Pack of Cards - from Alice ’ s Adventures in Wonderland

(Scroll down for more spring play photos!)

[ image description: Wonderland characters surround Alice who is sitting with her back to the audience, looking like she might fall. The Wonderland characters have their arms outstretched toward Alice.]

[ image description:  Photo below is a headshot of Clark Brooke. Clark is wearing a black shirt and an orange tie (school colors). He is looking at the camera smiling. The background is a professional gray marble screen.]

Greetings from the land

of ORANGE and BLACK !

 

I am sure that many of our readers enjoyed the annual March Madness tournament. It was definitely  March Madness  for our beloved school, CSD! Our students, families, and staff were engaged in a variety of showcases throughout the month. 

 

School Accreditation

We had our Accreditation visit by the  Western Association of Schools and Colleges  and the  Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf . The visit went very well and the visiting teams will be informing us of their final recommendation during the summertime. We aim to receive the  full six-year accreditation  from those visiting teams.

 

Family Fun Weekend

Every spring, we invite families to our Family Fun Weekend. This program is offered to families who are interested in learning more about Deaf culture, language, and resources on how to raise a Deaf child. There were several workshops, panel discussions, ASL games, and child care activities throughout the weekend. CSD believes that it is very important to reach out to families, even if they do not send their children to our school. CSD joins families in Northern California in raising their children by providing them with research-based information.

 

d ’ Estrella ASL Media Festival

 Our high school students hosted the 6 ^th  annual d’Estrella ASL Media Festival. We named the festival after our first Deaf student, Theophilus Hope d’Estrella. The intent of the festival is to celebrate American Sign Language and Deafhood; to promote human dignity; and to remove stigmas and audism. The festival is open to the public and we did have some visitors from the community who attended the event. Most importantly, this event is designed to empower our students in realizing their pride and their rights as Deaf individuals.

 

National Deaf Youth Day

An amazing student-centered opportunity was created through a partnership by the National Association of the Deaf  and Starbucks, which led us to the first annual National Deaf Youth Day. Interviewing and resume skills are the two most important stepping stones into the world of employment. This program gave our students experience in creating a convincing resume and/or developing their interviewing skills, with input from representatives from Starbucks, Uber, Lyft, Google, and the Deaf Counseling Advocacy & Referral Agency (DCARA). 

 

NDIAA and All Americans

CSD is pleased to present our  National Deaf Interscholastic Athletic Association All - Americans. Those student athletes have worked their tail off, and represented CSD to the best of their ability. In addition to those athletes, CSD appreciates all of the Athletic Directors who are members of this important organization, ensuring quality athletic programs for every Deaf student in the country. NDIAA hosted their annual conference, and we sent our athletic staff to be a part of this important network.

 

Alice ’ s Adventures in Wonderland

We were proud to be able to host our annual spring school play this year; the play had been put on hold for the past two years while the Klopping Theater underwent renovations. Those renovations were done mainly to ensure that the facility be accessible to all of our visitors. This year's production of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” directed by Merritt Holloway, was an amazing show! The dedication of the students, crew, and supporting cast was truly evident.

 

Alumni in the News

In closing, we would like to start including our alumni in our newsletter, to show how successful they are in their own ways. There are two alumni that we are proud to feature this month. We aim to celebrate our alumni in our newsletters going forward! If you would like to share your story, or can suggest an alum that we should feature, please let us know by writing an email to the  CalNews Editor .

 

CalNews

California School for the Deaf publishes 10 editions throughout the year. We send out monthly editions of the newsletter, except for December/January and July/August when we only send a single edition for the two months. By sharing this monthly  CalNews  with you, it is evident that there are so many things going on at CSD! Our students, families, staff, and community members are to be recognized for their commitment towards the school’s mission of serving our students to the best of their ability. Together, we continue to create more opportunities for everyone at CSD!

With Eagle Pride,

Clark Brooke, Ed.S.

