Deafweekly October 26, 2005

deafweekly

October 26, 2005
Vol. 2 No. 2

Editor: Tom Willard

Deafweekly is an independent news report for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. It is mailed to subscribers every Wednesday morning and available to read at www.deafweekly.com. For information, contact mail@deafweekly.com.

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NATIONAL
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NAD CHOOSES CALIFORNIA SITE FOR 2006 CONFERENCE

The National Association of the Deaf has chosen a new site for its 2006 conference. The NAD's 48th Biennial National Conference will take place June 29 to July 2 at Desert Springs, a JW Marriott resort in Palm Desert, Calif., near Palm Springs International Airport. The organization was planning to meet in New Orleans but had to find a new location due to the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. The 450-acre Desert Springs resort includes two golf courses, tennis and swimming facilities, five restaurants and one of the finest resort spas in the United States. It's "the perfect place to have a conference," said Nancy Bloch, the NAD's CEO. "The meeting space is wonderful and everything is under one roof." The conference schedule can be found at www.nad.org/2006confschedule.

TEACHER OF THE DEAF DIES IN BOATING ACCIDENT

Lauren Barsamian, a teacher of the deaf in the East Ramapo (N.Y.) Central School District, died October 8 after a boat she was on capsized during a fishing trip in upstate New York. Barsamian and boat captain Steve White, 43, fell off a 19-foot charter boat when it became trapped in a whirlpool, reported the Journal News. Their bodies were found six days later near the mouth of the Niagara River. Barsamian, 27, joined the school district in August after teaching at St. Joseph's School for the Deaf in the Bronx and the New York School for the Deaf in Greenburgh. She worked with elementary school students and was hardworking and down-to-earth, said JoAnn Tuttle, chairperson of the speech, language and hearing department at East Ramapo. "She was so caring with the children," she said.

ARIZONA WOMAN FOUND GUILTY IN SAFARI MEDIA SCAM

A Pima County, Ariz. jury last Friday found Maryanne Chisholm guilty of 54 counts of illegal sale of securities, three counts of fraudulent schemes and a single count of illegally conducting an enterprise. Chisholm was president and chief executive of Safari Media, which cheated 1,200 investors, many of whom were deaf, out of $24 million. She could face five to 300 years in prison when she is sentenced November 23, reported the Tucson Citizen. A key witness in the eight-week trial was Thuc Nguyen, a deaf Vietnamese immigrant now serving five years for selling more than $500,000 worth of unregistered stock to deaf people. Chisholm's attorney said Nguyen was the true "mastermind" behind Safari Media, while Chisholm was "a mother of three who was in over her head." Prosecutor John Evans said Chisholm spent nearly $10 million of investor funds for her own benefit, including $1 million at Neiman Marcus alone. "People lost homes, went into bankruptcy and marriages failed," said Evans.

REPORT SUGGESTS IDAHO SCHOOL CLOSE, MOVE OR CHANGE

An Idaho government oversight board said in a report last week that the 99-year-old Idaho School for the Deaf and the Blind should consider closing, moving or changing the way it operates. According to the Twin Falls Times-News, the report was requested by lawmakers who are concerned about declining enrollment and rising costs at the school. The report suggested moving the school from Gooding, a town of 3,384 people, to a larger urban area, or keeping the school where it is but updating its practices to conform with new regulations and societal changes. The school, with an enrollment of 75 pupils, has more staff than students. The state spends $82,000 per residential student and $59,000 per day student, and the report predicts a per-pupil cost of over $100,000 within two years.

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News from CAMP Lakodia...

We are expanding our programs! Join us and enjoy the amenities at deaf resort in Madison, SD. Check out www.camplakodia.com.

We are hosting a Scrapbooking camp on February 16th through 19th. A wonderful opportunity for deaf and hard of hearing moms to be away from it all and catch up on precious pictures. You will be pampered with delicious meals, quiet environment (no kids), plenty of supplies, and deaf consultants for assistance when needed as well as making new friends. Don't let your pictures be stuck in boxes and boxes!

