about your culture?
“My vanishing Country” by Bakari Sellers, “Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon To White America” by Michael Eric Dyson.
What is a fun fact about yourself?
First Deaf Inductee of RIT Sports Hall of Fame.