Superintendent

California School for the Deaf, Fremont

39350 Gallaudet Drive

Fremont, CA 94538

510-344-6010 Videophone

510-823-6071 Spanish Callers

CSD ’ s Accreditation Update

California School for the De af is pleased to share the school's Accreditation presentation that was presented by visiting teams from: Western Association of Schools and Colleges; and Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf . The report includes several commendations regarding our programming! We received a formal report from these two visiting teams showcasing our programs and listing our strengths. The report also included some areas of need that we will consider integrating into our three main g oals for 2019-2025. You are welcome to view the PowerPoint presentation for more detailed information . We will publish a more in-depth article, later in the year, once we receive the final recommendation from these two visiting teams.

[ image description:  Quality checklist with a pencil checking the square indicating Excellent. The next square down was Good, but that square is left blank.]

[ image description:  photo   1 - CSD Buff Team (Beth Kunze, Chang-May Tan, Lelan Gonzales, Zoe Bell) holds up their certificates with Alice in Wonderland characters behind them including White Rabbit, Cheshire Cat, Queen of Hearts, Mad Hatter, and Alice. They are posed in front of the Gallaudet University Battle of the Books sign.; photo   2 - Chang-May Tan holds up her All Star medal and her mom Rachel holds up Chang-May's certificate. Chang-May is wearing a black CSD Battle of the Books shirt. They are in front of a stairwell.; photo   3 - CSD Buff Team is at their table with their white boards in front of them, ready to compete. A little White Rabbit good luck charm is on the table in front of them. Family members, sponsors, and Rory Osbrink (middle school principal) are seated in a row of chairs behind them. Everyone is signing Eagle with both hands.; photo   4 - CSD Buff Team entourage pose inside the famou s Ford Theater, in Washington DC.]

After two full years without an annual CSD Spring Play production, I chose “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” I wanted to come back with a big bang by directing a well-known classic that people love and recognize, from all the various movies, books, and plays based on the original work.

This was my VERY first high school play with 25 WONDERFUL actors. Each cast-member learned how to translate the script—including the poems and songs—from English to visual American Sign Language. The cast was a part of the creative process, finding ways to improve our play at every rehearsal, with many wonderful ideas. The result was thrilling to see come to fruition. With each performance, the signing got more detailed and complex. For the elementary student audience, we signed clear, basic concepts. For the high school audience we added a lot more detail and made it a little bit scarier. Then we added even more details and more expression for the version we presented to the community.



We had a highly diverse cast, including many persons of color and students with various abilities. For most actors, it was their first time doing the CSD Spring Play. I told them that I did not want to see them act like themselves; I wanted them to live, breath and sleep as their character. I would ask them to get inside their character’s head and feel what it meant to become that character. In addition, every time they would sign small or sloppy, I reminded them to sign clearly for stage.

By the very last performance, many members of our ensemble were sick. The show must go on! We pulled off a great last performance and the audience could hardly tell we were sick from watching our show on stage.

We had 9 FABULOUS stage crew whose passion and hard work was unrivaled! We empowered students to actually run the backstage, as well as to operate lighting for the play.

Our props and big hairdos were inspired by mid-century and modern fashions and styles. I personally made the wigs for all of the royal characters by heating and shaping swimming pool noodles.

We got several big complements about the play! Dr. Thomas Holcomb remarked on how clear the signing was. Dr. Frank Turk loved the colorful costumes and props, and how the whole play came together from beginning to end.

I enjoyed working with the students. They did a great job. Many students gained a new sense of confidence in themselves. I hope to direct the play again next year, and am already thinking of plays that we could do!

I am grateful to have worked with such a wonderful team. I cannot thank all of my assistants enough: Cindy Bronson, Kimberly Jennery, Klesha Chapman, and Billy Raby-Brown, for their support in making my vision for the play come to life. I have learned a lot from a most patient gentleman, Ethan Bernstein, who selected me to direct this play. I am so blessed with many other talented staff and students who made this possible. Special thanks goes to Jeff Mosher, Jay Conley, Jason Kulchinsky, Gabe Leung, Maureen Klusza, JAC Cook, and all of the students who spent time in their classes making props, advertisements, and so many of the little detailed things that made this whole play production come to life.

