ASL Tax Tip: Top Return Mistakes

ASL Tax Tip: Standard Deduction

Community Champion for the Deaf

Deaf by Quota International of Canton, Ohio is recognizing Emmett Boyd as its Community Champion for the Deaf. Ohio’s Stark County is also recognizing Boyd after 34 years of loyal service to the county. He has been deaf since birth and has worn a hearing aid since the first grade. He also serves as president of the Canton chapter of the Hearing Loss Association of America.

Washington State School Services

The Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss could soon be the new name of the Washington School for the Deaf. Some state lawmakers have pushed for closing both the School for the Deaf and the Washington State School for the Blind. But the state House unanimously passed a bill this week that would make the deaf school’s Vancouver campus the headquarters for deaf services for all 39 counties in the state. The residential facility connected with the school would continue without change. Current superintendent Rick Hauan would become the School for the director.

If the plan goes forward, the state will eventually have two districts in which deaf and hard-of-hearing students are served: One in Vancouver and one in Eastern Washington. Right now, there are services offered in Spokane, Pullman, Wenatchee and Seattle. Vancouver has an enrollment of more than 100 and nearly 170 are helped around the state through video. But there’s many more who are not reached this way. A study just a couple of years ago showed more than 80% of Washington’s 472 deaf students and 98% of 933 hard-of-hearing students were attending local schools.

March 13, 1988

On this day, 21 years ago the Deaf President Now movement succeeds. I King Jordan became the first deaf president of Gallaudet University. Also, Deaf History Month begins today and runs through April 15.

ASL Tax Tip: Direct Deposit

Hit & Run Victim Update

The family of Joan LeVasseur plans to remove her from life support. The 26-year-old deaf woman was hit by a car in Minneapolis this past Friday. The driver speed away from the scene without stopping. LeVasseur suffered a severe brain injury, multiple leg fractures and other injuries. Police in the Apple Valley area are looking for the person who caused the accident.

CODA Author Interviews

This NPR link takes you to a half-hour interview with Myron Uhlberg who has written a new book called Hands of My Father. It's about his experiences as a CODA. He says one foot was "always being dragged back to the deaf world," the other "trying to stride forward... into the world destined to be own."

Mid-Atlantic Region Academic Bowl

The Mid-Atlantic Region competition in the 2009 Gallaudet University Academic Bowl starts today at the the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, DC. The Northeast regional takes place March 26th at Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf in New York.

Teams are made up of five players. They answer questions in eight academic categories. There are five regional competitions.

The top three teams from each region get a free trip to the national championship along with one wild-card team selected from the five regional fourth-place teams. That takes place April 25-28 at Gallaudet University.

The Price of Disability Law

Stephen Dubner, writing on the New York Times website, decries the consequences of ADA law when it comes to doctors and their deaf patients.

The example he cites as outragious is the LA doctor who had to hire a sign language interpreter for a deaf patient. Dubner says only $58 of the $120 an hour fee (with a two-hour minimum) was reinbursed by the woman’s insurance company. That left the doctor paying more to see the patient than he was getting back for his services.

Dubner considers this outrageous and wrong. He argues that the patient ends up the loser - suggesting that she will get poor care because the doctor is likely to give the patient the runaround and pass over her. He goes on to tell readers that was wrong for a woman to take a New Jersey doctor to court for failing to provide an interpreter. The doctor was made to pay $400,000. Dubner considers this was a frivolous lawsuit.

What he leaves out of his article is the fact that the patient in this lawsuit (Irma Gerena) made repeated requests to rheumatologist Robert Fogari for an interpreter while he was treating her for lupus. The doctor refused to even meet with an interpreter so that he could have ADA law explained to him. Gerena eventually switched to another doctor who immediately changed her treatmen. There were side effects to Forgari’s regiment that were unclear because of the communication problems.

Dubner fails to address the communication problems that take place when writing notes in English is used with deaf patients and what can happen when family members serve as interpreters for deaf patients instead of doctors providing professional assistance. He also doesn't explain why those who speak other languages (like French or Spanish) should be afforded the opportunity for interpreters but not those who are deaf.

Deaf Firefighter

Adam Bondurant works for the North Santa Rosa County fire department in the Florida panhandle. Born deaf, Adam battled a rare medical condition that sent him to the hospital many times as a child. But when he was still young, he told his grandfather he’d become a firefighter when he grew up. And Adam has done just that. He received a cochlear implant at the age of eleven and never looked back.

Paramedic Disputes Police Account of Deaf Man's Arrest

The day Stephen Pyles woke up to find his home in the Baltimore suburbs ransacked and money and credit cards missing was also the day he was arrested for trying to explain to an police his frustration at the constant burglaries. Officer Louis Facciponti claims the 56-year-old deaf man punched him “suddenly and without warning”. But a paramedic who saw the whole thing says Pyles was only trying to get the officer's attention by putting a note to the officer’s chest that explained his frustration at feeling that his home was unsafe. He was upset that police had done nothing to stop people from repeatedly breaking into his home while he and his family sleep.

