September is International Month for the Deaf. Activists say this is not a celebration but a call for action, inclusion and respect for the Deaf community. Fatima Cele, Executive Director at Neema Foundation for the deaf and Sign Language Interpreter, Lebogang Madubane, spoke to eNCA’s Gareth Edwards.
The Rochester area is home to one of the largest per capita populations of deaf people in the country, according to the city’s website. However, a non-partisan group has raised concerns about the lack of access to essential services for many in the deaf community.
Students in Sacramento State’s Deaf Studies program now have a dedicated space to practice American Sign Language and collaborate with classmates.
The new ASL Lab offers space for students to hang out, network and build community. Its resources and services include tutoring in partnership with the University’s Peer and Academic Resource Center, an area for ASL Club meetings and other Deaf-centered events and study space.
The lab, located in Eureka Hall 301, officially celebrated its launch with an Open House on Deaf Awareness on Monday, Sept. 30. More than 100 members of the campus community, as well as a group of community college students, attended and learned about resources available to students and opportunities in the program.
Creating lab space for students to practice their signs and complete homework assignments, such as filming ASL videos, was a long-overdue and collaborative effort, said Associate Professor and Deaf Studies program Coordinator Leah Geer.
“This would mirror the resources that other language programs have in the World Languages program,” Geer said. “One way other ASL programs at other institutions and other language programs at Sac State supplement classroom time is with a language lab. In addition, students have long indicated the need for additional support.”
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