On March 16th through 19th, we will have a deaf Singles camp. It will be filled with speed dating, team building, workshops and fun activities.

Please email me at dskjeveland@c-s-d.org if you are interested in either camps and I will send more information.

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IOWA SCHOOL WRAPS UP 150TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

More than 1,000 people from as far away as India and Australia attend homecoming weekend October 15-16 at the Iowa School for the Deaf as the school wrapped up the yearlong celebration of its 150th anniversary. "A 150th anniversary only comes once," superintendent Jeanne Prickett told the Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil, praising the school's planning committee for selecting events that clearly represented the school's history. "They really brought home activities that captured the essence of what happened in the past 150 years here," she said. Jerry Siders, an ISD graduate who has taught at the school for nine years, thought the festivities were "awesome." "ISD deserves more credit than we think for grooming our students into successful citizens during the last 150 years," he said.

FCC TO REVIEW ITS CLOSED-CAPTIONING RULES

The Federal Communications Commission is taking a closer look at its closed-captioning rules. The move comes as a result of a petition submitted by five national organizations for deaf and hard-of-hearing people. The FCC wants to know if it should work harder to enforce existing rules, and what should be done when the rules are broken. "This will be the biggest change in captioning rules in years," says Kelby Brick, director of law and advocacy for the National Association of the Deaf. Sheila Conlon Mentkowski, chair of NAD's technology committee, agreed: "The FCC must hear from consumers on this important issue." You can take action by going to www.nad.org/CaptioningAction.

FIRST-GRADER DROPPED OFF AT WRONG LOCATION

There was just one problem when a school bus driver dropped off Kaya Cortes, a first-grader at the Delaware School for the Deaf, about 6:30 p.m. one recent evening at Beaver Brook Apartments near New Castle. Kaya, 6, does not live in that apartment complex. She lives a couple of miles away, her mom, Kim Conwell, told the New Castle News Journal. A classmate passing by with her mother spotted Kaya about 25 minutes later. "The woman's daughter recognized my daughter because they rode the school bus together sometimes," said Conwell. "The mother said Kaya was outside holding her bag and crying." Conwell later spoke with Christina School District Transportation Supervisor Bob Laws, who apologized for the mistake. "My folks dropped the ball, and I put some processes and procedures in place to make sure that doesn't happen again," he said.

TOW-TRUCK DRIVER SEEKS WAIVER OF 1951 REGULATION

Morris Townsend, a deaf tow-truck driver, is "fighting the feds over a regulation that's holding back his business," reported the Winston-Salem (N.C.) Journal on Sunday. Townsend, 44, has operated T&B Towing Inc. since July 2003 with Suzanne Bibb, his step-niece, business partner and occasional interpreter. Bibb has to take over the driving duties when the pair cross North Carolina state lines because of a 1951 regulation prohibiting deaf drivers from driving across a state line while towing more than 10,000 pounds. The regulation prevents Townsend from getting a commercial driver's license, and he estimates it lowers his company's revenue by 40 percent a year. He has petitioned for a waiver that would allow him to be examined individually, and hopes to get help from U.S. Rep. Howard Coble, who played a key role in a rule revision that allows license applications from commercial drivers with diabetes to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

CALIFORNIA MOM CONNECTS WITH SON SERVING IN IRAQ

A Fremont, Calif. woman got a high-tech hello from her son who is serving in Iraq, reported CBS News on Sunday. Suzie Jacobs, who is deaf, was able to communicate in sign language with Lance Corporal Justin Jacobs through a video teleconference that was made possible by the Freedom Calls Foundation. Justin calls home frequently, but hadn't been able to speak to his mom until now. The foundation provides conferencing, phone and Internet services free of charge to more than 30,000 soldiers and marines.