Pyles was wrestled to the ground and Facciponti refused family requests handcuff him in front so he could sign or write notes. Pyles wound up in the hospital after the confrontation because he had just undergone neck surgery and was reinjured during the scuffle. But the officer refused to let paramedics check put Pyles before hauling him off in the police car. Pyles was charged with second-degree assault and resisting arrest. But prosecutors now say they are dropping all the charges because the only non family witness confirmed the deaf man’s story and not the officer’s version of what happened.

Deaf Poker

There’s a new group in Australia bringing together poker and deaf people who like to play it. In association with Australian Poker League, Sokong Kim has founded Deaf Poker Australia. He's planning the first annual Australian Deaf Poker Championship in August. If enough money can be raised, the event a free event for interested players. All revenue raised will go directly into the prize pool after costs.

There is already a US National Deaf Poker Tour. The American group has an event planned for this weekend in Atlantic City at the Trump Taj Mahal.

The only significant difference between regular poker and deaf poker that the players have to provide documentation proving their hearing loss and the official language is the “official" language at the table.

Marlee Matlin Interview

An interview with actress Marlee Matlin by Connecticut's WTNH-TV.

Aerobics and Hearing Loss

Aerobics classes may help you lose weight but it also may lead to hearing loss. A Canterbury University researcher says he measured the hearing of participants before and after their classes and found the effects of the loud music could lead to permanent hearing loss. Details are in the Oticon Foundation's newsletter Soundscape.

Hit-and-Run

A deaf woman in Minneapolis is in a coma after being hit by a car who's driver left the scene of the accident. KMSP-TV has the story.

Amazing Race: Episode Four

Tonight's CBS show Amazing Race took the contestants to the cold of Siberia. Each team had to stack a large pile of wood. Many teams have their wood stacks fall over before they are able to complete them. But not deaf contestant Luke and his mother.

Luke and Margie actually complete their woodpile and decide to block the progress of Amanda and Kris by putting a U-turn in their path. That forces the dating couple to complete an extra task. The couple ends up getting eliminated as a result of falling so far behind the others.

In the next leg of the race, one team member must ride a bobsled down the hill in less than 4 minutes while keeping track of certain letters along the way. The letters are then used to make the name of a famous Russian playwright.

Luke had a hard time putting the name together. His mom felt his frustration but wasn't able to help him. Eventually, Luke unscrambles the correct word “Chekhov”. Luke and Margie complete the episode in 4th place.

Tax Prep Service

If you are trying to do your taxes and need a little communication help, there’s a new service to give you support. It’s called C.A.S.H. which stands for Creating Assets, Savings & Hope. Both the IRS and the National Disability Institute support the program. It’s available in nine locations located in five states. If all goes well, the effort will expand across the country. Here's a video about the program in New York.

Fire Damages Schools

The Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind in Tucson suffered serious fire damage Friday. Investigators blame the two alarm blaze on an unattended barbecue. The damage to a dormatory is estimated at $200,000. Most of the students had left for the weekend and no one was injured.

Flying High

Brent Redpath is realizing his dream to fly at the age of 20. Redpath hopes to soon become one of the nearly 200 deaf pilots around the country. He’s taking lessons at Oregon’s Independence State Airport. He uses a dry–erase board to communicate with his instructor before taking off and a clipboard is used during the flight along with hand signals.

Deaf Boy Saves Mom

The County Commission in Hancock, Ohio presented a six-year-old boy with a plaque and gifts for saving his mom’s life. Brennon Wright is deaf so he couldn’t hear the dispatcher when he called 911. His mother had fallen down the stairs unconscious. Brennon just kept saying, "My momma can't breathe!" When emergency workers arrived, they found Brennon cradling his mother’s head.

Terps at San Antonio College

The student newspaper at San Antonio College files this article about the interpreting program at the Texas college.

Budget Cuts Hit Deaf-Blind

Small budget cut could impact deaf-blind community. KING-TV in Seattle has more.

Hospital Under Scrutiny

Medicare officials are investigating a Los Angeles psychiatric for – among other things – holding a deaf man without an interpreter for more than 80 days. Aurora Las Encinas Hospital had inexplicably cancelled a request for a sign language interpreter for the man and left him in isolation. The patient was not aware of his diagnosis or whey he was left there.

Sports Standout

A New Jersey girls basketball team has a standout player who’s deaf. Leslye Kang is also a member of the Mountain Lakes High School field hockey team. Her basketball coach considers the 16-year-old one of the best one-on-one defender on his team. And Kang scored the decisive goal in overtime to give her hockey team a victory in a first-round game.

Improving Lip Reading

Tactile aids have been around for decades, but MIT's Sensory Communication Group is looking to improve them by creating software that will offer cues to lip-readers. These tactile devices are designed to work with smart phones by translating sound waves into vibrations that can be felt by the skin. Users are able to distinguish between patterns associated with different sound frequencies like the nuances between saying “p” and “b”.

The idea for this project came from a communication method used with deaf-blind people where hands are held to the person’s face while they are talking. That allows the deaf-blind person to feel the vibrations on the face and neck.

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders is funding the MIT research.

