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DAD Bylaw amendments due April 1, 2023

Who: Everyone including you (everyone is automatically a member)
What: If you have any changes or additions for our bylaws, now is the time to do so
When (deadline): April 1, 2023 or so
Where: our bylaws can be found at https://www.delawaredeaf.org/about-us/bylaws
Why: Statewide elections/conference is coming up soon which is the only time Bylaws are updated under Article 9.01

How (Submissions): Use https://www.delawaredeaf.org/contact-us or give it to Keith Robertson who is collecting bylaw changes

* One other note: We are also accepting nominations/applications for board officers.  You can throw names in up to the time of elections. We are not all about work so think about it and come on over!

 

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Urgent Notice about DSD school (March 14, 2023)

Delaware School for the Deaf Logo  Christina School District logo
Edited – An earlier announcement about tonight’s meeting had to be edited for brevity. 
 
Christiana School District (CSD) will have their regular meeting tonight.  DSD (Delaware School for the Deaf) is governed by the CSD district.  ASL interpreters will be present.  It will be live streamed and public comments are allowed online up to 6pm tonight or show up at the meeting to do so.  See https://www.christinak12.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=258&DomainID=139#calendar497/20230314/event/2959.  Now is the time to speak up about DSD’s needs.

 

 

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Communication Card Video Release – Press Event

Library metal signage in front of the new Appoquinimink Library in Middletown, DE

In September 2022, the revised Visor and Wallet Communication Cards for interactions between members of Law enforcement and Delaware residents who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing were released to the public and Police Officers throughout the state. 
 
At that time, a training video was under production with students at the Delaware School for the Deaf. We are now ready to release that video to the public and to Law Enforcement. 
 
This event will be held on Tuesday, April 18th at 1:00 pm at the Appoquinimink Library in Middletown, DE.  
 
We are looking for help in spreading the news about the event, as well as contacting potential dignitaries to speak at the event.
 
 
 
DAD Note: Appoquinimink (aka: Appo) recently moved to a brand new location on East Main Street and is no longer at the old location  on North Broad Street (Rt. 71).
 
– Thanks to Deaf Outreach for sharing the announcement.
 
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Parents of deaf child win human rights case against N.L. school district (Canada)

Kimberly and Todd Churchill have won a human rights case against the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District. They filed a human rights complaint against the district after learning their son, Carter, wasn't learning American Sign Language in his school. (Gary Locke/CBC)

Parents fighting for the education of their deaf son have won a human rights case against the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District.

The commission ruled that the district failed to provide reasonable accommodation for Carter Churchill and discriminated against him during the 2016 to 2020 school years, from kindergarten to Grade 3.

It has ordered the board to support Carter with education in American Sign Language and evaluate him in that language. The district will also have to pay Todd and Kimberly Churchill close to $150,000, according to the human rights commission’s decision, released Wednesday.

“It’s not shock, but it’s just this disbelief [that] finally, this is finally over,” said Kimberly Churchill. “There was so much evidence there to show that there was discrimination.”

Read on at https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/nlesd-parents-deaf-child-win-human-rights-case-1.6766067.

DAD Note: Similar cases like this has happened in the United States and are not always publicly released/announced. 

 

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Summer Camps 2023

You might be thinking it’s too early to talk about summer camps, but enrollment is happening now! Summer camps for deaf youth are often hard to find or have limited capacity, but the impact of these programs on their development is astronomical. Whether you are a parent, guardian, or educator seeking programs for your youth or are a program developer, NDC (National Deaf Center) has some amazing resources for you!

Feel free to add or look at the current listing – https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/179g99FqaPHUStoAZCQOhSvBzkhjUEZIWD9p6ZhbqkRA/edit#gid=1602613237.

NDC News Site – https://nationaldeafcenter.org/news.

DAD Note: There are other camps not listed yet.  Last year, Mary Hicks, DSD, shared a list of camps as well which can be found at https://www.delawaredeaf.org/2022/03/14/deaf-hard-of-hearing-summer-camps.

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Complaint from deaf traveler at Austin airport sparks changes to TSA policy

Airport lounge. Photo by Altairkh, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A recent complaint concerning the Transportation Security Administration’s treatment of a deaf passenger at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport prompted changes in the ways the agency treats travelers with accessibility needs.

Topher Avila, who is deaf, told the Airport Advisory Commission at its Feb. 8 meeting that he was stopped by a TSA official during a recent visit to the airport.

Avila recently completed a legal name change and arrived at the airport with a government ID, a stamped copy of the name change paperwork, his old ID, and his Social Security card. When he reached security, he was pulled aside by a TSA agent but no interpreter was made available for assistance.

After about 20 minutes, Avila was allowed to clear the checkpoint. However, just after crossing he was detained again. This time, TSA took his backpack and cell phone, leaving him unable to communicate or understand why he was being detained. When he asked for his phone back, Avila said an agent “put their finger in my face.”

“There was no attempt to communicate or explain what was going on,” Avila said.

Read on at https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2023/02/complaint-from-deaf-traveler-at-austin-airport-sparks-changes-to-tsa-policy.

 

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