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INTERNATIONAL
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THAILAND MAN KILLS INTRUDER ROBBING HIS GRANDMOTHER

Police in Bangkok, Thailand say Ake Kalanil, a deaf man, sprang to the aid of his 77-year-old grandmother during a robbery and stabbed to death Sonthaya Ketkancharoen. The victim was described in the Bangkok Post as "a mentally ill drunkard" who begged and worked as a vehicle caretaker to buy milk and adult diapers for his 85-year-old mother. Relatives of the victim, however, have accused the media of bias. Ake is being portrayed as a hero, they say, when in reality he is an addict who forces his grandmother to beg for money to buy him liquor and court girls. "My father was killed," said Sonthaya's 18-year-old son, Thanakorn. "I don't know who was right and who was wrong. But the killer was praised by the media and the public as a hero. I don't understand that."

MAN CHARGED WITH MURDERING DAUGHTER IN NEW ZEALAND

A South African immigrant in New Zealand allegedly murdered his deaf daughter shortly after receiving a letter saying the family might be denied residency because the child and her deaf sister would be a drain on health resources. The unidentified man and his wife had been in the country about two years, reported Fairfax New Zealand, and the girls were enrolled in school while the family applied for permanent residency. In August, the father allegedly drove off the side of a mountain in Auckland and the oldest girl died in the crash. The father was taken to a hospital and charged with murder and attempted murder. Greg Fortuin, the honorary consul for South Africa, has visited the man in prison and said, while he couldn't comment on the immigration matter, "it's definitely a tragic set of circumstances."

FORMER TEXTILE WORKERS SUE OVER NOISE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS

About 1,500 former textile workers in the U.K. claim to suffer from noise-induced hearing loss from working at local mills, reported Personnel Today in London last Friday. They are a part of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Industrial Deafness Litigation, which has brought 10 test cases against textile companies in a group action. The workers say the companies forced them to work near noisy machinery without ear protection, despite knowing it would risk damaging their hearing. The companies could face fines of millions of pounds if found guilty of letting their employees go deaf.

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NOVA SCOTIA GOVERNMENT SUED OVER ALLEGED SEXUAL ABUSE

A Canadian woman and her 31-year-old daughter are suing the Nova Scotia government over alleged sexual abuse at a former school for the deaf, reported Broadcast News last week. Jane Suttis's daughter was a student at the Atlantic Provinces Resource Centre for the Hearing Handicap in Amhert from 1979 to 1985. The suit, which names one employee, alleges the abuse hindered the victim's sexual development and caused psychological damage, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and inability to maintain employment. The suit also claims the government was negligent because it did not have safeguards in place to identify abuse at the center.

PHILIPPINES SCHOOL ALUMNI OPEN BRANCH OF COFFEE FRANCHISE

A branch of the Deck Coffee franchise, owned and operated by 15 deaf people, formally opens today in Manila. Staffed by alumni of the School of the Deaf and Applied Sciences, it is the first of its kind in the Philippines, reported the Manila Sun-Star. Aside from the usual coffee offerings, Deck Coffee also serves up pasta, panini and salad. The menu is provided on neat white slips where customers can check off a box next to the item they desire. A sign board will help staff communicate with patrons, but organizers believe customers will act out their orders through sign language. "Through this project, we are confident that the deaf community will be able to showcase their capabilities despite the language barrier," said business track coordinator Charlie Jayco.

SHANGHAI SETS UP FUND FOR CHILDREN'S COCHLEAR IMPLANTS

The city of Shanghai, China has created a fund to help children under 7 receive a cochlear implant. The government will provide 60,000 yuan (about $7,400 U.S.), but "to be frank, parents still have to spend another 50,000 yuan, at least, for the operation," said Qiu Yamei of the Shanghai Disabled Persons' Federation. The devices need to be imported because there are no companies in China that manufacturer cochlear implants. Candidates need to be examined to confirm that they can't be helped with hearing aids, reported the Shanghai Daily, and they must also have "normal intelligence and be without character flaws."

COCHLEAR EXPECTS PROFITS OF $70 MILLION THIS YEAR

The Australian bionic ear maker Cochlear said it expects earnings to rise by about 20 percent to about $70 million this fiscal year. Cochlear chairman Tommie Bergman told shareholders at Cochlear's recent annual meeting that the company is well-positioned to improve its market position, reported the Australian Financial Review. Chief executive Chris Roberts noted the impact of Cochlear's acquisition in March of Entific Medical Systems, which makes the Baha bone conduction implants. "Over 20,000 patients are going to receive an implant from us this year, whether it's a Cochlear implant or a Baha," he said.

