Miss-Delectable
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News for Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa
The Board of Regents met today to narrow down the list of candidates to become the new superintendent for the South Dakota School for the Deaf. The winning candidate will face a unique challenge.
The school has two programs. One is bilingual, serving students from pre-school to high school.
Students in that program communicate primarily through American Sign Language and written English.
The other program focuses on using spoken English and serves students from preschool through 4th grade. Students in that program use hearing aids or cochlear implants to communicate.
Resigning superintendent Maureen Schloss, says, “Having them both in one building is a challenge, but nevertheless, I believe, necessary to make sure services to students and their families are appropriate in South Dakota."
The school serves 274 students, 49 of those are on campus and the rest through outreach.
Parents of those students will be watching the selection process closely. They want someone who knows about more than just reading and writing.
In the silence of this Sioux Falls home, you'll begin to see the elements of something unique.
Jennifer Dans-Willey says, "We have our own language, we have our own values, we have our own heritage."
It's called Deaf Culture, something Jennifer Dans-Willey values and wants her son's school to value as well. So as the Board of Regents looks for a new person to lead South Dakota School for the Deaf, she has a request.
Dans-Willey says, "I hope the new superintendent understands people's needs, our cultural needs as Deaf people, and respects our culture as well."
It's a culture with different aspects but one that centers around American Sign Language.
Dans-Willey says, "The superintendent should be able to communicate fluently with the students there."
And that's the very least. She also wants someone who understands deafness for what it is- a culture, not a disability.
Dans-Willey says, "SDSD can be a fantastic school, can be a model school equivalent to any of the major schools."
All she asks is that its superintendent understands the elements seen in the silence of this home.
Dans-Willey says it would be nice to have a Deaf superintendent but will gladly accept a hearing one who has cultural understanding of the community.
The Board of Regents met today to narrow down the list of candidates to become the new superintendent for the South Dakota School for the Deaf. The winning candidate will face a unique challenge.
The school has two programs. One is bilingual, serving students from pre-school to high school.
Students in that program communicate primarily through American Sign Language and written English.
The other program focuses on using spoken English and serves students from preschool through 4th grade. Students in that program use hearing aids or cochlear implants to communicate.
Resigning superintendent Maureen Schloss, says, “Having them both in one building is a challenge, but nevertheless, I believe, necessary to make sure services to students and their families are appropriate in South Dakota."
The school serves 274 students, 49 of those are on campus and the rest through outreach.
Parents of those students will be watching the selection process closely. They want someone who knows about more than just reading and writing.
In the silence of this Sioux Falls home, you'll begin to see the elements of something unique.
Jennifer Dans-Willey says, "We have our own language, we have our own values, we have our own heritage."
It's called Deaf Culture, something Jennifer Dans-Willey values and wants her son's school to value as well. So as the Board of Regents looks for a new person to lead South Dakota School for the Deaf, she has a request.
Dans-Willey says, "I hope the new superintendent understands people's needs, our cultural needs as Deaf people, and respects our culture as well."
It's a culture with different aspects but one that centers around American Sign Language.
Dans-Willey says, "The superintendent should be able to communicate fluently with the students there."
And that's the very least. She also wants someone who understands deafness for what it is- a culture, not a disability.
Dans-Willey says, "SDSD can be a fantastic school, can be a model school equivalent to any of the major schools."
All she asks is that its superintendent understands the elements seen in the silence of this home.
Dans-Willey says it would be nice to have a Deaf superintendent but will gladly accept a hearing one who has cultural understanding of the community.