DCC PROFESSOR SAFEGUARDS THE

INTERESTS OF THE HEARING IMPAIRED

DANVILLE, VA, August 13, 2002 --- Try to imagine life without the gift of hearing. Now how would you feel if threatening weather or an emergency alert had been announced but you couldn’t respond simply because you couldn’t hear the verbal warning from a radio or television. These are type of the challenges the deaf and hard of hearing community live with daily, but Dr. Carl L. Amos, Jr., Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Community Services for Persons who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing at Danville Community College, is determined to make a difference.

Just step into his office and you’ll find yourself surrounded by boxes and boxes of specially-design weather radios. It’s all part of his most recent endeavor. Amos and are Emergency Medical Service personnel are providing specially designed weather alert-equipment for deaf communities in these areas.

“Jim Davis of the Pittsylvania County EMS came to me one day concerned because the deaf community in this area was at risk since they did not have the means that hearing people had as far as emergency alert is concerned,” said Amos. “He told me about the emergency radio and how it worked, and I came up with the resources to pay for the equipment.”

The radio, which can be coded to the individual’s area, sends out a signal through a vibrator or a strobe light whenever the radio sends out an emergency alert. This allows the deaf and hard of hearing to react quickly to an emergency.

“All the deaf person has to do is go over and look at the radio and it will indicate

to them the type of emergency and what to do,” says Amos.

He added that prior to receiving the equipment, eligible residents attended a workshop, which included training on how to use the equipment.

Some might wonder what prompted Amos to become an advocate for the deaf and hard of hearing. He says its because a deaf person touched his life in a special way.

“When I was three or four, I had a babysitter who was deaf,” says Amos, “That’s where all of this (interest) came from.”

Amos, who joined DCC in January 2001, received his bachelor’s degree from Frostburg State University; his master’s New York University; and his doctorate from Lamar University. In addition, he has served as an outreach coordinator for the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. He also taught English at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC, the only liberal arts college for deaf and hard of hearing students in the world. Amos is a multi-talented language aficionado with proficiency in French, German, Spanish, as well as American Sign Language (ASL).

During his brief tenure at DCC, he has made tremendous advances in the Educational Interpreter Training program. He and co-author, Catherine (Cat) Clough wrote a new Educational Interpreter Training curriculum, which is designed specially for educational interpreters.

The new curriculum, which included a proposal for state adoption of a new EIT prefix for educational interpreters training classes, was recently adopted by DCC as well as the state of Virginia.

“Previously, there was a prefix for signing and interpreting but we asked the state to create a new prefix for this curriculum,” says Amos.

Educational strides like this are very important to everyone, especially the deaf and hearing-impaired community.

“I think it is great that Danville recognized that there is a deaf community and realizes the need to train qualified people as interpreters,” says Amos. “But to be an interpreter, I want to emphasize that you’ve got to have your core courses in ASL, and I emphasize ‘ASL’, because there are so many people who don’t realize that there are different kinds of sign language.

“ASL is the accepted language and it is now accepted as a foreign language,” Amos adds. “Prior to becoming an interpreter you must take your core courses in ASL to eventually go into the interpreter training program.”

Amos notes that DCC has offered ASL courses for some time, and is offering a very unique program, called a weekend interpreter-training program. The program now includes two career studies certificate programs.

“One is the ASL (American Sign Language) which is an 18-credit hour program that is designed for professionals, parents, educators, social workers, or persons who want to gain knowledge in ASL and deaf culture or who want to make the work environment, especially the professional environment, deaf-friendly,” Amos explains.” We (also) have a new career studies certificate program for Educational Interpreters.”

The new Weekend Educational Interpreters Training (WEIT) Program, which requires 26-credit hours of sequential education for completion, has been partially-funded by the Department of Education and will be offered during the Fall 2002 and Spring 2003 semesters. This non-traditional course will be taught one weekend a month and provide individuals who have completed all the core courses in American Sign Language the opportunity to prepare to for certification as an educational interpreter.

“To become certified, an individual must complete all the necessary coursework,” which according to Amos, “will prepare you to become certified by the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VDDHH).” He adds that VDDHH is the state agency that works to reduce the communication barriers between persons who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families and the professionals who serve them.

“VDDHH administers the Virginia quality assurance screening evaluation for certification in the state,” Amos says. There is a written exam, which is based on the code of ethics, and a performance exam, which assesses receptive and expressive sign language skills. Following the test, the interpreter is rated, using a four-level rating system, with one being the lowest and four being the highest.”

Since VDDHH operates with the full understanding that communication is the most critical issue facing persons who are deaf or hard of hearing, communication is the foundation of all VDDHH programs - both as a service (through interpreters, technology and other modes) and as a means of sharing information for public awareness (through training and education).

“What is unique about DCC’s Weekend Educational Interpreter Program is that it is an intensive program that is offered all-day Saturday and all-day Sunday,” says Amos. “The program includes educational interpreters from Virginia, as well as North Carolina.”

The next round of classes begin on September 7th and run through December 8th , Amos says, but first priority will be given to applicants who apply before August 16, 2002 and are available to participate for the entire nine-week program.

Prerequisites for the WEIT program are:

Pass VQAS written exam
Demonstrate a minimum of intermediate-level sign skills
Submit a 4-5 minute video demonstrating sign skills. The videotape must include fingerspelling skills, spatial placement, nonmanual markets, and appropriate grammatical structure for the selected target language (e.g., PSE or ASL). The tape should NOT include poems, songs or children’s stories.
Working educational interpreters must also submit a letter of recommendation from the current school division/supervisor with the application and videotape.

For more information about the career studies programs or about the emergency weather radio program for the deaf, please contact Dr. Carl Amos at 434.797.8479.