My background: I have a huge passion for art of all kinds, but for theater especially. I have been in play productions from toddlerhood to college age as an actor, and always managed to find ways to direct short skits, holiday programs, and various school plays. I performed in “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” at Gallaudet University in the Fall of 1997, where I graduated with a major in Art Studio 3D, and minored in Art History in 2007.

Cast & Crew (individual pics) | Full Cast (group photo)

  [ image description: photo 1 - All of the Alice in Wonderland characters lined up on stage.; photo 2 - Director Merritt Holloway wearing a black shirt and a black feathery stole, with a hint of red. His outfit is accented with stylish white, round vintage-inspired glasses. His arms are crossed and he is looking over his shoulder.; photo 3 - Caterpillar is sitting on a white polka-dotted mushroom. Alice is signing "confusion".; photo 4 - Red Queen and White Queen are having a conversation. King of Hearts is looking on in disbelief. Several other characters are looking on, as well.; photo 5 - Emcee is wearing a black top hat and a red tux jacket with tails.; photo   6 - Everyone is looking at Queen of Hearts who has an emotive expression.; photo   7 - Soldier is holding two swords that look like they are suspended in mid-air. Knight is shaking his fist with conviction. Mouse is in the background.; photo   8 - S ilhouette of Queen of Hearts.; photo   9 - Tweedledee and Tweedledum walk out to meet Alice on stage. Their checkered pants match the checkered riser on stage.; photo 10 - Cook shakes pepper on Alice.; Cheshire Cat signs "grin" as she grins.; Alice looks at the three sleeping flowers (Rose, Lily, and Daisy).; photo 11 - Cheshire Cat strutting in front of a line of Wonderland characters.; photo 12 - Mouse and Alice have a conversation.; Dodo is showing a thimble to the audience. The characters with her on stage are all very expressive, using their hands.; photo 13 - Knight and Alice ride a stick horse.; photo 14 - Alice and Red Queen have a conversation.; Footman introduces Lamb Chop (meat on a tray) to Red Queen, Alice, and White Queen.; King of Hearts has his back to Alice. His hand is covering his face.; photo 15 - Red Queen signs as White Queen looks on.]

Brent Fuentes: Signing the National Anthem at Oracle Arena was a rich experience for me. It improved my confidence. I met the Warriors cheerleaders and Warriors player Jordan Bell. I can check it off my list that I went to Oracle before the Warriors moved to San Francisco. I really loved it! I think that Janeva and I did a good job representing Deaf students and American Sign Language.

Janeva Mosher: The day before we were supposed to perform, Daniel Girard asked me if I would be willing to sign the national anthem at the Warriors game. I said sure. So, Brent Fuentes and I practiced the night before we were supposed to perform. The next day, we arrived at Oracle arena and met the person who gave us our backstage passes. Everything happened very quickly. We practiced a few times with the choir. Then we had some time to rest. And then it was time to perform. I wasn’t nervous until 30 seconds before we went on stage. Then I got nervous. But our signing went perfectly! My favorite part was meeting the Warriors cheerleaders since Brent and I are cheerleaders, too!

Daniel Girard: When we arrived at the parking area at Oracle Arena, we were assigned our own security guard who stayed with us throughout our time there. We entered through the media entrance where we got to see the hall that says WWW-AAA-RRR-RRR-III-OOO-RRR-SSS. It was really cool! While we were waiting to perform, all of the Warriors basketball stars came onto the floor to warm up. We were so close to the court that we could actually see all of the players up close. After Janeva and Brent performed, we went to our seats for the game, which ironically were in the last row at the top of the arena. It was interesting to see the game from two completely different perspectives (close and far)!

[ image description: video 1 - Miles Gonzalez signing.; video 2 - Daniel Girard, Janeva Mosher, Jacelia Washington, Brent Fuentes sign "Eagle".]

National Association of the Deaf received a grant from Starbucks Foundation to do a mock interview & resume development project with Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. This year is the National Association of the Deaf's first year with the grant. NAD selected Junior NAD chapters to host National Deaf Youth Day – Mock Interview & Resume Development events on select campuses. It was a huge success! 

NAD selected four schools:

We were fortunate to have Deaf Counseling Advocacy & Referral Agency (DCARA), Google, Lyft, Starbucks and Uber to provide support with mock interviews and resume development sessions with 25 students from the Junior NAD Chapter and Career Exploration classes. We had 13 students sign up for live mock interviews. The students had the opportunity to be interviewed by employers from five companies, in front of a live audience of students and staff, in the Klopping Theater. I commend each student for accepting this challenge! They found it very beneficial. 

For the resume development sessions, we had 22 students who were ready to receive feedback from employers from DCARA, Google, Starbucks and Uber in their Career Exploration class, with support from Kevin Bella, Career Exploration teacher. The students shared that they learned so much from the resume development sessions, and that they now understand the importance of including necessary information on their resume for future internships, summer jobs, part-time jobs and full-time jobs. 

Throughout the event, each company had a 5-minute presentation opportunity to share an interview tip or strategy so that students could better prepare themselves for future interviews.  

At the end of the event, I asked the students, companies and interpreters if CSD should host this kind of event again next year. I received 100% YES responses from all of them. The students appreciated the fact that they could learn from each other by observing mock interviews in action on stage, and from doing resume development in groups. We look forward to this event happening again next year!

[ image description:  Student seated on stage being interviewed by panelists who have their laptops on a table in front of them.]

Junior NAD helps our students hone their interview skills to become the workforce of the future!



It takes a village to make an event like this happen: resume development team, interview team, committee, and of course, our students!



Special thanks to the community members who made this event possible:

CSD welcomes National Association of the Deaf Outreach Specialist

Teddy Dorsette III.

Congratulations to all of our fabulous student interviewees:

Alexis Bravo

Kenasia Brown

Samuel Brown

Brent Fuentes

Miles Gonzalez

Jenna Kutsov

Tiffany Kutsov

Jaron LeMaster

Samantha Medina-Vazquez

Anastasia Mena-Vergara

Janeva Mosher 

Liliana Ortiz

George Quirie

Here is just a sampling of the fabulous mock interviews that our students did...

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PE Supervisor Scott O'Donnell, Athletic Director Warren Keller, and Youth Athletic Director Jeremy Cormier had a wonderful week at the 6 ^th   National Athletic Directors Conference, March 21-24, at Marie Philip School, The Learning Center for the Deaf, in Massachusetts. They learned and shared a lot of the current trends and new ideas for the future of our Deaf youth athletes. The conference had a record 35 athletic directors in attendance.

CSD's Director of Instruction Len Gonzales was the founder of the NDIAA 12   years ago.

CSD's Athletic Director Warren Keller will serve his second term on the board.

The Family Fun Weekend housed families with Deaf babies, children and tweens from all over northern California. 

 

Fun at Kids Camp 

Families enjoy a meal with their kids 

“The act of giving is the heart of happiness and community.” 

CSD's Junior National Association of the Deaf members made good use of their community service role by providing assistance with various tasks during the Family Fun Weekend at California School for the Deaf. As you can see from the photos below, CSD's Junior NAD members were fabulous at ensuring our visiting families felt comfortable and welcome all weekend. We had a photo booth which created laughter and most certainly good memories!

Student leaders, staff, and volunteers help out with the kids camp

CSD's Early Childhood Education department hosted its annual Trike-A-Thon fundraiser. Special thanks to guest Adam Jarashow for signing a story.

