State commission recommends schools for deaf, blind remain open

Source Link – State commission recommends schools for deaf, blind remain open

The state’s Facilities Closure and Realignment Commission on Monday voted to keep open both the Kansas School for the Deaf and Kansas School for the Blind.

The commission voted to recommend to Gov. Mark Parkinson that the schools maintain separate operations, but work together to find cost-cutting measures within the two operations.

“I can sure hear the sighs already,” said KSD Superintendent Dr. Robert Maile. “I know this caused some anxiety in the community.”

Former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius created the commission to examine the possible closure or merger of several facilities around the state because of the weak economy.

“We were charged to look at whether there were savings there,” Rochelle Chronister, chairwoman of the commission, said about the possible closure or realignment of the schools. “If you don’t have the savings, then it doesn’t make sense.”

The 11-member committee did recommend that the schools look at combining some administrative duties and other cost-saving measures.

The commission is expected to issue a report on the schools and give its recommendation by Dec. 1 to Gov. Mark Parkinson. The commission also will make recommendations on other state facilities.

Commission members had discussed and studied the issue for months and heard testimony from opponents of the possible school closures or realignments.

The three options the commission studied included building two new schools on one campus; moving the School for the Blind onto the School for the Deaf’s larger campus in Olathe; and reducing costs and continuing the schools’ current operations.

Maile said he was not surprised by the decision given the information commission members received about the costs associated with building new schools or realigning the schools onto the same campus.

Maile said “we had a group of architects put a study together a few weeks ago and they came with a cost of about $25 to $26 million” to establish a new campus with two new school buildings.

It was almost as expensive to move the Kansas School for the Blind, which has a smaller campus, onto the current KSD campus in Olathe.

“When they were presented with that information and looked at the financial outlay over several years, the savings didn’t come any where near what it would cost to fix the current buildings and keep both operating the same,” Maile said.

Kansas has 650 children certified as deaf or hard of hearing. The School for the Deaf has 136 students in Olathe and serves 385 students statewide through various outreach programs. The school, which operates on a budget of $9.698 million for fiscal year 2010, has 17 acres, 12 for educational purposes and five acres for athletics. About 22,000 square feet is unused and available. There also are a couple of smaller buildings, built in the 1920s, that could be razed.

Kansas has 1,000 children who are vision impaired. Of those, 665 are legally blind and the remaining children have various degrees of visual impairment. The School for the Blind serves 70 students during the regular term and 50 students during its summer session on a budget of $6.52 million for fiscal year 2010.

The school is on 9.56 acres in Kansas City, Kan. The school has no available space. There is a three-story cottage that the school only uses the first floor, but the second and third stories are structurally unsound.

In 20 years with KSD, Maile said this is the fourth study the state as conducted on the possible closure or realignment of the schools. The Kansas Legislature ordered the previous three studies. This one, however, was some what different, he said.

For one, the governor formed the current commission during some difficult economic times. The commission also took a more in-depth look at the schools’ operations, finances and properties than had been done in previous studies.

“The results they’re coming out with are just same, though,” he said.

Maile said the two schools will get together in the coming months to discuss possible cost-saving ideas.

Some of those discussion items include having one superintendent for both schools, sharing administrative resources such as business and financial management, and other ideas that could save the schools money by combining resources.

Deaf wrestler subject of film shot in area

Source Link – Deaf wrestler subject of film shot in area

Matt Hamill was born deaf, so his grandfather signed him up for the elementary school wrestling team to raise his self-esteem and help him fit in the hearing world.

It worked. In fact, Hamill’s career has been so compelling that a production company was on the campus of Rochester Institute of Technology Tuesday filming scenes for a movie about his life.

Hamill, who grew up in Loveland, Ohio, won three NCAA Division III national wrestling championships as a student at RIT. Now he’s a professional fighter in the UFC — Ultimate Fighting Championship.

In 2004, while working as a bouncer at a bar in Utica, where he now lives, Hamill broke up a fight involving two very big Syracuse University football players. He manhandled the pair so efficiently that a legend grew around the incident and eventually reached UFC officials, who invited him to fight in the organization.

