VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA
Lizzie Grant can tell a joke in American Sign Language with the best of them.
That skill will come in handy this fall when she enters Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. All classes there are conducted in sign language because nearly all of the students are deaf or hard of hearing.
But Grant can hear.
The Ocean Lakes High School senior has been admitted to the university as a member of the Hearing Undergraduate Student program. Only a small number of students are accepted each year, and they must plan on a career in the deaf community.
Although she's had an interest in American Sign Language and deaf culture since sixth grade, she didn't take a formal class in ASL until freshman year at Ocean Lakes. She had gotten interested in deaf culture when she was attending a church affiliated with a school for deaf children.
"I noticed from day one that she was different," said Lynn Steinberg, Grant's sign language teacher and mentor at Ocean Lakes. Grant's enthusiasm was immediate and palpable. Steinberg, who accompanied Grant to her Gallaudet interview in February, spoke through interpreter Jenny Bradley.
At Ocean Lakes - where there are about a dozen deaf students - Grant has become a sign ambassador of sorts, encouraging others to learn sign language, leading the school ASL club, and tutoring sign language students.
She has immersed herself in deaf culture outside school as well. She attends "silent dinners" at area malls where conversations are entirely in sign language. She has spent countless hours with Steinberg, inside and outside school, practicing signing. And she follows the video logs - vlogs - several deaf individuals post regularly on YouTube.
She plans to use her skills to become an interpreter, hopefully on Broadway. She said the immersion at Gallaudet will be the best way to learn.
"She signs now more like a child who grew up in a deaf family. She's like a sponge," said Steinberg, who encouraged Grant to apply to Gallaudet as a hearing student.
Grant's close friend Brandon VanDriesen said he speaks to her almost entirely in sign language. "I learned everything I know from Lizzie," he said. "Sometimes I'll just be watching her, and it gives me chills."
Last year, Grant won a first-place prize in the American Sign Language Honor Society's national literature competition for her April Fools' Day tale.
This year, she's also helping other students brainstorm their entries.
"We're trying to convince people why they should learn ASL, setting up different scenarios," she said to ASL 2 students Bridgie Weber and Victoria Matter. "Like if your friend is inside a restaurant and you're outside," she said, her hands simultaneously moving through the air, signing. "If you sign, you're not screaming across the restaurant, being rude."
Grant's father, Mike Grant, said he's proud his daughter will attend Gallaudet. He has always encouraged his children to learn a second language, though he expected it to be Spanish, not ASL.
"She's taking it to a whole other level," her father said.
Steinberg, who attended Gallaudet as a graduate student, said Grant will do well there.
During their two-day visit to Gallaudet, "she walked out there and chatted" with the students in sign language.
"She has no fear," Steinberg said. "That's why she's so successful."