[ image description: photo 1 - A small group of children sit on a woman's lap, looking engaged as they watch the storytelling.; photo 2 - Adam Jarashow tells a story. Adam is next to a PowerPoint slide of a sheep that is standing on a green spot, next to a bicycle.; photo 3 - Early childhood children sit on the red tricycles at the start line.; photo 4 - Two boys racing. They each have a green strip of paper tied around their head.; photo 5 - A crowd of onlookers cheer on the race. They are sitting on the sidewalk, in front of the Bear Hunt statue.]

“Tom & Jerry” in cinematic ASL

with Ben Jarashow

Ben performs an improv story during a workshop for CSD students.

Interview with Ben Jarashow...

Tell us a little bit about your memories of being a student at CSD.

I was born in Southern California. When I became school age, my parents considered putting me in a mainstreamed program, but decided that I should attend TRIPOD instead. TRIPOD was a nice school, but they talked and signed at the same time. Plus, my parents were concerned because TRIPOD only went up to elementary school; they didn't have middle school or high school back then. After about 6 months, my parents realized that they wanted me to attend a Deaf school. They started looking into which Deaf school would be the best fit form me. When they visited the Deaf school in Fremont, they were so impressed that they instantly wanted to sign me up. I started attending California School for the Deaf, in Fremont back in 1986, when I was in the first grade, and remained a student at CSD until I graduated in 1999.

Growing up in a Deaf school was the best thing that ever happened to me. The community, teachers, staff, and counselors were wonderful. “It takes a village to raise a child,” describes the school perfectly. The Deaf school made me who I am. I got my storytelling skills growing up in the Deaf community that I now take with me into the world. I owe a lot to the Deaf school. Thank you!

How did CSD influence your future career with ASL and Deaf studies?

My first exposure to Deaf studies happened here at CSD. When I was in the 6 ^th grade, Lon Kuntze was a guest presenter in one of my Career Technical Education classes. Dr. Kuntze talked to us about the differences between Deaf culture and hearing culture. Even though I came from a Deaf family and attended a Deaf school, Deaf culture and Deaf history were new to me. I really enjoyed learning about it.

After graduating from CSD, I decided to go to Ohlone for a year before transferring to Gallaudet University. Just for fun, I decided to take Tom Holcomb’s Deaf culture, Deaf history, and linguistics classes. During the linguistics class, Dr. Holcomb asked me if ASL was a language. When I answered “yes,” Dr. Holcomb asked me to come up to the front of the class and explain why ASL was a language. That was when I realized that I did not yet possess the ability to defend my position. Anyways, I learned so much from taking those classes. It hit me hard that even though I was from a Deaf family and attended a wonderful Deaf school, I knew almost nothing about Deaf Studies. In fact, I realized that neither the Deaf Community nor even my parents knew about Deaf Studies. I was highly motivated when I went to Gallaudet University to become a Deaf Studies major. I got my Bachelors and Masters in this field. And now, I give back to the community teaching workshops and giving presentations.

How did you further develop your ASL and Deaf Studies knowledge at Gallaudet?

A fter my year studying with Dr. Holcomb, I transferred to Gallaudet. I met Ben Bahan and MJ Bienvenu . I studied there and learned from them for six years. Ben Bahan was in the ASL Lit (literature) field; he was an ASL storyteller, like me. I looked up to him. We created stories together. After my six years studying at Gallaudet, when I started teaching, I went on to specialize in ASL Lit.

How did you develop your amazing storytelling skills?

I got my storytelling skills from three different sources when I was growing up. First were my Deaf parents whom I could watch as an example. Second, were videos of Deaf 1980s storytellers (such as Ben Bahan, Mary Beth Miller, Bill Ennis, and Gilbert Eastman) that would come out on VHS videotape. My parents would buy their videos, and I would watch them over and over again. Then I would practice signing their stories. Third, were the teachers, staff, and counselors here at the California School for the Deaf. There were so many amazing signers at the school, but I think the one that inspired me the most was Lon Kuntze. When Dr. Kuntze would come to the library and sign s cary Edgar Allan Poe stories, such as The Black Cat and The Pit and the Pendulum, I was fascinated. My other inspiration was Ben Bahan from Gallaudet.

