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Is Bill Vicars Deaf?

 

Question: Are you Deaf?


Answer:  Yes.  I was born hard-of-hearing and as time goes on I become more and more physically Deaf.  I live in the Deaf World. I married a Deaf woman, work in the field of Deaf-Studies, hang out with people who can sign, use close-captioning (or subtitles) when I watch videos, seek out open captioned movies, watch the news in ASL, lived at Gallaudet during an internship (Benson Hall), only attend churches that use sign language, have a daughter who attended the Utah School for the Deaf preschool program, have a text-only (no-voice minutes) phone, and devote my time to developing ASL-related resources for others.  

 

Question: Are you a member of the "Deaf Community?"


Answer: Yes. I've lived my life serving in Deaf organizations, setting up Deaf events, working with other Deaf, teaching ASL, teaching Deaf Studies, etc.)  I met my wife (Belinda -- who is Deaf too) at a Deaf church. Our youngest child, Sarah (our fourth) was born with a substantial hearing loss due to having Aperts (a rare syndrome) attended the Utah State School for the Deaf pre-school program. Almost all of my close friends and associates are either Deaf or strongly tied to the Deaf Community.
 

 

Question: Are you certified?


Answer: I hold a doctorate in Deaf Education / Deaf Studies from an accredited university (Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas). I also hold a masters in Deaf Education from Lamar university. As far as I know, I was the first person from Utah to become ASLTA certified. I was a member of ASLTA back when they were still S.I.G.N. (Sign Instructors Guidance Network).  I'm now in California. 
 

 

Question: Where did you learn ASL?


Answer: Growing up in a small town I started learning ASL from a Deaf woman, (Kathy Hadfield of Brigham City, Utah.  She later married Mark Erwin -- so she is now Kathy Erwin.) As I grew older I lived with Deaf roommates, hung out with other Deaf people, read every ASL book I could lay my hands on, and took as many formal classes as I could find -- eventually leading to a doctorate degree in Deaf Education / Deaf Studies.  Here are a few of the experiences that influenced me:

* Worked as a volunteer at the the Indiana School for the Deaf (as a teacher's assistant in Laura Gaalema's third grade class)
* Worked as a volunteer for GLAD Orange County Outreach in California
* Worked as a volunteer the (former) Indiana Branch Office of the National Association of the Deaf
* Lived on-campus at Gallaudet University during a summer internship program
* Took night classes at the Oregon School for the Deaf (Salem).
* Participated in a hundreds of hours of "American Judicial System" - related ASL training at California State University Northridge
* Attended many (!) workshops
* Researched ASL Linguistics, ASL acquisition, and Computer Assisted Language Learning during my doctoral studies Lamar University
* Directed/participated in 15 years of "immersion excursions" to exciting places with Deaf co-hosts
* Directing an interpreter-training program for Davis County school district during which I interviewed, hired, and worked closely with many (over 30) Deaf guest-speakers and/or trainers
* And lately I spend much of my time discussing the nuances of ASL with my d/Deaf colleagues at work and online.

 

Question: Do you lip-read?


Answer: With my hearing-aid on, in a quiet environment, "one-on-one" with someone (and I can see their face with a non-distracting background) -- I can usually figure out what a person is saying (if I'm familiar with the topic).  If the person is more than a few feet away, has a mustache, an accent, or a bright light behind them (or if it is a group setting) I prefer to have an interpreter. 

 

 

Question: What kind of experience do you have teaching ASL?


Answer:  I taught ASL at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah for over a decade. I have taught ASL classes and/or workshops at the Utah Community Center for the Deaf, the IRS, Hill Air Force Base, Defense Depot Ogden Utah, Mills Montessori School, the Newgate Mall, Your Community Connection of Ogden, Clearfield Community Schools, Davis County School District, Weber County School District, Ogden City Corporation, The Sign Language Studio, Lifeprint Institute, Lamar University in Beaumont Texas, The Sign Language Association, ASL University, California State University--Sacramento, and dozens of other places. As of this writing I am a full-time, tenured, full professor of American Sign Language and Deaf Studies.  Teaching ASL is my life's work. 

Update: Since I wrote the above, I've added "Guyana, South America" to the list. Guyana was by far the hardest work -- and the most fun.] 

Update:  Add Singapore to the list. I've done two separate week-long sign language-related workshops for the National Association for the Deaf (in Singapore).

 



 

Notes: 

Audiogram: William G. Vicars (Age 19)
Date: 4/24/1985
Is Bill Vicars Deaf?

 




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