Before I left for the conference, I posted about the rack rates at the fancy-schmancy hotel at the GUKCC. It’s now February 16, and they haven’t changed a word– guess they don’t like to dig around in the Sandbox.

Well, I’m back from the conference. The room was much better this time than the last time I took a peek into the hotel’s offerings, which was approximately five or six years ago. While it definitely isn’t worth $300+, I was generally satisfied.

There was one major exception though: the front desk staff. While they were helpful and knowledgeable in the end, all of the staff members I encountered were hearing. None of them knew sign, as far as I know. They certainly couldn’t understand what I and my friends were saying, and while they had a pad and paper at hand, I find this situation appalling.

While I have no intention of demanding that the GUKCC hire only deaf employees, and I know that the GUKCC is an expensive building that has to pay for itself and thus offers its space to outside groups and individuals for conferences and hotel rooms and such, I think Gallaudet needs to remember where the GUKCC is: it’s on a campus whose sole purpose is as an educational center for DEAF people.

At the very least, I expect ALL front desk staff at the GUKCC to be bilingual, whether hearing or deaf. Hearing staff members should have excellent receptive and expressive skills, in addition to their own native fluency in English; deaf staff members should be able to read and write English at a level that showcases the abilities and potential that deaf people are capable of, in addition to their own mastery of Sign.

I have a suggestion for Gallaudet: whenever you hire a hearing person in a front-line position such as the GUKCC or at Public Relations or any other job where public interaction is at a premium (I’m not counting the cafeteria workers or PPD here– although I think they need to make their own efforts to learn enough conversational sign for public interaction), and they don’t know ASL to the extent that they can successfully interact, then they need to be paired at all times with someone in the same office or desk area who is either deaf or already fluent in ASL (or close to fluent). This person can help the new employee get up to speed, not only on the job but also where language skills are concerned. This person can also help evaluate the probationary employee when a review takes place, and add their assessment of whether the new hire is someone that Gallaudet should keep or not.

As for the GUKCC, I think there should be two people on staff at all times: one deaf and one hearing. The three times I went to the front desk for something, all the people I encountered were hearing and lacking in rudimentary ASL skills. This is unacceptable. Why should I have to feel at Gallaudet the same way I feel when I stay at any other hotel/motel in the DC area? Certainly for the experience, I’d get a better deal price-wise staying downtown at one of the nicer hotels and receive the same level of communication I was getting at the GUKCC.

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As long as we’re on the subject of communication at Gallaudet, I’d like to mention another incident. I stayed in DC a bit longer, first to work with a client (I’m slowly building a career (*fingers crossed*) as a free-lance writer– wish me luck!), then to do some research on a topic I’ve been meaning to write about for some time. When I took a break from my research at the library, I decided to see what the present incarnation of Ely Center offered in the way of food. I bumped into Ryan Commerson, who confirmed that there was still a place to chow down, although now it was in the basement rather than on the ground floor level. So I headed off to the Marketplace (do people on campus really call it that? I know I wouldn’t be calling the cafeteria “Cafe Bon Appetit”– in my day, most people would have called it “Cafe Stomachache” (to be charitable, the food wasn’t *that* bad, although my earliest stint on the Buff and Blue was an article on the undercooked chicken served to the masses).

I went there, and was impressed– definitely an improvement– more offerings, more healthy choices (sushi??) , and improved internal circulation– the line at the cashier’s didn’t interfere as much with operations inside as they used to. After paying for my food, I found a table inside the Rathskellar. I looked around curiously, both to get a feel for the Rathskellar and also to see if there was anyone I knew there– nope. I’m definitely an old fart. But I did notice a handful of women at the next table, all obviously employees, and all talking– with their voices. No ASL, not even a semblance of signs.

Now, I have nothing against people using their voices, or speaking. But again, it’s Gallaudet. It’d be nice if they used the time to continue to enhance their ASL skills, as well as lend credence to the notion that Gallaudet is a place where everyone signs. I was reminded of Bobby Cox’s presentation at the conference– the perception that Gallaudet serves the deaf community via its college population. While I don’t need and didn’t plan to eavesdrop on their conversation, it would have been nice to see them as part of a larger landscape– a world where everyone signs. Sadly, this wasn’t the case. It seems that for all its vaunted excellence in providing a environment of linguistic equality, Gallaudet still has a way to go.

I got home a few days ago from chilly Washington, D.C. (which since has become even more wintery), and promptly got caught up in stuff around here. Now that things have calmed down somewhat, I want to share some of my reflections on that event. As most of you know, I was one of the panelists, and the entire proceedings are now online at the CCI site. Aside from occasional blips here and there, the tape is very smooth, and it’s rather humbling that quite a few people aside from the usual suspects actually viewed the conference. It’s also somewhat surreal (or as Mrs. Sandman says, creepy) to know that a bunch of you out there now know what I look like, while I have no idea what YOU look like. But I knew the risks going in. It was worth it.

The highlight of course was getting the chance to meet so many people, some for the first time, and others for the first time in person. Additionally, I was able to spend some time with a couple old friends, so it was partially a conference, partially a social event (at least for me!). But there was also work to do. Most people stated afterwards it was an excellent conference, and for some it was an inspiring event. I view it as just a first step in a series of steps that we all need to take, and I’m hoping the conference spurs additional discussion, either on the same topics each of us covered, or on related subjects.

Most of my fellow panelists have posted entries regarding their experiences; while most were celebratory, a good number (myself included) also included transcripts or notes of their conference remarks. If you haven’t yet done so, go and read them; at the very least, it’ll be food for thought. Ideally, perhaps their thoughts and suggestions will spark additional discussions. Here’s Bobby Cox’s and Shane Feldman’s remarks; Frarochvia at Bellamoden posted her reflections; Jared Evans lauded the conference here, and Tayler Mayer posted his notes as well. Elisa emerged from hibernation to remark on the tortures of women’s fashion (paging Dan McClintock– time to do an updated cartoon of the deaf blogosphere? You also now know what several of us look like, heh…), while wildstarryskies discussed the conference in advance, but has yet to say anything post-conference. Mike McConnell went the furthest, commenting extensively on the conference both before and after. I was intrigued by his early post on his panel topic, and told him so. I had to wait until the actual conference to see his thoughts on some of the questions he posed. He defended his decision to use his voice here. For the record, it was his decision to do so, and he is reflective of a segment of the deaf community that, although deaf, prefers other means of communication other than signing. For that alone, I respect his decision– it may not have been something I necessarily agreed with personally, but with the interpreter present, his panel remarks were inclusive.

Since the conference, he has questioned why no students were present (for the record, I too was slightly disappointed there weren’t a larger number of students- perhaps at 9 am, no, but it would have been nice to see more student faces towards the late morning and into the afternoon), and made the assumption that students didn’t know how to blog/vlog (they do– I checked out Elisa’s earlier site once, and followed the Xanga ring, as well as checked a couple other people’s xanga sites– there’s quite a few students who blog, although maybe not on the serious, deep, free-thinking level as some of us do). Ben Vess at Der Sankt Speaks… mounted a spirited defense of his generation in response to McConnell’s queries.

McConnell followed this by graciously allowing Curious Eyes (Patti Albee) space to post her remarks from the conference as well, so her thoughts are online too.

As for the vloggers, Carl Schroeder shared his take on the conference here, while Amy Cohen-Efron discussed her observations here (although it’s mostly a “thank you” to her supporters for voting for her during the Deaf Blog Awards). Joey Baer went a bit further, and actually “interviewed” most of us at the conference and during the Deaf Blog Awards banquet. He also posted a vlog discussing his upcoming stint as panelist, and a post-conference vlog as well, featuring his presentation.

Sadly, Elizabeth of Mishka Zena couldn’t be present, and several of us mentioned her at lunch, and then thought of her again during the afternoon/evening when it became apparent she wasn’t going to be with us. Elizabeth, you were missed, and we hope the next time there is such a gathering, that you’ll be present! She did post about the conference though, at Mishka Zena.

I too posted a transcript of my conference presentation– just click here, or better yet, just scroll down– it’s the very next post. *grin*

A few people have commented either on the conference itself or the Deaf Blog Awards banquet that evening, including Neil at Deaf Firefighter’s Blog and Jamie Berke at Berke Outspoken, who noted a fact from the conference– approximately 2% of us blog, the other 98% read. She encouraged further participation from the readers/audience, and I agree. Don’t be afraid to add your voice to the conversation! I didn’t get a chance to meet him, but Dave of daveynin’s thing attended the conference, and took pictures of the panels and the presenters. Additionally, a post-conference interview with Jill Bradbury is posted at DeafBlogger.com.

Since the conference, I’ve been watching the blogosphere to see if the topics we brought up at the conference were becoming part of the conversation that I hoped would emerge as a result; in general, this isn’t happening just yet. However, Mike McConnell has continued to discuss what he sees as priorities in terms of utilizing technology at Gallaudet, and Carl Schroeder at Kalakau’s Korner commented on an interesting fact that came out during Interim Provost Moore’s response to the first panel: that prior to his installment, there was no videophone in the Provost’s office. While this fact alone is hardly a reason to remove Fernandes, it does highlight yet again her inability to connect with the campus and the community at large. I’m glad Moore insisted on installing VP in his office (and I need to do the same… *blush*)! While this isn’t necessarily an expansion of the conversation that started on February 3, it is an example of how those of us who attended and those who watched will need to continue to discuss the subjects we brought up and the facts we learned if we really want to enact change.

Fortunately, I think some of the presentations have rubbed off, if somewhat slowly. Barb at Deaf Progressivism has picked up the baton, and posted this excellent entry envisioning cooperation between various agencies, corporations, and entities on blogs and online websites for parents and children. While her thoughts are necessarily composed of answers, they do comprise a “big picture” sense of where we could go, and is an excellent topic for further discussion. I’m hoping that Barb’s post is the beginning of a trend, and not the exception to the rule.

As far as the panels go, I think each panel had common threads (which of course was the intent of Jill Bradbury!), but this isn’t a bad thing; instead, it shows how four independent people are roughly on the same page, which probably indicates that there’s a spoken and unspoken desire on the part of the community at large for change and growth in these areas. For example, the first panel (where I was a panelist) focused largely on a common theme of communication. The second panel spoke to diversity, while the third panel examined technology and the future of education. The fourth panel was probably what most people envisioned when they first heard about this conference, since the panelists spoke about the deaf blogosphere/DeafBlogLand and what they envisioned of the future. This panel could easily be replicated again at a future gathering– while I hope Gallaudet continues to support and sponsor similar forums, I do hope a more general gathering of the deaf blogosphere takes place. Such a conference/convention/gathering of the tribes will definitely need to include and invite a far larger number of people than the Gallaudet conference, which as its title and mission statement said was specifically focused on Gallaudet.

Some of the individual speakers had specific suggestions or concerns; since one person that speaks out generally is speaking for an unknown number of silent individuals with similar concerns, it’s important for the rest of us to listen. For example, Kristi Merriweather’s presentation was not so much about blogging in relation to Gallaudet, nor specifically about deafness or Deaf people, but about the state of race within the deaf community. Although she strayed from the original topic matter/intent of the conference, what she had to say should not be discounted. GallyNet-L has already borne the majority of the discussion on this topic, but a conversation about race and equality within the Deaf-world is needed, it seems.

I’ve already issued a challenge in private to my fellow panelists to share further thoughts and continue the conversation, but I’m extending that invitation to you as well. You may have watched the conference live, or you may have viewed it afterwards, when the panel tapes were posted online. Perhaps you have only read the various transcripts, or maybe you are just now becoming aware of all of this for the first time.

Just because the conference was at Gallaudet, and just because it wasn’t heavily attended, doesn’t mean we want to exclude you. The conference, as I said in my remarks, is just the first step in a journey of many steps. We cannot walk alone, and as I said, we cannot listen to the same limited number of voices. Please do share here and elsewhere what you think we should do next. How do we work on communication, diversity, technological changes, and the future of the deaf blogosphere and our latent political power? Do we continue to focus solely on internal issues concerning the Deaf-world, or do we branch out and tackle issues that all of us should be concerned with, both deaf and hearing? For me, the conference wasn’t just so much as “Whither Gallaudet?”– it was also “Whither the Deaf-world?”