TDD Request Denied.. Again

A south Mississippi County’s Board of Supervisors heard a plea for them to install TDDs in Pike County buildings including the county courthouse and sheriff’s department. A coach at the Louisiana School for the Deaf and the daughter of a pastor signed to the members that the equipment is needed. “I’ve been living here since 1985, and there’s nothing been done in this county,” she said tearfully, according to the Enterprise-Journal. Her father, McComb pastor Jerry Gressett was even more direct. He has been asking the board to take action for several years but the county does nothing for its deaf residents. “I’m fed up with this county. I’m disgusted. As long as I can breathe I’m going to fight, and I’m not going to stop.” The board did not provide an interpreter for the coach or Gressett’s daughter.

Amazing Race: Episode Three

Episode three of the CBS show Amazing Race took teams to Dracula’s homeland. One team member from each group was required to perform a series of moves at the gym where Olympian Nadia Comaneci once trained. Deaf contestant Luke Adams refused to wear the leotard, so his mom had to accomplish the task. Margie and Luke went on to quickly deliver a coffin(!) and figure out the secret to some locks. They finished in fourth place for the night. They’ve also become good friends with former cheerleaders Cara and Jaime.

Spotlight: Gallaudet Junior

"Gallaudet has opened a lot of doors for me and I realize that I really can do anything, and I get to do things I probably never would have done if I went to another university." Read more.

Puppy's Legs Broken

The puppy of an 11-year-old deaf girl had its front legs broken by a man in Oakland right in front of her. The man is Kem Eap and he’s been charged by Alameda County prosecutors with animal abuse. Police got an anonymous tip about what happened. They found the 4-month-old Pomeranian puppy named Chloe hiding under a TV in an apartment. Eap, who is deaf himself, reportedly broke one of the dog’s legs above the elbows and broke the other one the next day. Eap says he’s innocent and the dog injured itself weeks ago by jumping off a bed. The girl says she doesn’t understand why he injured the dog that she recieved as a Christmas present.

The Friends of the Oakland Animal Shelter is accepting donations to help the animal.

Scranton Protest

More than 150 people showed up for a rally at Pennsylvania’s Scranton State School for the Deaf this weekend. They are trying to rally community support to keep the school open. Governor Ed Rendell plans to cut funding for their school in the state’s next budget. About two dozen spoke to the crowd, including the city’s mayor and members of the city council in hopes that state legislators will hear their cry. The 129-year-old school was supposed to get more than $7 million for the next school year. It’s the only state-funded school of its kind in Pennsylvania.

Implants and the Elderly

Cochlear implant surgery is safe for elderly patients in good health. That’s the finding of
a new study by NYU's Langone Medical Center. The study’s author says elderly patients are often mistakenly considered too fragile for the procedure because of concerns over how well older people will react to general anesthesia. But the study finds they tolerate it well while undergoing cochlear implant surgery. Details are in the February issue of the journal The Laryngoscope.

Hands of My Father

Hands of My Father tells the story of growing up in a deaf household in1940’s Brooklyn.. Born during the Great Depression, both of Myron Uhlberg’s parents were deaf, so ASL was his first language. His memoir describes some of the painful insults and cruelty they faced but also the warmth his family shared. His parents had to hide their sign language and struggled to relate to the hearing world through their son. Uhlberg’s limited vocabulary wasn’t strong enough to sign a boxing match at the age of six, so he simply acted out the events in the ring as they were described by a radio announcer. He learned to laugh at himself and his family's situation. Uhlberg paints a vivid picture of his relationship with his dad. Here’s a quote:

"I was never able to get used to the initial look of incomprehension that bloomed on the stranger's face when my father failed to answer, and the way that look turned to shock at the sound of his harsh voice announcing his deafness, then metastasized into revulsion, at which point the stranger would turn and flee as if my father's deafness were a contagious disease. Even now, seventy long years in the future, the memory of the shame I sometimes felt as a child is as corrosive as battery acid in my veins, and bile rises unbidden in my throat… ‘Hearing people think I'm stupid. I am not stupid.’ My father's hands fell silent.”

Uhlberg has written several children's books including Dad, Jackie, and Me, which won a 2006 Patterson Prize. Here’s more about the book.

Students Win Drawing Contest

Fifth and sixth grade students from the Oklahoma School for the Deaf have won a national contest celebrating the 75th year of nationally syndicated comic strip Alley Oop. Out of nearly 400 submissions, the drawings of eight students from the school were selected for publication by Alley Oop creators, Jack and Carole Bender. You can see them here.

Hearing Loss & Eye Disorders

A large number of children who suffer from hearing loss, also have eye disorders. A study at the University of Washington shows this is the case for about 20% of these children. Details are in the Otolaryngology: Head & Neck Surgery.

Deaf Man Refused Interpreter in Court

A judge was wrong to refuse a deaf man his request to have a sign language interpreter in court. That’s the ruling of an appeals court in Wisconsin, overturning the ruling of judge Richard Nuss against Dean Kedinger of Waupun. He had fined Kedinger more than $23,000.

It all started when Kedinger’s neighbor sued him after Kedinger cut down trees along their property line. Kedinger countersued, saying he did have permission to cut the trees down. Kedinger asked the judge for an interpreter but was refused. Kedinger decided not to attend the hearing without one.

Here’s the remarkable comment from Judge Nuss as told in The Reporter:

"(Kedinger) walks into a store, buys a loaf of bread, puts gas in his car, pays his bills, engages in normal affairs of everyday life. He doesn't have an interpreter on his arm, and somehow he survives. But when it comes to a court proceeding, he all of the sudden needs an interpreter."

