Being a part of a college campus means that in some way, shape or form, you want to help change the world, or at the very least be an active part of it. Even if your only aspiration, after spending four years at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) is to get a desk job and make sure there is enough money in your checking account to pay rent, you still have shown the self advocacy to make sure that you’ve secured a place for yourself in the world. Through our time here we realize it’s the little things that build up day after day, and month after month to help us reach our goals and create something we are proud of.
The American Sign Language (ASL) Club is the perfect example of this, creating a tight-knit community on campus where people can feel like they are learning something new, making connections with others and inciting real change in the world.
Makayla Anderson, third year education major and president of the club, explained that ASL club started a few years back and had a decent membership up until the pandemic began. Faith Jenkins, second year education major elaborated further, stating that the club itself is very important to those who wish to learn ASL, as there are no courses at UCR for students to learn the language: “this is a way for students to learn some sign language and practice their signs, because some students come into the college already knowing sign language. We do have a huge deaf population here, so it’s really good to just even know basic signs so you can communicate in public.”
Those who join the ASL club do so for a variety of reasons. Sharing her reasons for getting involved, Anderson stated, “I am a CODA, which stands for Child of Deaf Adults. My dad is deaf, so I’m fluent in my language. And coming into UCR as a freshman, I wanted to find a place where I can be involved and continue to support the deaf culture and the community, and so I joined as treasurer, and now I am president.”
Expanding on her involvement in the club, Anderson noted that it’s a great way for her to share her knowledge of ASL with other people. As Jenkins previously mentioned, there are no ASL classes offered at UCR, which poses a great opportunity for those who are interested in learning ASL and for advancing their goal of generating broader interest in ASL.
Others joined because they wanted to maintain skills they learned in high school, or because they wanted to get involved with the deaf and hard of hearing community themselves.
The club meetings themselves start with a quick overview of what the club is about before going over the previous meeting’s lessons as a way to review. Then the meeting launches into the new lesson taught by ASL instructor Carlene Middleby-Hernandez. Anderson and Jenkins emphasized repetition as means of learning the material. The lessons scaffold, building on top of each other and furthering your sign language skills. The club also hosts a lot of fun and casual events, such as potlucks and handpainting. They interact with the deaf community in Riverside as well through tabling at conventions, having guest speakers and partnering with local community colleges.
Both Anderson and Jenkins believe that representation as well as opportunities are sorely needed in the deaf community. Be it a deaf actor’s opportunities being taken away by a hearing actor or even a lack of captioning for lectures here on campus, deaf individuals struggle to find a space for themselves in the world due to lack of consideration. The club aims to tackle that by teaching hearing and non-hearing students alike basic signs, so that they can meet deaf individuals halfway and reciprocate their efforts.
The club outreach mostly happens over social media, which is where they try to advocate for ASL classes at UCR as well as try to boost club membership in general. Anderson described how the club wanted to start fundraising soon to expand the club’s activities.
Both big and small opportunities for change take place at ASL Club. Whether it’s interacting with campus faculty to push for ASL classes or simply learning how to sign “what’s up,” ASL Club allows students to provide a space for themselves and others to make a difference in the world.
