The University of Rochester is one of the few around the world that provide a comprehensive set of facilities and curriculum for the study of sign language. Special resources for the study of signed languages include the extensive research laboratories located on campus and the University is committed to support a quality program for the research and teaching of signed language. The current structure of the university lends excellent support for more advanced graduate studies in signed languages, with such interdisciplinary structures as the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, and the Center for the Language Sciences, as well as the Department of Linguistics and the Sign Language Research Center.  The Sign Language Research Center functions as a place of advanced study where students and faculty of the University of Rochester conduct research on a range of issues regarding the structure, processing and acquisition of sign language.

Some of the projects currently being undertaken in the various University research facilities are as follows: