Miss-Delectable
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The Frederick News-Post Online - Frederick County Maryland Daily Newspaper
Jessica Feldman stood at the front of a downtown conference room Wednesday, right hand outstretched to demonstrate the manual alphabet.
Brandon McMillan stood nearby, mirroring each gesture.
Together, they showed five Frederick County Chamber of Commerce employees how to fingerspell their names, introduce themselves and form a few business-related phrases in American Sign Language.
Feldman and McMillan are Maryland School for the Deaf students-turned-teachers earning service learning credit while sharing their language and culture with the hearing community. Each student at the school must volunteer 75 hours to graduate high school.
The school offers the seminar to the business community to help bridge the gap between deaf and hearing people by introducing participants to sign language and deaf culture. The program began in 2004, but had dropped off and just resumed this year.
Feldman, 16, has already earned enough service learning hours to graduate, but decided to participate because she thought it would be interesting. It was her first time teaching hearing people to sign.
"I thought it was great that they were all so motivated," Feldman said through an interpreter. "I thought it was cool to spread the word about deaf culture."
Kriste Hartman Kovarcik, community relations specialist for the school, introduced the employees to deaf culture with the help of an interactive quiz.
Participants in the two-hour class seemed surprised to learn it's not rude to cut between two people while they're signing or that it's considered rude to call deaf people "hearing impaired."
"It never ceases to amaze me to see a new appreciation and understanding spread during these sessions," Kovarcik said. "MSD used to be known as that school behind the black gates, but now we're known for our athletics, education and outreach."
Over the past few months, she has organized similar classes for workers at If the Shoe Fits, Rita's Italian ices and Best Buy.
The experience is changing the way some do business. Rita's now offers deaf customers a laminated menu and grease pencil to make ordering easier.
The class will be available to businesses again in September after the new school year begins.
After the lecture Wednesday, participants practiced finger spelling and signing. When someone made the wrong move, McMillan, 17, pointed at his own hand to show the correct way.
American Sign Language involves four components -- hand shape, location, movement and palm orientation.
Some participants had trouble forming the proper hand shape while others struggled with the movement and location of hand shapes.
It wasn't all hard work. Some participants joked about shortening their names to make it easier to finger spell.
Richard Adams, president and CEO of the chamber, was luckier than most. He spells his name Ric.
He struggled to form the letter "I" -- a fist with the pinkie extended and the palm oriented away from the signer -- because he had trouble wrapping his thumb around his fingers while holding his pinkie up.
His favorite was the letter "Z" -- index finger pointing while moving the hand in a zig-zag motion.
Adams recalled serving ice cream to several deaf patrons at Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shop on Carroll Creek during the grand opening in April. At the time, he didn't know any sign language.
"It was really awkward because all we could do was point," he said. "I definitely wasn't as comfortable as I would like to have been."
After learning about deaf culture and how to sign a few phrases, Adams gained an appreciation for how difficult it is to learn a new language. The experience also deepened his respect for deaf people.
"It was wonderful; anytime you can learn, it helps you go beyond your comfort level," Adams said. "If I worked at it for a couple of days, I think I'll get it."
Jessica Feldman stood at the front of a downtown conference room Wednesday, right hand outstretched to demonstrate the manual alphabet.
Brandon McMillan stood nearby, mirroring each gesture.
Together, they showed five Frederick County Chamber of Commerce employees how to fingerspell their names, introduce themselves and form a few business-related phrases in American Sign Language.
Feldman and McMillan are Maryland School for the Deaf students-turned-teachers earning service learning credit while sharing their language and culture with the hearing community. Each student at the school must volunteer 75 hours to graduate high school.
The school offers the seminar to the business community to help bridge the gap between deaf and hearing people by introducing participants to sign language and deaf culture. The program began in 2004, but had dropped off and just resumed this year.
Feldman, 16, has already earned enough service learning hours to graduate, but decided to participate because she thought it would be interesting. It was her first time teaching hearing people to sign.
"I thought it was great that they were all so motivated," Feldman said through an interpreter. "I thought it was cool to spread the word about deaf culture."
Kriste Hartman Kovarcik, community relations specialist for the school, introduced the employees to deaf culture with the help of an interactive quiz.
Participants in the two-hour class seemed surprised to learn it's not rude to cut between two people while they're signing or that it's considered rude to call deaf people "hearing impaired."
"It never ceases to amaze me to see a new appreciation and understanding spread during these sessions," Kovarcik said. "MSD used to be known as that school behind the black gates, but now we're known for our athletics, education and outreach."
Over the past few months, she has organized similar classes for workers at If the Shoe Fits, Rita's Italian ices and Best Buy.
The experience is changing the way some do business. Rita's now offers deaf customers a laminated menu and grease pencil to make ordering easier.
The class will be available to businesses again in September after the new school year begins.
After the lecture Wednesday, participants practiced finger spelling and signing. When someone made the wrong move, McMillan, 17, pointed at his own hand to show the correct way.
American Sign Language involves four components -- hand shape, location, movement and palm orientation.
Some participants had trouble forming the proper hand shape while others struggled with the movement and location of hand shapes.
It wasn't all hard work. Some participants joked about shortening their names to make it easier to finger spell.
Richard Adams, president and CEO of the chamber, was luckier than most. He spells his name Ric.
He struggled to form the letter "I" -- a fist with the pinkie extended and the palm oriented away from the signer -- because he had trouble wrapping his thumb around his fingers while holding his pinkie up.
His favorite was the letter "Z" -- index finger pointing while moving the hand in a zig-zag motion.
Adams recalled serving ice cream to several deaf patrons at Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shop on Carroll Creek during the grand opening in April. At the time, he didn't know any sign language.
"It was really awkward because all we could do was point," he said. "I definitely wasn't as comfortable as I would like to have been."
After learning about deaf culture and how to sign a few phrases, Adams gained an appreciation for how difficult it is to learn a new language. The experience also deepened his respect for deaf people.
"It was wonderful; anytime you can learn, it helps you go beyond your comfort level," Adams said. "If I worked at it for a couple of days, I think I'll get it."