By having meetings every Tuesday in room A157, the American Sign Language (ASL) Club aims to teach others sign language and the importance of it.
The club has been active for three years now, with current advisors Briana Hampson and Keely Gallagher.
Former advisor Anne Frederick retired last year.
According to ASL Club president Jaye Stainsby, she is the “longest-standing member” of the club.
When Stainsby joined the club her freshman year, they used a lot of textbook pages which helped her learn.
“[The club] also have videos linked,” Stainsby said.
That can help learners who do not prefer to learn from textbooks.
Both Hampson and Stainsby believe that just practicing signing with another person can also be helpful for a lot of people trying to learn.
“Advising/attending the club with students allows us all to learn together,” Hampson said.
“I sort of associate certain hand signs with things,” club member Rohit Thomas said.
Thomas joined the club because his grandfather is starting to lose his hearing, and Thomas “just wanted to talk to him a bit more.”
Thomas has always liked learning new things and ASL Club helps to satisfy his curiosity.
ASL Club member Ben Carp joined so he could talk to his two little brothers.
“I have been teaching my little brothers how to sign things,” Carp said. “That is how you teach babies how to communicate at first.”
Club members have joined because of their curiosity and because of family members.
The case is different for Gallagher. She had a deaf professor in college.
“We were only really allowed to communicate with signs,” Gallagher said. “We were not allowed to talk.”
Gallagher also believes that having a deaf professor “forced them” to learn sign language, but she ended up enjoying sign language and being good at it.
“In my opinion, sign language is probably just as vital as knowing English,” Stainsby said.
Stainsby feels that any career choice would benefit from knowing sign language.
Both Hampson and Gallagher also believe any career choice would benefit from knowing sign language.
“Anyone that would be looking at going into any type of service-based career would benefit,” Hampson said.
Fields that could benefit include healthcare, education, aviation and more.
For Gallagher, not only is sign language beneficial for bigger jobs, but sign language could also be beneficial for people working in chain restaurants like, “Taco Bell and McDonald’s.”
Hampson also said that sign language is its own career path.
“To be an interpreter is an entire career,” Hampson said.
Hampson said being an interpreter is a really great and fun career that people do not often realize.
Plus, Hamspon said interpreters are needed for things like “concerts, productions, plays and public speaking,” so you travel wherever you are needed.
The ASL Club is trying to expand from just school meetings.
“We are currently looking at different community-based activities for the club to be able to go and do,” Hampson said. “There are Starbucks meet-ups where it is all a silent night, and everyone signs and learns, which is awesome.”
Hampson feels that ASL is much more widespread across the country than people think it may be.
To Hampson, it would be almost selfish for people to not learn sign language and to “not pursue it in any shape and form” because of how prevalent it is in the country.