Community Encouraged to Explore VSU’s Deaf, Deaf World March 11

VALDOSTA — The American Sign Language Club at Valdosta State University will present Deaf, Deaf World: Through Their Eyes from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, March 11, in Student Union Ballrooms B-C. Admission is free of charge and open to the public. 

Deaf, Deaf World: Through Their Eyes attendees will have an opportunity to discover “how Deaf people have molded the past and continue to impact the future,” shared Kelly Spell, staff interpreter with VSU’s Access Office and ASL Club advisor. The event has been described as a living historical timeline, and “each stop in history will highlight a person from the Deaf community and how their life has influenced our history.”

Attendees will also have an opportunity to play some games, learn some sign language, and get to know some Deaf individuals from VSU and the surrounding community during special 30-minute panel sessions at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. 

VSU is a destination of choice for students across the United States interested in pursuing careers in American Sign Language/English interpreting. It is the only college in Georgia and one of very few in the nation to offer a Bachelor of Science in Education in the subject matter, and graduates are in high demand due to a critical shortage of American Sign Language interpreters.

VSU’s Department of Initial Teacher Preparation Services also offers a Bachelor of Science in Education, a Master of Education, and a Master of Arts in Teaching in Special Education: Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education, as well as a Minor in Deaf Studies. 

Contact Kelly Spell at kmspell@valdosta.edu to learn more.

On the Web:
https://www.valdosta.edu/colleges/education/initial-teacher-preparation-service/

Editor’s Note: “‘Deaf’ and ‘deaf’ are two different words in Deaf culture. [Capital] ‘D’ Deaf is the culture/community of the group of people that consider their diagnosis not a disability. They are very proud of the way they are. Not capitalizing the ‘D’ in Deaf would be considered disrespectful to members of the Deaf community. [Lowercase] ‘d’ deaf is the diagnosis that medical personnel have given to the disability. If a person misuses these two terms, it could be the difference in offending someone and calling them disabled rather than actually respecting their culture.”