Cole, from South Carolina, is one of six siblings who grew up with their grandmother. He was the only Deaf person in his school, and had to overcome much adversity to become the first person in his family to go to college. He communicates totally by sign, but did well in school. He was a member of his high school baseball team, and was seen as a leader for that team. In addition, he has worked as a counselor in Leadership Training at Camp Wonder. He has also volunteered as a Unified Partner with the Special Olympics, and has helped many of the kids in that program.

Cole’s letters of recommendation talk about his trustworthiness, his leadership, his work ethic, and his ability to problem solve. Because of his success as a baseball player in high school, he will be playing in college for Gallaudet University. His goal after college is to become a teacher and a baseball coach. Cole’s scholarship was funded by an anonymous donor.