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LIFE & LEISURE
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COSTUMED YOUTH TO 'TRUNK OR TREAT' AT CALIFORNIA SCHOOL

The St. Joseph's Center for the Deaf in Hayward, Calif. is inviting children to its campus on Saturday for an evening of "trunk or treating." No, that's not a typo ... costumed youth will be "trunk or treating" the Halloween-decorated trunks of cars parked in the school's parking lot. Owners of decorated cars are instructed to arrive early, pay a $10 fee and bring candy to pass out to the children. Prizes for best car decorations will be awarded. A party, games, treats and pictures will follow afterwards inside SJCD Hall. The event is a fundraiser for the center, which provides services to individuals, couples and families throughout Alameda and Contra Consta Counties.

BENEFIT CONCERT HELD IN ILLINOIS FOR HONDURAN GIRL

A benefit concert was held at a church in Naperville, Ill. last Saturday night for Josselin Garcia, "a young Honduran girl born with no chance of hearing again," reported WBBM-TV in Chicago. Greg Hubert, whose parents were both deaf, gave up a job as a computer consultant to give Josselin, 10, a chance to learn how to communicate. The Hubert family has spent over $85,000 on Josselin's school, language, speech and medical care over the past four years. Last week's concert, titled "Sounds For Silence" and performed by the band "If," was an opportunity for others in the community to help with the expenses.

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Fifth Annual JDSR Retreat-co sponsored by Wolk Hillel (NTID)

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First Time Trip to Israel August 2006

Welcome all Jewish deaf and hard of hearing adults (married, single, widowed, divorced) of any level of Judaism and way of communication.

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NEW COCHLEAR IMPLANT COULD AID MUSIC APPRECIATION

A new type of cochlear implant being developed in the U.K. could allow deaf people to hear music, reported the BBC last week. Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory say the device offers a wider frequency range and would improve musical appreciation. According to New Scientist magazine, the entire implant could be put into the ear, unlike current implants that require a processor to be worn outside the ear. The prototype is still quite large, measuring two centimeters square, and the challenge for researchers "is to miniaturize the elements so that they still resonate at audible frequencies," said Bill Nimmo, a member of the NPL team. He said it will probably be at least 10 years before the device becomes available on the market.

FORMER MISS DEAF INDIANA OPTS FOR COCHLEAR IMPLANT

WISH-TV News in Indianapolis reported last week on Amber Kay, a former Miss Deaf Indiana who has decided to get a cochlear implant. "It's a personal choice," said Kay, whose parents are both deaf. She began learning about cochlear implants several years ago and decided recently that she was ready to undergo the procedure. "At the beginning it will be very confusing," she said. "I'm going to hear a lot of sound that I will not know because I've never heard them before in my life." Trish Lewis, Kay's best friend since fifth grade, called her friend very brave. "Everything that she's done and everything that she's about to do, it could really change her life," said Lewis. Kay's surgery is scheduled for November 18, and WISH-TV plans to follow the story and see how it all works out.

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WORKING WORLD
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NTID NAMES NEW OUTREACH COORDINATOR

The National Technical Institute for the Deaf in Rochester, N.Y. announced last week that it has hired a new outreach coordinator for Outreach and Transition Services. Mary Essex will manage outreach programs for all external audiences, including NTID's Explore Your Future and other career awareness programs. Essex most recently was a research assistant for World Bank's Latin America Caribbean Region. She also was program director for International Blue Crescent in Istanbul, Turkey, and project manager for Association Pro Development for People with Disabilities in Lima, Peru. She is fluent in English, ASL, Turkish, Turkish Sign Language, Spanish and Peruvian Sign Language.