Hamill, 32, graduated from RIT/NTID in 1999 with a degree in electromechanical technology. At 6 feet, 1 inch tall and 205 pounds, Hamill has an 8-2-0 record as a UFC fighter.

Hamill hopes the movie will serve as an inspiration to other deaf people.

“I really just want to be equal with hearing people. When I grew up I felt like I never fit in with those people. I felt really isolated. I felt the only way to be successful was to be involved with sports,” he said.

Hamill is being portrayed by deaf actor Russell Harvard, who played the role of H.W. Plainview as an adult in the movie There Will be Blood.

“We wanted to keep it authentic for the deaf community,” said Eben Kostbar, who wrote the movie, titled Hamill, with Joseph McKelheer.

All deaf characters in the movie are played by deaf actors, Kostbar said.

Kostbar learned about Hamill and got the idea for the movie when Hamill was on season three of the reality show The Ultimate Fighter.

Filming started in the Rochester area on Sept. 15 and is expected to continue until mid-October at several locations.

Kostbar said the movie will be entered in the Toronto or Sundance film festivals and hopefully will be in theaters at the end of 2010.

Troy University gets $1.5 million for interpreters for the deaf

Source Link – Troy University gets $1.5 million for interpreters for the deaf

The Alabama Dual Party Relay Board will give Troy University $1.5 million over five years to fund its training program for interpreters for the deaf.

The program allows Troy students to get an bachelor’s degree in education for interpreters for the deaf. The university hopes to eventually establish a center on deafness at the Troy campus.

The program was started last year with a $250,000 grant from the Alabama Department of Education. State funding dried up when the recession hit, so the new funding was a lifesaver for the program.

“What you have done is to give second life,” Chancellor Jack Hawkins Jr. said. “Without your commitment this wouldn’t be possible.”

There are about 40,000 deaf people in Alabama and only 204 licensed interpreters. In 2012, all interpreters will need a four-year degree to obtain licensure.

“There is an acute need there, and this addresses the problem,” Hawkins said.

About 100 students are enrolled in the bachelor’s program for interpreters for the deaf, up from 25 the previous year. Lance Tatum, Troy University dean of education, said Troy would be able to deliver the program via distance education, allowing students at its satellite campuses around the world to enroll in the program.

Judy McLean, chairman of the Alabama Dual Party Relay Board, said Troy’s worldwide reach and its distance learning capabilities were what drew the board to partner with Troy. McLean said there’s a demand for interpreters for the deaf among companies, schools, government agencies and other organizations.

The Alabama Dual Party Relay Board was founded in 1986 to establish a way for the hearing impaired to receive telephone service. A surcharge of 15 cents per customer on Alabama landline phone bills funds the board.

Gilligan’s Place: Helping deaf & blind dogs

Source Link – Gilligan’s Place: Helping deaf & blind dogs

A local woman is trying to get help for the dogs that need it most.

Gilligan’s Place is a near 60-acre sanctuary for deaf and blind dogs. The owner is starting small – and hoping for big things in the future.

“If a deaf dog ends up in a pound, chances are they won’t be adopted as readily as another dog and oftentimes they’ll put them to sleep,” Jan MacCartney said.

Jan started Gilligan’s Place, located near Ridgeland, last year. She’s applying for non-profit status and hopes to one day foster deaf and blind dogs on her property.

“They’re very easy to train,” she said. “They’re really not much different than other dogs; expect that they can’t hear obviously. Deaf dogs are typically trained using American Sign Language combined with hand signals.”

Jan is also part of an online community that rescues deaf dogs. And, she says she can’t wait to have more pups running around her yard.

“They’re very worth-while having.”

If you decide to bring a deaf dog into your household, Jan says you have to make sure it suits your family.

If you’d like to help get Gilligan’s Place up-and-running, call Jan at 715-203-0076.