The appeals court said the judge’s action defined common sense and failed to provide Kedinger his right to due process.

CNN:Teaching Children Sign

Former Deaf School Employee Faces Charges

KTBC-TV in Austin reports on a former Texas School for the Deaf employee accused of having an improper relationship with a student.

Academic Bowl: Midwest Regional

The Midwest Regional competition in the 2009 Gallaudet University Academic Bowl starts today at the Wisconsin School for the Deaf

Teams are made up of five players. They answer questions in eight academic categories. There are five regional competitions.

The Mid-Atlantic Region takes place at the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, DC starting March 12. The Northeast regional takes place March 26th at Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf in New York.

The top three teams from each region get a free trip to the national championship along with one wild-card team selected from the five regional fourth-place teams. That takes place April 25-28 at Gallaudet University.

Scottish Composer's New Works

James Douglas is one of Scotland’s leading classical music composers. He’s also profoundly deaf. Douglas has written four new works that will be performed by the Scottish ensemble The Glorious Company a week from Friday in Wester Ross. Entitled the Return to the Highlands, the performance will feature work inspired by Douglas’s travels over the past decade.

Investment Scheme Rip-off

A Hawaii businessman faces charges that he swindled deaf investors out of millions. The Feds say Marvin Cooper, who is deaf himself, took investors money through Billion Coupons, Inc through a Ponzi scheme, using the funds for personal items like a million dollar home and electronic equipment. Cooper raised nearly four-and-a-half million from seminars and Web site with promises of large gains on the foreign exchange market. Most of his 125 investors are deaf. Cooper has not yet answered to the charges and his assests have been frozen.

Verdict in Plot to Attack School

They were accused of planning to kill faculty and students at the Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind. But two former students were found not guilty of the creating the supposed plot. Their attorney blamed the situation on a misunderstanding, saying one of the defendants was “overheard making a very inappropriate joke." Police found no weapons in their possession and little evidence turned up that they actually intended to attack the school. Both students are deaf.

Academic Bowl National Championship

The 2009 Gallaudet University Academic Bowl national championship starts today at the Washington DC School. Teams are made up of five players. They answer questions in eight academic categories.

School Merger Moves Forward

Oregon’s Education Board is throwing its weight behind an effort to put the state schools for the deaf and blind on the same campus. It’s the plan of State School Superintendent Susan Castillo. She wants both schools at the Oregon School for the Deaf. The facility has 52 acres. That would allow the sale of the School for the Blind’s 8 acres.

School Employee Gets Six Years

A Texas judge has sentenced Shane Flournoy to six years in prison. The former dorm supervisor pleaded guilty to having an improper relationship with a student at the Texas School for the Deaf. Flourney confessed to his pastor last year that he had sexually abused a male student. The school fired Flourney after his arrest. He faces other sexual assault charges in Houston.

Suspensions at Louisiana School

Two employees of Louisiana School for the Deaf are on paid leave. A state investigation is underway into accusations of inappropriate touching or physical contact between a teacher and students. The instructor and his supervisor may face criminal charges.

Amazing Race: Episode 2

Here’s an update on Margie and Luke Adams. Luke’s deaf and his mom has joined him on the CBS show The Amazing Race. They are in the running for one million dollars.

After the first episode, they were in first place! Luke told the audience he just wanted to show people what a deaf person can do.

Another team (siblings Tammy and Victor) say Luke is "very observant". All of the teams say Margie and Luke are a force to be reckoned with.

During the second episode, Luke gives Jaime (an former NFL cheerleader) which says "kick ass and don't get eliminated." Luke admits to the audience that he likes the redheads.

At point in the show, Margie and Luke decide to throw pies at each other over Luke’s objection. He says, "What can I do? She's my mom."

At the end of the second show, they find out they now in 4th place. A very respectable start.

Luke has been deaf since the age of two and communicates by sign language. The 22-year-old is the first deaf contestant on the CBS show. His mother, Marge, is 51-years-old and works as a clinical research associate.

The Brain and Hearing Loss

If you are getting older but hearing aids don’t help you, it may be more than just your ears that are giving you trouble. Changes in the brain may be partially to blame for hearing loss among seniors. Details of the new research will be presented today at the 2009 Midwinter Meeting of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology. The study links a part of the brain that relates word recognition with gradual hearing loss. The idea that the grey matter plays a role in hearing loss as we age is not new concept but this research helps push the ball forward.

Gally: Best Season in Years

Gallaudet University completed its basketball season with the a 77-62 loss to York. That leaves the Bison with a 11-14. Despite the losing record, its one of the best records for Gallaudet in years. More Details.

Arkansas Hearing Loss Bill

Arkansas lawmakers are considering a bill to help deaf children get the help they need before they get to school. Richard Carroll, a member of the Green Party, is sponsoring the bill to support SoundstARt. It would:

• Provide funding for a position for a person who would oversees the state’s screening programs and diagnostic centers.

• Fund the bank run by the Arkansas Children’s Hospital and the Arkansas School for the Deaf a Hearing Aid and Technology

• Set up a network of mentors to support parents of children with hearing loss.