IBM RESEARCHERS FOCUS ON CAPTIONING OF WEB CONTENT

IBM Research in Yorktown Heights, N.Y. is working on ways to make Internet captioning easier, cheaper and faster by automating the process with voice recognition software, reported the White Plains Journal News. The project has special meaning to Dimitri Kanevsky, a deaf employee who holds 78 patents and has the title of master inventor at IBM. The Web is a lot noisier than it was 10 years ago, but with so little audible Web content accessible to the deaf, "I don't even know what I'm losing," said Kanevsky. It's expensive to transcribe every Webcast, said Sara Basson, IBM's program manager for accessibility services, especially when there's no guarantee a deaf person will want to view it. Instead, the IBM research team is focusing on a project called CaptionMeNow, a tool that would caption a Webcast only when a deaf person asks for it.

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DEAF FATHER HELPED SPEECH THERAPIST LEARN TO COMMUNICATE

Having a deaf father "forced" Marilyn Nyman "to learn good communication skills at an early age," reported the Daily Pennsylvanian yesterday. Nyman, a speech therapist, now puts her skills to work by teaching people to communicate more effectively. She is the founder and director of the Nyman Group, a consulting firm in Fort Washington, Pa. that specializes in leadership coaching. She spoke at a recent luncheon to about 20 students, sharing her views on leadership and interpersonal communication. To Lyman, the key to success in the professional world is chemistry and the ability to "read" other people when first meeting them. Using her own father as an example, she said, "It's always about body language."

PRESCHOOL PROVIDES EARLY EXPOSURE TO SIGN LANGUAGE

Two deaf teachers at Little Dumplings Learning Center in Oconomowoc, Wisc. were profiled in a recent issue of the Oconomowoc Focus. Becky Maffucci, 25, and Ann Vorachack, 26, have taught more than 100 preschool and daycare students to sign such words as ball, please, more, milk and thank you. The children "are beginning to sign at home, said Vicky Steele, co-owner and director of the center, "and we have parents asking what their children are saying." Maffucci, a Gallaudet University graduate, is Steele's daughter; she and Vorachack, who attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, both read lips and speak. The center has only one deaf child, but the students and staff are becoming immersed in sign language. "Children don't feel intimidated by us," said Maffucci, "but it can be challenging for parents."

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Do You Have a New Harris Communications Catalog?

The new 2006 Harris Communications catalog has arrived. If you have not received yours, request a free copy today. Start shopping for fun items like DVDs from deaf performers Trix Bruce, Nathie and Angela Stratity. Or, more practical items like the Sonic Shaker Alarm Clock and the Sonic Alert Videophone Signaler. Remember to go online for the latest product offerings and keep coming back for new product specials. For more information go to, http://www.harriscomm.com or contact us at mailto:info@harriscomm.com.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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THEATRE ACCESS PROJECT REACHES 25TH ANNIVERSARY

This year marks the 25th year that the Theatre Development Fund's Theatre Access Project (TAP) in New York City has been making theater accessible to deaf audiences, reports the Associated Press. Two of the approximately 10 interpreters used by the TAP have been with the project since the first year. Alan Champion, 50, was born and raised in Tulsa, Okla. and worked an an interpreter in St. Louis before moving to New York in August 1980 "because I wanted to interpreter Broadway theater," he said. Candace Broecker-Penn, also 50, moved to New York the same month after touring as a speaking actor with the National Theatre of the Deaf. She worked behind the scenes before becoming one of TAP's interpreters a few years later. Beginning with "The Elephant Man" with David Bowie in December 1980, nearly 150 shows have been interpreted on Broadway and another 125 or so have used open captioning. TAP offers discounted tickets to signed and captioned shows, and also makes its services available to off-Broadway and select regional theater productions.

PLANNING UNDERWAY FOR TORONTO FILM & ARTS FESTIVAL

A fundraiser is scheduled for November 10 in Toronto for the first Toronto International Deaf Film & Arts Festival (TIDFAF). The festival itself will take place next May. The project originated with Catherine MacKinnon, an award-winning deaf filmmaker and recent Ryerson fine arts graduate. Karyn Goldstein, cultural arts director for the Ontario Cultural Society of the Deaf, is the festival's general manager. Fundraiser attendees will witness the unveiling of a 30-second theatrical trailer for the festival and mingle with star guests including Los Angeles actress Terrylene and local deaf actress Vanessa Vaughn. "The deaf community has highly anticipated this festival," Vaughn told Metro Toronto. "As a performer, it is a dream come true to finally be able to see our rich cultural mosaic embracing deaf voices."