New $20 million school gives deaf pupils many pluses

Source Link – New $20 million school gives deaf pupils many pluses

The Maryland School for the Deaf in Frederick has opened a new building for its elementary school. The new $20 million building serves about 75 elementary-age pupils and also houses the school’s infant and toddlers program and many therapy programs. MSD Superintendent James Tucker says the building was specially designed with lots of natural light and walls and ceiling tiles made to be “acoustically friendly” to deaf and hard-of-hearing students and staffers. The hallways are extra wide to allow people to walk side-by-side and see each other as they sign. Morning announcements are made via video message boards in each room.

State may take the reins at Rhode Island School for the Deaf

Source Link – State may take the reins at Rhode Island School for the Deaf

The Rhode Island School for the Deaf may be taken over by the state, a situation prompted by poor test results, rocky management, a lack of technology and other issues at the facility. The state-funded school serves about 80 students ages 3 to 21. Only 10% of students tested proficient in reading, and none did in math. The state Board of Regents will vote this week on whether the state should take over the school until June 30, a move recommended by Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deborah A. Gist.

Deaf actor is a first for Bowie theater group

Source Link – Deaf actor is a first for Bowie theater group

While auditioning actors for the Bowie Theater Company’s latest production, director Estelle Miller was impressed by the enthusiasm of a deaf actor named Gary Small.

Miller was so impressed by Small, in fact, that she created a role for him in the company’s production of the Caroline Smith comedy “The Kitchen Witches,” which it will present this month.

“He was determined enough not just to come once but to come twice to auditions,” Miller said of Small, who is a senior at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt and a Bowie resident. “He is so sure of himself and so positive and so willing to learn … I’ll work with anyone who has an attitude like Gary.”

With that, Small became the first deaf actor to be cast in a Bowie Theater Company production.

His participation in the play has led to another first for the small community company — two of its five performances will be interpreted in their entirety for the deaf.

Cindy Garmoe, a friend of Small’s, has volunteered to handle the interpreting.

Having an interpreter hopefully will allow the company to reach a new audience, said Janice Coffey, its president.

“Hopefully, we will get the deaf community to come out to see this,” she added. “If it’s successful we may consider doing it in the future.”

Because the company is a nonprofit, it normally would not be able to afford to hire an interpreter — who charges fees of about $50 an hour — for its shows, Miller said. She added that she has never seen sign language interpretation done in a community theater production.

Small said he loves the idea that the deaf will be able to attend the play.

He became involved in theater at Eleanor Roosevelt last year when he helped in the production of Dean Pitchford’s “Footloose.” He thought it would be fun to express himself on stage, he said, adding that he hopes to pursue theater as a profession.

He has been inducted into Roosevelt’s Thespian Honor Society, is a member of the school’s improvisational comedy team and is the assistant scenic artist in the school’s production of Neil Simon’s “Rumors” this year.

He attended the Bowie Theater Company’s auditions for “The Kitchen Witches” as a way to become more involved in theater.

The play chronicles the fallout between two rival cable-access cooking show hosts who get stuck working together on a new show. Small’s role as a television cameraman keeps him onstage for a good portion of the play, but he has no speaking parts.

To assist Small in following his cues, Miller incorporated hand gestures into the other actors’ parts.

Garmoe said she’s worked as an interpreter with Small for five years.

A nearly two-hour-long production such as “The Kitchen Witches” normally would require two interpreters, but Garmoe has had no luck finding another interpreter to assist her, she said, adding that signing the play alone means she will have to memorize the entire script.

“Having deaf people be involved in things like this is a positive thing in the community,” she said. “There are a lot of things they have access to, but if I can help more I’d like to be able to.”

Sign language interpretations will be offered for “The Kitchen Witches” at the 8 p.m. performances on Saturday and Oct. 9 at the Bowie Playhouse, which is located at 6314 Crain Highway in Bowie.

Other performances will take place at 8 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Sunday and 8 p.m. Oct. 10. For more information, call 301-809-3078.

New California Association Of The Deaf Bylaws Seeks To Purge Out The Oralists, The Cochlear Implantees, Etc…

New California Association Of The Deaf Bylaws Seeks To Purge Out The Oralists, The Cochlear Implantees, Etc…

This issue is expected to dominate the deaf blogging/vlogging sphere the next few days.