Teaching Baby Sign

The Examiner (based out of Denver) has this story on teaching ASL to sign language.

Teen's Battle to Get to School

A family in Alaska has won a judgment against the Anchorage School District. A judge has ruled the school district must provide transportation for 13-year-old Katelyn Reese to get to her school. She is the only middle-school student needing a ride from the Mat-Su school district to her classes at the Alaska State School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Anchorage. The Anchorage district school refused to give her ride in 2007, saying the Mat-Su district or the state should pay the bill. Katelyn Reese has been deaf since the age of three. The Anchorage district plans an appeal.

Hawaii Connection to Amazing Race

Luke Adams once attended school at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind and lived in Oahu. His former teachers can’t believe he’s racing around the world for a millions dollars on the Amazing Race. Former teacher Ami Tsuji-Jones tells KGMB-TV, “He was scared of the dark, scared of roaches, scared of everything, so I can't imagine him being involved in the Amazing Race. I'm very excited to see how he's going to do on the show."Here’s a report from the station on Luke’s adventures as the first deaf man on the show.

Amazing Race Contestant

KCNC in Denver has this brief report on the first deaf man to compete on CBS' Amazing Race.

New Charge on Wireless Bills

Kentucky plans to add a surcharge to wireless phone bills to support telecommunications equipment for the deaf, hard of hearing and those with speech disabilities. There’s already two surcharges on landlines that go toward the effort. The PSC says there are some 650,000 people in the state who need the services. At the same time, many people are no longer using landlines, opting for wireless service exclusively. The charge will be about two cents a month for both landlines and wireless numbers.

Teen Gets Award for ASL Presentation

A Wisconsin teen is getting recognition for her help spreading American Sign Language. High School Senior Kyra Sommerfeld has been given Prudential Spirit of Community Award. She created a workshop for the Chippewa Falls police department about ASL and taught the officers some basic signs. Sommerfeld also created cards they could carry in their wallets for quick reference when they meet a deaf person. She’ll next share sign language with the city’s fire department and the EMS department.

Sommerfeld got the idea from working with deaf students. She’ll get a engraved bronze medal at a ceremony next month. Sommerfeld created a 27-page booklet of basic sign language that an officer might need to use.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is a nationwide program that honors young people for "outstanding acts of volunteerism." It’s sponsored by Prudential Financial and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

Academic Bowl

High school teams from around the country are gathering in regional competitions for a shot at attending the 2009 Gallaudet University Academic Bowl. Teams are made up of five players. They answer questions in eight academic categories.

There are five regional competitions. The West Regional took place this past weekend at the California School for the Deaf-Fremont and this Thursday 16 teams will gather in North Carolina for the Southeast Regional at the Eastern North Carolina School for the Deaf. The Midwest Regional starts February 26th at the Wisconsin School for the Deaf while the Mid-Atlantic Region takes place at the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, DC. Finally the Northeast regional takes place March 26th at Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf in New York.

The top three teams from each region get a free trip to the national championship along with one wild-card team selected from the five regional fourth-place teams. That takes place April 25-28 at Gallaudet University.

Lawmakers Fight Plans to Close Deaf School

Pennsylvania state lawmaker Ken Smith says he's ready to file a lawsuit if the Scranton State School for the Deaf is shut down. Smith met with state educations this past week and came away convinced there is no plan to accomodate students at the school. Governor Ed Rendell has proposed ccutting the entire $7.35 million budget earmarked for this school year. There is talk that one solution would be working with the nonprofit Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf to create a new school. In the meantime, state senator Robert Mellow plans to introduce an amendment to stop the school’s closing until legislators can review the situation. The unexpected news of the plan to close the school has upset students, parents and teachers at Scranton.

Deaf Team Leads Amazing Race!

A deaf man and his mother are in first place after this season’s premiere of The Amazing Race. The show features 11 teams, including Margie and Luke Adams from Denver, Colorado. When they arrived first at the end of the episode's leg, host Phil Keoghan signed to them "You're Team number one." For coming in first place, they won a trip for two to Puerto Vallarta. Luke told the audience he just wanted to show people what a deaf person can do. Luke has been deaf since the age of two and communicates by sign language. The 22-year-old is the first deaf contestant on the CBS show. His mother, Marge, is 51-years-old and works as a clinical research associate. Over the 12 episodes, the teams will travel more than 40,000 miles in 22 days to nine countries, including Switzerland, India and Russia. On the first show, they faced the challenge of making a bungee jump. In future episodes they'll have to deal with the cold of Siberia and the heat of India. MORE INFO

Protection in a Pill Coming?

There may be a way to protect against hearing damage from loud noises like concerts. A company called OtoMedicine, working scientists from the University of Michigan and the University of Florida say a combination of antioxidants appears to prevent damage in guinea pigs when given before exposure to loud noises. Researcher at Washington University got the same result in mice. The soup of nutrient supplements is a combination of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and E along with magnesium. The research is being presented this weekend at the 2009 Midwinter Meeting of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology.