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SPORTS
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JUDGE IN BALTIMORE DISMISSES DEFAMATION LAWSUIT

The Deaflympics issued a press release last Thursday to announce that a lawsuit against several of its officers has been dismissed. According to the release, U.S. District Judge William Nickerson in Baltimore, Md. "again dismissed Rafael I. Pinkshov Pinchas' latest and fourth piece of litigation against Donalda Ammons, et al." Pinchas responded with his own press release, stating that his defamation of character lawsuit against Ammons, Jerald Jordan, Bobbie Beth Scoggins and the United States Deaf Sports Federation was dismissed primarily because the court found it had no jurisdiction over disputes related to the internal rules of deaf organizations such as the Deaflympics. He also noted that his discrimination lawsuit against the same four defendants is still pending in U.S. District Court in Sioux Falls, S.D.

SIGN LANGUAGE CONNECTION LEADS ANDERSON TO ARKANSAS

"Sign language was common in the Nutt house," reported the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette last week, and as a result, Jamaal Anderson now plays football for the University of Arkansas. Arkansas Coach Houston Nutt's father, the late Houston Nutt Sr., was partially deaf, and he and his wife, Emogene, taught at the Arkansas School for the Deaf. Two of Coach Nutt's three brothers are also partially deaf, including Danny Nutt, who serves as assistant coach. So when the Nutt brothers visited prospective recruit Anderson, it wasn't so much what they said, it was how they said it. The brothers were able to converse in sign language with Anderson's father, who is deaf. Anderson's father is Glenn Anderson, a University of Arkansas professor and chairman of the board of trustees at Gallaudet University. The families lived four minutes apart in Little Rock, and Houston Sr. noticed Jamaal playing basketball when he was just 8 years old. "Before the first half ended, Houston Sr. said, 'He's a player,'" Glenn Anderson recalled.

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MILESTONES
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JACKIE LAWLESS, 55, PROFESSOR OF DEAF STUDIES AND ASL

Jacqueline "Jackie" Lawless, 55, a former professor of Deaf Studies and American Sign Language in the now-defunct Interpreter Training Program at the University of Akron (Ohio), died on October 18. Born Jackie Colletti on August 22, 1950, she was a graduate of Gallaudet University. Mrs. Lawless served as chairman of Akron Ohio's History Through Deaf Eyes Committee in the spring of 2003. She was married to Jim Lawless, also a graduate of Gallaudet, and was the mother of three grown children. A memorial service was held in Wooster, Ohio last Saturday.

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EMPLOYMENT
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The National Leadership and Literacy Camp is seeking an artist in residence for our summer camps in 2006. We believe exposure to deaf artists is a critical aspect to their camp experience. We are interested in all sorts of art - visual, performing, storytelling, or you name it!

We will need an artist in residence for each session - From July 2 - 16, 2006 with 5th thru 8th graders then from July 23 - August 5, 2006 with 9th thru 12th graders. We had Chuck Baird and Rathskellar with us last summer along with 132 deaf and hard of hearing campers from 27 different states.

If you are interested, please send in your proposal by November 10, 2005 by mailing to Deb Skjeveland, Program Manager, Camp Lakodia, 102 N. Krohn Place, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 or email at dskjeveland@c-s-d.org.

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New York Society for the Deaf is seeking creative professionals to work with adults who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Deaf Blind.

Excellent benefits. Salary commensurate with experience. Equal opportunity employer.

RESIDENTIAL HABILITATION COUNSELORS: Full time and Per Diem positions available. Responsible for providing habilitation services to individuals who reside in our community residence program. MUST have some of direct care experience or equivalent training/education in working with developmental disabilities and/or mental retardation. High School diploma and fluency in ASL skills are required.