First of all, the new California Association Of The Deaf bylaws term, “Deafhood“, has been placed four times in the bylaws. Here is three;

Section 2.1 PURPOSE
The mission of the California Association of the Deaf is to protect the civil rights of the movement (empowerment) of Deafhood and promote the social, (American Sign Language), cultural, health, educational and economic well being of the Deaf (Californians) Community in the state of California.

Section 4.1 MEMBERSHIP
The Association shall be open to all subgroups of the Deafhood individuals without discrimination on the basis of race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, religion, ethnic origin, or disability.

Section 25.3
Nominations for office shall be those who are part of the Deafhood, a California resident and be active Association member for at least two years.

NOW,

The bottom line since there’s no clear definition of “deafhood” is that you cant be part of California Association of Deaf (CAD) unless you’re deaf enough!

Here are some video blog activities;

Deafhood in CAD Bylaws?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz0LfrCy_h4

California Association of Deaf (CAD) Bylaws Are So Screwed (subtitled)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt1ImU7T2BQ

This is California Association of Deaf, not, California Association of Deafhood

I dont think the IRS would be very thrilled to see this development should someone be encouraged to report it to them.

This is going to be a very hot issue this coming weekend.

Richard Roehm
Deaf American Blog Master

Read my lips: Hearing-impaired girl accidentally starts fight, cops say

Source Link – Read my lips: Hearing-impaired girl accidentally starts fight, cops say

In Mesa, Ariz., a woman allegedly got angry because a little girl kept staring at her. The girl, age 10, is hearing impaired and was trying to read the woman’s lips, her mother explained. That didn’t stop the suspect from attacking Mom and knocking over a stroller with a 1-year-old aboard, police say.

Snip:

“She told me that my daughter was not hearing impaired. She said she doesn’t look hearing impaired to me,” Goodson said.

Hearing impaired girl wins legal battle against GTU

Source Link – Hearing impaired girl wins legal battle against GTU

A 17-year-old girl with hearing impairment, Rachna Shah, heaved a sigh of relief when she was allowed to take her diploma exams on
Friday after a prolonged legal battle for justice. The Gujarat Technological University (GTU) had to permit her to appear for the test after a Gujarat High Court order in her favour on Thursday. The decision came after irregularities were detected in the evaluation of her answer sheets of remedial tests.

Rachna’s fight against the university and education system was not only for herself, but for all those physically challenged students who are discriminated against by state’s education authorities. After clearing the boards last year, Rachna enrolled in a diploma course in electronics and communication. Just before she was to take her second semester exams, GTU changed the medium of study to English. Rachna had all along studied in Gujarati medium.

To her shock, she was declared failed in all six subjects. The university provided remedial tests for three subjects, but she was passed in one subject only. She appeared in the mid semester test and secured 67.7 per cent, but was not allowed to attend classes from April this year because she did not clear all the papers in the remedial tests.

She sensed some problem either in calculation of marks or in evaluation of her answer sheets. Rachna requested the authorities to show her answer sheets, which they refused. Ultimately, she approached the officer appointed under the RTI Act, but was shown her copies from a distance only and that too only the first page of the answer book.

She approached the Gujarat High Court demanding transparency in evaluation system, to fix 20 per cent criteria as passing score for disabled students, and to allow her to sit in the third semester. But the judge refused to entertain her application. Ultimately, a division bench of Chief Justice KS Radhakrishnan and Justice Akil Kureshi heard her case. The judges were furious over the university’s attitude towards this physically challenged student.

On court’s instructions, the university showed answer sheets to Rachna, a team of subject experts re-assessed the copies, upgraded her marks in two subjects and reduced marks in three papers. A 10-member committee was also set up to inquire against the evaluators, who checked Rachna’s answer sheets first. A show-cause notice was issued to evaluators asking them why they should not be debarred on counts of negligence and insincerity.

The court’s order has not only smoothened things for Rachna alone, but will force GTU to make appropriate changes in its policy towards physically challenged students.