Church Opens Counseling Center for Deaf

Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church is holding a grand opening this afternoon for its counseling services. Walk Ministries is opening new offices at First Baptist Nashville. The new program works with First Baptist Nashville’s counseling services and pastoral care ministry. The offices will be closer and more convenient for the deaf than the Brentwood location. The services are being lead by CODA Beryl Corey, a licensed master of social work

The Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church meets at the Inman Center. The facilities were built specifically to enhance the worship experience of the deaf. Seats have a direct sight line to the stage and are spaced further apart. Floor speakers allow deaf worshipers to feel the music. And anyone with a hearing aid can tie into the sound system.

Gesturing Linked to Better Grades

Babies who use more gestures wind up with larger vocabularies when they reach school age. That’s the finding of psychologists from the University of Chicago. The research suggests, but does not prove, a connection between parental gesturing and better grades. But the findings support the view that parent-child interaction matters just as much before the child begins to use words as after. Details are in the journal Science.

Wresting Winner

Gwen Haley is the winner of her district wrestling championship in just her second season. The 18-year-old was born deaf and relies on an interpreter to relay instructions from her coach during a match. She wrestles for Houston’s Cypress Ridge High School . The school has worked with at least four deaf wrestlers in the past.

Domestic Abuse

Captain Rita Baker of Tennessee’s domestic violence division tells WSMV-TV,

"From what I understand, (the number of deaf or hard of hearing victims of
abuse) could be as much as one in two women."

Baker says she recently realized that in all of her years with the domestic violence division, she never called in a sign language interpreter.

"That tells me not that we're lucky that there's no deaf people being abused,
but quite the opposite: that these people are not getting our services, and that
was a concern to me.”

Read more here or see a video

Implant Story on North Dakota TV

WMOT-TV in Minot, North Dakota has a video report on cochlear implants.

Children's Books in ASL

There are new versions of two classic children’s books designed especially for kids with hearing loss. Portland sign language interpreter Laurie Meyer couldn’t find books in ASL, so she decided to print her own. She started ASL Tales which offers The Princess and the Pea and Rapunzel. They come with an ASL DVD. Here's a peak.

When you’re in Rome..

The Deaf Baptist Fellowship in Rome, Georgia has been meeting at the Hollywood Baptist Church since it first began in 2003. Six deaf people joined pastor Mason Fenner on that first Sunday. The church began to grow and a youth service was added in 2005. The regular service now includes video and other visual aides. But there are no interpreters. The service is entirely done in sign language. The outreach is an effort of the Georgia Baptist Convention.

ASL Story Time

If you live in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania area, your children can enjoy American Sign Language Story Time at the Fredricksen Library in Camp Hill. The free volunteer-run program has several dozens adults and kids at each reading. Story times are scheduled for 10:30 am on these dates: February 21, March 7, 21, April 11, 25, May 9, 23.

Video Relay in Illinois Schools

Mainstreamed deaf students in Charleston, Illinois now have video relay service at their disposal. Sorenson’s VRS is now at Charleston High and Middle Schools as well as Jefferson Elementary School thanks to the Eastern Illinois Area Special Education Cooperative. The Cooperative serves eight counties.

McDonald's Robbery

Mesa, Arizona police are searching for two suspects who robbed a deaf man at a McDonald’s restaurant. He was getting out of his car when a woman approached him and tried to start a conversation. She grabbed the money out of his hand and ran, followed by a man. The victim was not injured.

Here’s the description police are giving out of the couple:

• white female with dirty blond hair and blue eyes, 5 feet 5 inches tall, between 35 and 45 years old, wearing a pink shirt.
• white male, between 25 and 30 years old, and was wearing light brown pants, a black shirt, and a black hat.

Church Bridges Gap

This article in Colorado's Craig Daily Press talks about services for the deaf at Calvary Baptist Church. Craig is a little town in the Northwest corner of the state.

Connecticut Teacher of the Year

A fifth-grade teacher at the American School Of The Deaf is Connecticut's Teacher Named Teacher Of Year. WFSB-TV has the story.

State Bill on Closed Captioning

Maryland lawmakers are considering a bill that would require captioning on all state and county political ads, or a transcript on the campaign website. It was introduced by State Senator Norman Stone, a Democrat from Baltimore. Its fate is in the hands of the Maryland Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee. The bill would require closed captioning on web political ads, cable political ads and require transcripts on the campaign website. It also requires website transcripts of radio ads. Three states – Minnesota, Florida and Rhode Island already have similar laws. One lawmaker on the other side of the isle is skeptical. Republican David Brinkley says no one has ever asked him to closed caption his TV ads.

Colorado Teacher of the Year

Susan Elliott of Highlands Ranch High School in Littleton is the 2009 Colorado Teacher of the Year. And she’s one of the four finalists for the 2009 National Teacher of the Year Award. The winner of that award will be honored by President Obama in April. Elliott is the school’s deaf and hard of hearing instructor. She also teaches English and social studies as well. Elliott suffered hearing loss at an early age and became profoundly deaf in her late teens.

Outrage over Proposed School Closing

WFMZ-TV has a video report on plans by the state of Pennsylvania to close the Scranton State School for the Deaf. (no captioning). Click here and then on Watch Video.

TV's Switch to Digital

Communication Service for the Deaf is opening a video phone call center and launching a Web site today designed to help the deaf and hard of hearing with the digital television transition. The FCC has given the CSD a grant of more than one million dollars in the effort. If you don’t have cable or satellite service, you’ll have to buy a converter box for your TV to keep picking up the stations. But there has been little information in sign language about the switch and how to access closed captioning. More info.