RESIDENTIAL MANAGER: Full time position. Responsible for assisting in the overall operation of the IRA (Individualized Residential Alternative). The Manager must ensure that consumers are receiving quality services to which they are entitled, and maintain program compliance with regulatory requirements as mandated by the New York State Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD). The Manager will supervise all IRA staff and ensure they are properly trained in the work they are assigned to do. Must have Bachelor’s degree (BA) with two to five years related supervisory experience; or Master's degree (M. A.) with one to two years of supervisory experience.

Send letter of intent and resume to:
New York Society for the Deaf
Human Resources Department
315 Hudson Street, 4th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10013
Fax: (212) 366-0051
Email: KPoore@nysd.org

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Position Announcement (Extended): CEO

DCARA is seeking a strong and dynamic Chief Executive Officer to lead the agency and to build on over 40 years of continuous growth and evolution of the agency. The CEO will report directly to the Board of Directors and will be responsible for all aspects of the agency's operations, programs, finances, and personnel. DCARA is a non-profit, community-based social service agency serving the Deaf community in the San Francisco Bay Area.

SALARY: Negotiable (plus excellent benefits)

For more information, visit www.dcara.org or email searchchair@dcara.org. Closing Date: Open until filled.

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JOB OPPORTUNITIES AT GLAD

GLAD is an Affirmative Action Employer with equal opportunity for men, women and people with disabilities. For more information on the following positions, go to: www.gladinc.org. The status of all positions is: Regular, Full-time, Non-Exempt, Full Fringe Benefits unless otherwise noted. All positions are open until filled.

PROGRAM ASSISTANT/INTERPRETER in Los Angeles
Brief summary: Under supervision of the Director of Health Education/Services, using the guidelines of the assigned scope of work provided by the California Department of Health Service’s Community Challenge Grant, the Program Assistant/Interpreter will:
Work closely with the Community Health Educators on activities for GLAD’s program including plan and participate in community events and educational workshops as stated in the project scope of work; Provide interpreting services for teleconferencing meetings, collaborative meetings, OFP regional meetings, FamilyPACT clinic meetings, and appointments or any other situations which may arise to facilitate communication for project staff; Make arrangements and schedule with schools, programs and clinics for project educational/prevention activities; Responsible to coordinate Deaf Youth Advocacy Presentation and Mentoring Program; Implement media including articles, publications and GLAD’s website; Prepare Collaborative Alliance meeting minutes; Compile and distribute educational and promotional materials to project staff and community; Compile all documents for filing and prepare monthly progress reports; Clerical duties as well as such tasks and responsibilities as may be delegated

JOB DEVELOPER/INTERPRETER in West Covina, Pacoima
Brief summary: Employment services offered at GLAD assist deaf and hard of hearing individuals with job information, job training, job placement and accessibility for the deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Co-located at 5 Employment Development Department (EDD) Offices and at each local office. The programs under employment services are: Job Readiness Training, Workplace Accessibility, Job Development, Placement and Follow-up

COMMUNITY ADVOCATE in Riverside
Brief summary: Under the supervision of the Regional Center Director, the Community Advocate will assist deaf and hard of hearing consumers in the area of communication access via TTY relay, document translation, and other duties, provide advocacy in the areas of social security, education, employment, consumer affairs, and others, record statistics on a daily basis related to provision of services, counsel deaf and hard of hearing consumers with problems related to personal and family adjustments, finances, employment, food, clothing and housing, assists deaf and hard of hearing consumers with independent living skills, educate the deaf and hard of hearing community about various laws and programs benefiting and protecting the rights of deaf persons such as Department of Rehabilitation and Social Security policies and the ADA, etc., work with the Resource Advocate regarding updates of the Directory of Resources, refers consumers to community resources and other organizations, secure information and resources beneficial to the department pertaining to social security, immigration, mediation, etc. through workshops, seminars and through networking with other agencies, some typing and other light office duties as necessary, driving is required as part of the job, perform such tasks and responsibilities as may be delegated

If interested then please submit resume and application to:

Jeff Fetterman
Human Resources Specialist
Greater Los Angeles Agency on Deafness, Inc.
2222 Laverna Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90041

V/TDD: (323) 550-4207
Fax #: (323)550-4204
E-mail: jfetterman@gladinc.org

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