Deaf student says University didn't provide interpreter

A visiting student researcher from Canada says UC Berkeley didn't provide her an interpreter until she was near the end of her time at the school, which left her sitting "in a classroom trying to read lips." KTVU-TV spoke with Nancy Barker and has a video report.

Deaf Girl Assaulted for using Sign Language

A search is underway for a woman who police say attached a deaf girl because she used sign language. Read more in the Manchester Evening News here.

Parents Accused of Murdering Deaf Son

Did a New York couple kill their deaf son and then set their house on fire to cover it up? That's what Guilford, New York prosecutors think happened. They've charged Ernest F. Franklin II and Heather Franklin with murdering their 16-year-old adopted son. Here's more from TIME.

Hearing Aids Given to deaf Syrian children

A team of audiologists from the Chicago-based "Deaf Planet Soul” charity are on a two-week mission to help deaf Syrian children in clinics around Lebanon. A spokesman tells the Associated Press, "When people think of refugees, they think of cut-off limbs and brain injuries, and all these visible things. They don’t think about the invisible results of war. They don’t think that this kid who can’t hear really needs help.” Read the full story here.

Bot helps perform Cochlear-Implant Surgery

Robots "have successfully performed a tricky, delicate operation that helped implant a hearing device into a deaf woman's ear," reports Live Science. Researchers at the University of Bern in Switzerland said, ""When discussing much-needed surgical innovations for use in ear, nose and throat procedures, our surgeon colleagues would repeatedly mention that gaining access to the inner ear in a minimally invasive manner was a major hurdle that had not been resolved. This spurred us on." Here is a video with more, but there are no captions, but you can read more here.

Postage Stamp for Deaf Educator

image from USPS

The U.S. Postal Service will honor "an influential teacher and a pioneer in the field of Deaf Studies" with a new stamp. Robert Panara died in 2014 but his influence goes on,  When his stamp comes out on April 10, it will be the 16th stamp in the Distinguished Americans series. For 40 years, Panara showed students the power of sign language. He taught at both Gallaudet University in Washington, DC and at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf in New York state.  In fact, he helped found the NTID, serving as the institution's first deaf faculty member.

New Deaf Studies Degree

The state of Nevada is getting its first bachelor’s degree in deaf studies. It will be offered by Nevada State College in Henderson. The school already had a deaf studies minor. "Now, students will be able to take a deeper dive into the subject’s cultural context," reports The Las Vegas Review-Journal.

MD Deaf man Sexually Assaulted

Image from
 Wicomico County Detention Center

A deaf man was sexually assaulted in Salisbury, Maryland this past Saturday "by a woman who carjacked and robbed him," according to Delmarva Now. Salisbury Police have charged Tina Marie Graham "with kidnapping, carjacking, first-degree sex offense, perverted practice, false imprisonment and other offenses." Read the full story here
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Woman Arrested for Attacking Deaf Girl

from New York State Police

We reported Wednesday about a New York woman wanted by the police for intentionally ramming a Walmart shopping cart into a deaf 10-year-old. Police have arrested Erica Walker and charged her with assailt. Walker is out on bail but due back in a Cortlandt, New York courtroom on Monday.

Skiing accident Left Woman Deaf But Her Passion Remains

image from agelesspassions.com

A woman who lost her hearing during a barefoot skiing accident is now, more than 20 years later, planning to ski barefoot in all 50 states. When Karen Putz first became deaf, she was in despair. But she went on to raise a family (including three deaf kids) and travel all over the U.S. playing in Deaf volleyball tournaments. Read about Karen's skiing goal in the Chicago Tribune and her backstory on her blog.

School would rather take videos down than caption them

image: brainchildvn on Flickr

Many of UC Berkeley's educational videos don't meet ADA requirements, according to the Department of Justice. In response, the California school says that rather than caption more than 20,000 course capture videos accessible to the public, it would rather just take them down in order to save money. A senior is quoted in the school's student newspaper as complaining that Berkeley "does not adequately support its disabled students." Read more in the Daily Cal here.

Woman wanted for Hurting Deaf Girl

image from NY State Police

Police in a little town just north of New York City are looking for a woman who rammed a deaf girl with her shopping car at a Walmart. It happened Saturday morning. Read more about it here.