Court: Deaf Man's Right Not Violated

Even though Kendall Lee Kail cannot hear or speak the Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled he is not a "person disabled in communication" and not entitled to a sign language interpreter when police pulled him over in 2007.

The St. Paul man was charged with drunken driving. His case was dismissed by a district judge because officers violated his rights because they refused to provide him a interpreter. But prosecutors appealed. Now the state’s highest court says writing notes was enough and overruled the judge.

Videophones at Deaflympics

The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf has tapped Viable to provide videophones and communications equipment as well as video interpreting services at the next Deaflympics in Taipei, Taiwan from September 5-15. Some 4,000 athletes and officials and 10,000 fans are expected to attend. Viable is a deaf owned and operated company.

Deaf Fire Chief

He may be the first deaf fire chief in the country. Mark Kite has taken over leadership duties at the Yukon Volunteer Fire Department in South Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. That puts him in charge of 75-fire fighters. It’s a family tradition for the Kites. Mark’s grandfather, father, brother and even his son have all served the community in this way.

Mark Kite was born nearly deaf and while he uses a hearing aid today, Kite relies on sign language whenever he's talking with other deaf people. At night, Kite turns on a paging system that flashes and a unit that vibrates his bed to wake him if there is a fire alarm.

There are an estimated 50 profoundly deaf firefighters around the country.

Quest at Gallaudet

Gallaudet University will host shows and workshops from a group called Quest and it’s Wings Company next month. The visual theater company is made up of an ensemble of deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing performers using mime, movement, gesture, dance, and sign language. The group will also offer hands-on learning about theater and perform three plays: Mosaic, Alice and I Carry the Flag.

• Alice is a fanciful interpretation of Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland.
• Mosaic is a tale about the pressure to conform and the individual’s need for freedom.
• I Carry the Flag follows a young soldier’s journey into war.

For more info click here.

Stimulus Bill

The NAD explains how President Barack Obama's proposed Economic Stimulus Bill would affect the deaf and hard-of-hearing if it is passed by Congress.

Rock Concert for the Deaf

A rock concert for the deaf will take place in Toronto on March 5. It’s part of Ryerson University’s Alternative Sensory Information Displays (ASID) project. Among the artists scheduled to perform: The Dufraines, Fox Jaws and Hollywood Swank.

Those attending will be able to use what’s called the Emoti-Chair. Developed by a professor at the school, the Emoti-Chair captures sound frequencies and turns them into sensory stimuli. That way, the chairs vibrate and move right along with the music. Captioning and interpreters will be available at the concert as well.

Football Player in Action

In the post below, we told you about the Maryland School for the Deaf student who'll be playing for a Division 1 school next season. Here's a look at what Ryan Bonheyo looks like on the field.

Deaf Player Moves to Division I School

A star running back and linebacker for the Maryland School for the Deaf will soon get the chance to play for a Division I college. Ryan Bonheyo (pronounced bon-HEY-oh) will take the field Towson University this fall. The school is located just outside Baltimore. Yesterday the school formalized a full scholarship offer to him. Here's a link to an interview with Ryan's coach.

Emergency Alert System

Deaf Link has come up with system that sends out emergency alerts in American Sign Language which can be picked up through email, pagers, cell phones (if the device has text capability) and PDAs (with email capability). The company already provides video remote and pre-recorded interpreting systems for government officials to communicate with the deaf during emergencies. Now, the Accessible Hazard Alert System is available just for signing up online. Users simply provide an e-mail address, text pager address or information about other assistive capable devices, along with an physical address. Here is where you sign up.

PA School May Close

Pennsylvania’s Scranton State School for the Deaf may close by the end of the year. Governor Ed Rendell is proposing to cut the entire $8 million that typically goes to the state-owned from next year’s budget. The governor's plan is to have the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf to pick up the slack. The Scranton Times quotes the president of the board of trustees as saying the move is “like a bomb being dropped” because they were not expecting the change. Students have put up signs that say "Save Our School!"

Residential and day service for deaf students may still be provided but some legislators and education officials are working to keep the school open. The Scranton State School for the Deaf employs 75 faculty and staff members and more than 100 students attend the school that was first founded in 1880.

Child Gets Implant

Here's a report on a three-year-old’s experience with receiving a cochlear implant in Oregon.

Writing Contest

If you are a high school student with a hearing loss, you could win a $500 cash prize for your writing. It’s one of the items given away by the Explore Your Future program at RIT's National Technical Institute for the Deaf. Other prizes include a scholarship and travel expenses to the NTID. You must be in grade sophomore or junior to enter the 4th annual Rochester Institute of Technology SpiRIT Writing Contest. You have until March 15th to enter. That means coming up with a short story or poem, a writing sample and a personal reflection. Awards will be handed out this summer at RID.

Jaimie Sloan (Merkel, Texas) and Laruen Aggen (Algonquin, Illinois) won last year.

Click here for details.

Accommodation Effort in Ontario

In the next 3 years, Ontario wants all section of city government to make information available in ASL and other means of communication such as Braille. Candidates for municipal offices would also be required to provide campaign material in forms that are accessible to those with difficulty hearing or seeing. The price tag is about $3 million. The government is gathering comments on the plan. One part of the effort that is not clear, is whether interpreters will be required at city council meetings and public events like festivals.

