Yesterday, my legs and feet ached afterwards from all the walking...walking from the NY Ave/Florida Ave metro to Gallaudet, the march from Gallaudet to capitol hill, the walk from capitol hill to union station, and finally walking back to the metro from htGallaudet.
I barely made it to Gallaudet in time for the march. Metro did not open til 8 am, and I arrived at Gallaudet at 9:15 am, after the march had already begun. I was able to join the tail end of the march.
Highlights of the Day
The highlights of my day: talking to reporters from the Washington Post and Channel 9. Meeting Lizzie Sorkin, the first deaf RIT student government president. Meeting Ridor of Ridorlive.com.
 Ridor, General of the Deaf Blogger Army |
 Protesting is hard work...an exhausted Chris Corrigan rests in Fowler Hall |
and LaToya Plummer (whose arrest picture on the front page of the Washington Post is going to be remembered a long time in the deaf community). Meeting Albert Berke from Alaska, whom I am not related to but have been asked about for years. And of course, seeing some old faces from my Gallaudet and NTID years.
Uninformed Washington Post Reporter
The Post reporter, who I shall not name, surprised me with a question. When I was telling her the "She Doesn't Care" story, she asked me, "why do you say the substitute teachers were not qualified to teach deaf children?" and "wasn't it enough for them to know sign language?" I had to explain to her that to teach deaf children, you have to get training in deaf education! She had a hard time understanding what i meant by that, too, so I had to explain that there are colleges, programs where people who want to become teachers of the deaf go to get special training. The last unqualified substitute teacher my child's class had, was a sweet, young, recent Gallaudet graduate with a degree in communication arts. We parents liked her, but she simply did not know how to teach the children - I can remember her having to go around to the other teachers asking for help.
Work to the Rule
I talked to a faculty member (wearing a sign that said 82% on her back), and asked her what she would do if Fernandes became president. She declared she would continue to teach, but she would stop giving more of herself beyond her job expectations. She would come to class, teach, go home. That's it. She would limit herself to working to the rule.
Homecoming without the Home
Yet, it felt like something was missing. There was no football game and I could not go to the one in Maryland because of lacking a car. Being limited to the front of the campus also made it feel like something was missing. It was homecoming, yet it wasn't homecoming.
It was difficult to be serious about protesting on such a beautiful day. After lunch, I returned to the Gallaudet campus to hang around for awhile. I also wanted to buy a Unity for Gallaudet shirt. They were sold out! I came across a table for the National Association for the Deaf and decided to get a NAD membership instead. Then they brought out more shirts for sale, sending me running to the ATM for more money so I could buy a shirt.
Unity for Gallaudet Shirts
The Unity for Gallaudet shirts are pretty cool and well-designed. No wonder it is so popular and people are asking where they can buy it online. On the back the shirts say "diversity, unity, community." It occured to me on the way home, that if Jane Fernandes wants to start winning hearts and minds in the deaf community, one thing she could do is appear in public wearing a Unity for Gallaudet shirt. Why not? She talks about diversity all the time herself.
Permanently Changed Gallaudet
Another thing that I have realized, is that Gallaudet will never be the same again. No matter how this turns out, Gallaudet will never again be the same. I believe that the FSSA has a future beyond this protest. Gallaudet has long has a Gallaudet University Alumni Association (GUAA), but has it ever had an organization that combined the forces of the faculty, staff, students, and alumni?
The FSSA could serve as a permanent watchdog for the Gallaudet community. It could monitor both present and future boards of trustees. It can act as a communications link between Gallaudet University and the outside deaf community. It can help Gallaudet with future fundraising efforts.
1 comments:
The teacher's comment made me think. Would I do the same; continue to work as before but only up to minimal expectations? It was a difficult question to ask myself...keep the job and/or teach the best I knew how, time notwithstanding? Teaching to rule only punishes the kids, not the administrator.
I'd leave. I'd find an administrator that I believed in and supported wholeheartedly, knowing that he or she supports my efforts in teaching just as wholeheartedly.
Having worked for bad bosses and then for good bosses, there is no question.
DPG
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