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New billboard targets deaf community | KXAN.com
Have you, as a hearing person, ever tried to make a phone call to a member of the deaf community? In the past, that was a real challenge.
"Back in old time we used to have the TTY and it was a teletype communication device," said deaf entrepreneur Ed Bosson. "And it would take forever for us to communicate with the hearing people. So now, with the video relay service, like now it's very fast."
Bosson is the chair of the board of directors for a company called " Convo " which provides Video Relay Service for deaf telephone users. In fact, his official bio calls him the "Father of Video Relay Service." Not only did he pioneer the practice of using video screens and interpreters to facilitate phone calls between the hearing and deaf worlds, he spent almost two decades directing the Texas Public Utility Commission's relay program.
"It was a challenge, but I was able to convince them to have an aide who could be an interpreter and that really helped big time," Bosson said. "State regulators have a mindset about how things should be done. But working with the deaf and hard-of-hearing is a little different. You need a different approach and it was my responsibility to explain to them what's functional and what's equal and what that means; not just to provide a basic service."
These days, Bosson shares ownership of Convo with four other deaf people. Ninety per cent of the employees are deaf and everyone involved with the company is fluent in American Sign Language . But Bosson points out that there are at least eight other certified VRS companies out there to compete with and most of them have heavy corporate support. To meet that challenge, Convo decided on a bold marketing strategy: a billboard located in the middle of the nexus of Austin's deaf community, two blocks from the Texas School for the Deaf on South Congress Avenue.
The billboard features a graceful arc of five separate ASL signs, bookended by two larger gestures. More of an artistic statement than a literal message, the sign attempts to draw the attention of the deaf community, yes, but of hearing people, as well.
I hope that they will wonder about it: What is the sign about? I hope they think about it and process it. The opportunity is there, maybe to ask a deaf person that's around, to see what the billboard's about and maybe create some communication about it."
He means communication in a general sense. But the billboard pushes a technology that allows for very specific communication, too. With VRS, a hearing person can pick up the phone and dial a number. An interpreter intercepts the call and routes it to the intended recipient. The deaf person can watch the interpreter translate the caller's speech into ASL. Then the deaf person responds in sign language while the interpreter repeats the message out loud for the hearing person. There is a short delay from time to time as the call unfolds, but it is a remarkably smooth process. And, of course, it can also be used by a deaf person to call people in the hearing world.
"It's a huge role; it's a very big role in our lives," said 18 year-old School for the Deaf student David Hornsby. It's easier to communicate with hearing people, communicate with a deaf person. It's better than using text messages, using the video relay."
"In the past, maybe say, 50 years ago, deaf people really had to suffer," agreed TSD student Jamie Utzman, 16. "They did not have the technology; they had a really hard time communicating. So now we are so thankful with all the technological advances. It's about time."
But why a billboard? Well, eyeball visibility is part of it, sure. But layers of modern technology can multiply the effect.
"By putting up a billboard, we can put that on Facebook; we can put it on Twitter, emails, and it will be exposed," Bosson said. "And that seems to really help spread the word."
And according to TSD student Tozzie Smith, 17, it is a word worth spreading.
"I like it because I think it really shows the whole community," Smith said. “Obviously, it's a big billboard for both deaf and hearing people to see. It increases that recognition of the deaf community through use of technology, and I really appreciate that it's there.”
Pride is breaking out in the deaf community of Austin and it is a “sign of the times.”
Have you, as a hearing person, ever tried to make a phone call to a member of the deaf community? In the past, that was a real challenge.
"Back in old time we used to have the TTY and it was a teletype communication device," said deaf entrepreneur Ed Bosson. "And it would take forever for us to communicate with the hearing people. So now, with the video relay service, like now it's very fast."
Bosson is the chair of the board of directors for a company called " Convo " which provides Video Relay Service for deaf telephone users. In fact, his official bio calls him the "Father of Video Relay Service." Not only did he pioneer the practice of using video screens and interpreters to facilitate phone calls between the hearing and deaf worlds, he spent almost two decades directing the Texas Public Utility Commission's relay program.
"It was a challenge, but I was able to convince them to have an aide who could be an interpreter and that really helped big time," Bosson said. "State regulators have a mindset about how things should be done. But working with the deaf and hard-of-hearing is a little different. You need a different approach and it was my responsibility to explain to them what's functional and what's equal and what that means; not just to provide a basic service."
These days, Bosson shares ownership of Convo with four other deaf people. Ninety per cent of the employees are deaf and everyone involved with the company is fluent in American Sign Language . But Bosson points out that there are at least eight other certified VRS companies out there to compete with and most of them have heavy corporate support. To meet that challenge, Convo decided on a bold marketing strategy: a billboard located in the middle of the nexus of Austin's deaf community, two blocks from the Texas School for the Deaf on South Congress Avenue.
The billboard features a graceful arc of five separate ASL signs, bookended by two larger gestures. More of an artistic statement than a literal message, the sign attempts to draw the attention of the deaf community, yes, but of hearing people, as well.
I hope that they will wonder about it: What is the sign about? I hope they think about it and process it. The opportunity is there, maybe to ask a deaf person that's around, to see what the billboard's about and maybe create some communication about it."
He means communication in a general sense. But the billboard pushes a technology that allows for very specific communication, too. With VRS, a hearing person can pick up the phone and dial a number. An interpreter intercepts the call and routes it to the intended recipient. The deaf person can watch the interpreter translate the caller's speech into ASL. Then the deaf person responds in sign language while the interpreter repeats the message out loud for the hearing person. There is a short delay from time to time as the call unfolds, but it is a remarkably smooth process. And, of course, it can also be used by a deaf person to call people in the hearing world.
"It's a huge role; it's a very big role in our lives," said 18 year-old School for the Deaf student David Hornsby. It's easier to communicate with hearing people, communicate with a deaf person. It's better than using text messages, using the video relay."
"In the past, maybe say, 50 years ago, deaf people really had to suffer," agreed TSD student Jamie Utzman, 16. "They did not have the technology; they had a really hard time communicating. So now we are so thankful with all the technological advances. It's about time."
But why a billboard? Well, eyeball visibility is part of it, sure. But layers of modern technology can multiply the effect.
"By putting up a billboard, we can put that on Facebook; we can put it on Twitter, emails, and it will be exposed," Bosson said. "And that seems to really help spread the word."
And according to TSD student Tozzie Smith, 17, it is a word worth spreading.
"I like it because I think it really shows the whole community," Smith said. “Obviously, it's a big billboard for both deaf and hearing people to see. It increases that recognition of the deaf community through use of technology, and I really appreciate that it's there.”
Pride is breaking out in the deaf community of Austin and it is a “sign of the times.”