Deaf Business Gets Major Client

Viable just picked up a big client. The Department of Commerce has selected Viable’s VPAD+ as the videophone of choice for its deaf and hard of hearing employees. The phone was also picked last week for the Department of Defense by the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Taskforce. The VPAD+ is a lightweight, standalone VOIP videophone with a touchscreen monitor. It works with both WiFi and Bluetooth. Viable is a deaf-owned and deaf-operated provider of video relay services (VRS) located in Rockville, Maryland.

'Swatting' Conspiracy

A new kind of telephone fraud is creating problems for police around the country. Fake callers are using the internet-based phone service intended for use by the deaf to call in bogus information to 911 operators. It’s called “swatting” because the caller will use the VoIP networks to make up a story about a murder inside a home. Heavily armed police SWAT teams will then show up at the house. And there’s no way for the operators to know the call is a fake. It’s a flaw in their computer systems that could lead to problems when a deaf person makes a real emergency call.

Massachusetts teen Matthew Weigman has pleaded guilty in Dallas to charges that he was part of a nationwide swatting group that struck more than 250 times. More than once, he made up a story about killing family members and threatening hostages with an rifle. He even bragged about what he did. Weigman is blind and used online names like Little Hacker. He faces as much as 13 years behind bars. A co-conspirator has already been sentenced to two years in prison.

In an earlier case, a teenager in Washington State used the internet service to call 911 in Southern California. He told emergency operators that he said he was high on drugs and had just shot his sister. He said he was calling from an address that he randomly picked out. Prosecutors say a police SWAT team from Orange County responded, showing up the couple’s house and ordering them out of the home and on the ground. The teen pled guilty to charges last year and was given three years in prison.

Deaf Performing Artists Network

D-PAN or Deaf Performing Artists Network puts together ASL enhanced music videos. Sean Forbes started the nonprofit. His interview with CNN is below.

Construction Halted at School

Work has stopped at the California School for the Deaf on new dorms and an activity center. Because of state budget problems, building materials are sitting idle on the Riverside campus. Funding for the project has been suspended. That means the building will campus will not be finished in time for graduation ceremonies in June. The old buildings are more than 50 years old.

Sign Language in Bangladesh

Bangladesh (next to India says it will introduce sign language at the state level. It will initially be used by the state-run television news and eventually adopted by other media outlets. The move will also make it easier for the deaf to enroll in higher education.

One School Will Stay Open, One School..

While state lawmakers consider closing the South Dakota School for the Deaf in Sioux Falls, the South Dakota School for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Aberdeen appears to be protected.

What’s the difference?

The Aberdeen school is a residential facility. But the School in Sioux Falls closed its dormitories a couple of years ago. Twenty students live at the Aberdeen school and it serves about 165 students statewide.The Sioux Falls reports enrollment of 34 while serving 388 deaf students statewide through its outreach program.

Implants get Boost in UK

Cochlear implants are getting a thumbs up from England’s National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (or NICE). The agency suggests children get implants for both ears. The recommendation means the UK’s National Health Services will pay for the procedure, paving the way for thousands of deaf children and adults who do not get sufficient benefit from hearing aids to receive cochlear implants. The UK's first cochlear implant went to Michael Batt with funds from The Ear Foundation 20 years ago.

Signing at the Super Bowl

Who was that signing America the Beautiful at the Super Bowl? It was New Jersey teacher Kristy Lynch. Faith Hill performed the song shortly before the opening kickoff. Lynch teaches sign language at Bergenfield and Dumont high schools. Here is a video of her practicing.

School Eliminates Programs

The Idaho School for the Deaf and the Blind is cutting it’s professional development programs and summer camp. Its residential program is under scrutiny as well because of state budget cuts. Some 80 students live on campus.

Deaf Actress Takes Lead in Play

Children of a Lesser God will be playing at the Barksdale Theatre in Richmond, Virginia starting this Friday. The Tony award-winning show hit Broadway in 1980, telling the story of a troubled deaf woman and a hearing teacher at a school for the deaf. Marlee Matlin starred in the 1986 film version.

Taking the female lead in the Barksdale version will be Erica Siegel. The 31-year-old grew up in Maryland, suffering hearing loss as a child because of an illness. She refused to wear hearing aids even when she attended Emory University. Siegel compensated for it by learning to lip read. She is strengthening her sign language skills for the part in the play. Siegal used Signed English (signing that follows English grammar) to communicate with deaf friends and not ASL.

Siegel recently played deaf percussionist Evelyn Glennie at the Imagination Stage in Bethesda, Maryland in the show Playing From the Heart. She also toured with Wings Company, a group of deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing actors that work with Quest: Arts for Everyone.

Extra Phone Call Boost

Cell phone users with some hearing loss may find help using the ClarityLife C900 mobile phone. It amplifies incoming sound by 20 decibels and it doubles as an emergency-response device. It will calls and text-message five preprogrammed numbers until there is an answer. With large buttons and large fonts, the $270 phone is available form Clarity Products and will work with cell phone plans offered by T-Mobile or AT&T.