What is your vision for what you want to see happen with Deaf Studies?

I want for Deaf schools to provide Deaf Studies curriculum for students, from elementary through high school. Deaf people need to know their own culture and history. Ironically, back when I graduated from high school, I knew more about Black culture and history than Deaf culture and history, because the teachers knew more about Black culture and history than they did about Deaf culture and history. Nowadays, more Deaf people know their culture and history.

When I entered Gallaudet in 2002, I took a class called “Oppression of the Deaf.” There were approximately 20 students taking the class. When the professor asked our class what audism meant, three quarters of the class did not know —and we were Deaf Studies majors. The word audism was established in 1975 by Tom Humphries, and in 2002 most Deaf people still did not know what it meant. For our final project, the professor wanted my classmates and I to make a DVD that would educate the public about the meaning of " audism" and distribute it to the community. A lot of people saw the DVD that we made. I am amazed at how many more people know the meaning of audism nowadays, compared to 2002.

Where do you get your material for your stories?

My storytelling style is a mix of poetry, classifiers, film stories, and ABC stories (A-Z). I do a lot of comedy based on my life experiences, such as my most embarrassing moments and funny things that have happened to me. People laugh harder because they can sense that the stories I’m telling really happened to me. I make a fool of myself. That’s my style!

Is there anything you would like to see the kids develop?

I am pleased to see that the elementary kids are now signing different genres of ASL stories, such as ABC stories or personification stories. I did not have that opportunity back when I was in elementary school. The students can build on those skills by the time they reach high school. I am excited to see ASL Lit at the elementary level spiraling through high school. Who knows, maybe some of those kids will even surpass me with their signing one of these days!

Melissa Malzkuhn is an activist, academic, artist, and digital strategist with a love for language play, interactive experiences, and community-based change. She founded and leads creative development at Motion Light Lab , at a Gallaudet University research center. The Lab uses creative literature and digital technology techniques to create immersive learning experiences—from storybook apps that have been translated into five international languages, to motion-capture projects that build signing avatars—all of which expand the 3D technology landscape for deaf children, visual learners, and more. Her production company Ink & Salt developed an app to teach American Sign Language, The ASL App , which has been downloaded over 2 million times. Third-generation Deaf, she has organized deaf youth and worked with international deaf youth programs, fostering leadership and self-representation. Now, she collaborates with teams in different countries to support literacy development for deaf children through sign language resources. Her work has been recognized nationally and internationally. She is an Obama Fellow, inaugural class 2018. She resides in Washington DC with her family.

“Group in Snow”

Front Row:

Second Row:

Third Row:

Reza Mosher, Levi Biser

Kaliska Sloan, Brent Fuentes, Ashley Locatelli, Malia Zornoza,

Esther Biser, Justine Locatelli, Emilie Ford

Carley Carbin, Enos Zornoza, Nate Goff, Trinity Kirkland,

Cindy Sasser, Jeff Buckmaster, Janeva Mosher, Rose Crisman,

Jeanne Dike, Raymond Rivers

The Y.E.S! program was founded at the 1997 National Black Deaf Advocates conference, in Washington, D.C.. It was designed for Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing youths, from 13  to  17 years old, to promote their leadership skills, non-academic educational and social needs, to accomplish their dreams, and to contribute back to the community. It turned out to be a successful program that has fostered leadership development for more than 200  Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing youths across the country, by providing workshops, leadership training and development, and exposure to Black Deaf role models and challenging activities. Upon the conclusion of participating in the 2019 Y.E.S! Program, the youths will gain experience with overcoming adversity and common issues that minority students constantly face in America. We anticipate having 40 to 50 youth participants for this upcoming 2019 NBDA conference week.

Youth Empowerment Summit 2019 application packet

Click on flyers below for printable version

( VIDEO)

Summer Kids Camps 2019

Meta Metal , Editor

Clark Brooke , School Superintendent