The 1st deaf female rabbi

The first deaf female rabbi, Rebecca L. Dubowe, is now a visiting scholar at Gallaudet University. The Washington Post offers a photo slideshow of her work here.

Girl gets new implant for Christmas

Cherie Marciniak was adopted by an American family six years ago. The move from Thailand to Minnesota not only meant a new home, but a cochlear implant. It stopped working after four years of use. That's when friends and family stepped in to raise money so that Cherie, now 11 years old, would get a newer and better implant. KBJR-TV, the NBC-affiliated for Northeastern Minnesota and Northwestern Wisconsin, tells the full story in the video below (captions included).

Bogus Terp calls himself "Great Fake"

image from Facebook video

Thamsanqa Jantjies says that even if he is a fake sign language interpreter, he is "a great fake". Jantjies caused an international stir after he "interpreted" at Nelson Mandela's memorial service. He said he is a "great fake" because "I expose what is going on in the government and system" in a rambling video posted on Facebook. Watch the video here. You can see in the video he is wearing a shirt with the word Sterkfontein on it. That is the name of a psychiatric hospital in Krugersdorp. Jantjies was admitted there a few days ago. He has admitted to taking part in killing two people a decade ago, but he did not stand trial because of metal health issues. Read more about that episode here.

Deaf man arrives on flight--in the wrong state!

Kenneth Brown was on his way to visit his brother in a Seattle hospital last week. But instead he wound up in Phoenix. Details on what happened on his flight from KNXV-TV here.

Song: I liked you better deaf

Danny Hamilton wrote a song about his father getting hearing aids for Christmas. Danny titled it I liked you better deaf. While his father wasn't profoundly deaf before getting some digital help, the video of the song has already racked up around 200k hits. Danny writes, "My Dad, who has been hard of hearing for about as long as I can remember, recently invested in hearing aids. So I wrote him a little song for Christmas to celebrate his newfound sense, affectionately entitled, 'I Liked You Better Deaf.'" The lyrics are posted along with the song on YouTube. There's captioning, but it isn't very accurate.

CBS: Inexpensive hearing devices bring gift of sound to less fortunate

Tiny, high-tech hearing aids are making a difference "in the world's poorest countries." Barry Petersen of CBS News reports on what Sound World Solutions is doing to help the developing world in a video report posted below.

Active Shooter Drill at Deaf School

Police officers practiced active shooter training at the Kentucky School for the Deaf yesterday in Danville. Read about how sign language was incorporated into the drill from The Advocate Messenger here.

Implant: I expected to be hearing more

A Florida man decides to turn in his hearing aid for a cochlear implant. Mike Gray says he was initially disappointed and it's a slow process. See a video report about Gray from the Tampa Bay Times below (no captions) or read a more detailed report here.

Protests at Seattle Men’s Chorus concert

Protesters marched in front of Seattle's Benaroya Hall last night over the sign language interpretation of the Seattle Men's Chorus. KING5-TV filed a video report on the controversy.

Woman assaulted near Gally

A woman was sexually assaulted by armed men just a couple of blocks from Gallaudet University this past weekend. WJLA-TV has a video report posted below on DeafNewsToday.com.

Update on Medical Student Suit

In September we told you about a Nebraska jury verdict here, siding with a medical student who sued sued Creighton University for not meeting his learning needs. Michael Argenyi was not provided interpreters or a transcription system. Argenyi has a cochlear implant but also uses cued speech. A Nebraska jury agreed with Argenyi--but failed to award him any financial damages. This week, a judge agreed with the jury that he didn't prove the discrimination was intentional--that means Argenyi is still responsible for the $133,000 bill for the services he was given during his first two years of medical school. However, the judge also ordered the University to provide him with an interpreter and the transcription service when he returns to the school this coming summer. Argenyi plans to appeal the parts of the decision that went against him--and the school hasn't decided whether to do the same. Ironically, while he was waiting for this case to be resolved, Argenyi attended Boston University where he was given the accommodations that are at issue in his case with Creighton. You can read the NAD's (National Association of the Deaf) reaction here and judge's Friday ruling is here.

Deaf School loses Superintendent

Barbara Garrison
(Image from the Missouri
School for the Deaf website) 

The Missouri School for the Deaf is losing its superintendent. Barbara Garrison is retiring after more than a decade at the school. She told the News Tribune her favorite things during her time at MSD has been the "students, the staff and the families.. In general, I’ve loved the city of Fulton — it has been one of the most welcoming communities I’ve ever been in.” A search is underway for Garrison's replacement. Read the full story here.

ASL of Twas the Night Before Christmas

Sheena McFeely has two daughters--one is deaf like her and the other hearing. You can see one of the daughters (Shaylee) signing a version of “’Twas the Night Before Christmas in the video posted below. Mental Floss magazine picked up the post and offers what it says are 9 Reasons This Little Girl’s Sign Language Version of “'Twas the Night Before Christmas” is Great which you can read  here.

‘Does someone born with a hearing loss “hear” an inner voice?’

"I can sometimes use my hands to retrieve an appropriate meaning item, and then choose an English equivalent. Likewise, when I spend a lot of time with deaf, signing friends or colleagues, I will find myself signing in my dreams. Thus the inner hands become available as needed, or with use." Read more responses to the question at the Guardian here.

Petition: Dump Men's Chorus interpreter

The Seattle deaf community is abuzz over the ASL interpreter working for the Seattle Men's Chorus. Some complain that Kevin Gallagher he is hard to understand and not certified. The city's weekly newspaper, The Stranger, reports the Chorus plans to keep Gallagher as its interpreter. In an open letter, Chorus executive director Frank Stilwagner says:

I have consulted with individuals who I know to be qualified ASL experts. I have also had conversations with individuals affiliated with the deaf community, including deaf patrons who regularly attend our concerts, to listen to a spectrum of needs and responses, furthering our understanding. While most have praised our dedication as an organization to offering accessible performances with interpreters, this current concern highlights a need to expand those services.

Stilwagner goes on to ask for "constructive feedback." Some have started an online petition here which says Gallagher is not an "effective interpreter" and plan a protest at the choir's show this coming Sunday. Below is a video report from KING-TV (captions available).

Fake Terp in hospital

The fake sign language interpreter is now in a psychiatric hospital. Sign language experts said Thamsanqa Jantjie wasn't doing anything but flapping his hands during Nelson Madela's memorial service, which drew together world leaders like Barack Obama. Jantjie claimed schizophrenia caused him to have hallucinations and hear voices during the service. Johannesburg's Star is reporting that he has been admitted to the Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital. Jantjie has been linked to the mod murder of two men a decade ago. Read about that here.

Money for 100 kids to get implants

The UK's Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is footing the bill for 100 children to get bilateral cochlear implants. The cost will reach more than 3 million pounds (nearly $5 million dollars). Read the story here.

BuzzFeed ASL video

The viral-focused internet site BuzzFeed is offering a short video titled 8 Phrases You Need to Know in ASL in this video.

New Terp Rules in SA next year

The South African parliament has passed a new language bill--and the Department of Arts and Culture says it "has nothing to do with the interpreter at Nelson Mandela's memorial." The law would require interpreters to register and hold certain qualifications. Read the story at the Independent Online here.

Lost in interpretation

The recent fiasco at the Nelson Mandela memorial service has put sign language interpreting in the spotlight. The PBS NewsHour says the interpreters job is "part performance, part science, and part cognitive gymnastics." The program offers a detailed look at what happens when things go wrong in an online article here.