Welcome back to the Fall! School has started at DSD Statewide Programs. Fall has always been my favorite time of year! Growing up as a kid, I looked forward to school starting. I looked forward to seeing my teachers and all my friends again. It was a great time for me. The best part for me was the smell of new crayons. I loved that smell!
I want to share some exciting news with you. Friday, September 10 Governor Jack Markell is coming to DSD Statewide Programs! He’s not coming to look at DSD or tour the school – he’s coming to sign into law HB 283. HB 283 is The Deaf Hard of Hearing Children’s Bill of Rights. This bill has been in the process for a long time! The Delaware chapter of Hands and Voices has been working very hard to show the state that we have to look more closely at the communication needs of deaf and hard of hearing children, to look at their need for access, at their need for critical mass of peers for education. This law will change our perception of deaf and hard of hearing children!
Again – this will happen Friday, September 10 at 1:00 at the DSD Statewide Program building in the gymnasium. We will have interpreters and CART. We will have different speakers from the legislature, Hands and Voices President, myself maybe, Superintendent, the school board President and others. I hope you will join us! This is the first step in our race to the top for Deaf and Hard of Hearing children. Thank you and have a good afternoon.
Wendy Lapham, Public Information Officer, Christina School District, 302-552-2610
Governor Markell Will Sign the “Deaf or Hard of Hearing Child’s Bill of Rights”
as Part of House Bill 283
Special Signing Ceremony Will Take Place at DelawareSchool for the Deaf on September 10
Wilmington, DE - Delaware Governor Jack Markell will sign House Bill 283 into law at a special ceremony on Friday, September 10. The bill includes the “Deaf of Hard of Hearing Child’s Bill of Rights,” which creates certain rights for children who are deaf or hard of hearing in the Delaware school system.
The bill-signing ceremony will take place at the Delaware School for the Deaf in Newark, and will be attended by state legislators, representatives of the deaf and hard of hearing community, officials from the Delaware School for the Deaf and Statewide Programs and the Christina School District, students, parents, and the public. The event will include amplification, Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART), which provides instantaneous translation of the spoken word into readable English text which may be viewed on a monitor, and American Sign Language interpreters.
House Bill 283, An Act to Amend Title 14 of the Delaware Code Relating to the Education of Children Who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing, addresses the unique communication needs for deaf and hard of hearing children and acknowledges the need to further develop the comprehensive statewide program which implements a systematic approach to serve deaf and hard of hearing children across the state. The bill was sponsored by Representative Terry Schooley and Senator David Sokola, and supported by many members of the Delaware Legislature in both the House and the Senate.
Delaware School for the Deaf and Statewide Programs is located at 620 East Chestnut Hill Road, Newark, DE 19713. The event will be held in the gymnasium.
The Delaware Statewide Programs for Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing children held a two day ASL Camp on August 5th and 6th, which was free of charge and the dorms were open to those who had traveled from downstate. It was specifically geared for professionals working in the field of Deaf and Hard of Hearing, such at teachers of DHH, SLPs, audiologists, Deaf-Blind, interpreters, and signing paras. The class was taught by Usherla DeBerry and Dawn Price, both of whom are Deaf. Math vocabulary, classifiers, and storytelling were a major part of the camp content. All of the eight attendees stated that the camp was a wonderful experience and that the knowledge gained will help them with the students they serve. Statewide Programs hopes to make this an annual event. See the pictures below!
The Rochester Institute of Technology offers many competitions for deaf and hard of hearing students throughout the school year as well as summer camps. Click here for more information.
DDDS, DVR, and DOE will present an Adult Day Service Providers Fair on September 20, 2010 from 2:30-7:30 pm at the DDDS building in Bear, DE. Click here for more information
Astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson sent a special sign language message to Earth. Interpretation done by non-certified users of American Sign Language (ASL) who are fluent in conversational ASL; syntax and vocabulary corrected for intended meaning in written American English.
Our care notebook offered below for you to download (all or part of it), is a valuable tool in achieving a medical home/family centered care. This record keeping system will allow you to have all pertinent information about your child and his/her needs in one place. This book should follow your child to all appointments, tests, therapies, IEPs, etc. This will help in the coordination of care as they will see all interactions by other professionals involved in your child’s care.
Click here for more information on creating a Care Notebook for your child.
Please hold the date for Guide By Your Side training from the National Hands and Voices group. We will have the two national leaders, Leanne Seaver and Janet DesGeorges, coming to Delaware to conduct the training. Anyone who would like to participate in the training who is not planning on being a parent guide may attend on Thursday, July 29. All parent guides will be required to attend on July 29, 30 and possibly 31.
The place and time will be shared as soon as it is finalized. If you would like to attend, please contact the following:
Julie Johnson, M.Ed.
TLK Academy
22 Peoples Plaza
Newark, DE 19702
302 836-1411
