Deaf ESL Students - Gallaudet University

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White House Mentoring Day
MSSD Students Explore Job Mentoring at the White House
Students from the Model Secondary School for the Deaf
(MSSD) at the Gallaudet University Laurent Clerc National
Deaf Education Center and Gallaudet University went to the
White House last fall to participate in a Mentoring Day for
Young People with Disabilities.
“Almost 75 percent of working-age Americans with severe
disabilities remain unemployed,” said President Bill Clinton
in a radio address that preceded the event. “If this nation is
to live up to its promise of equal opportunity, and if our
economy is to continue to strengthen and expand, we must
draw on the untapped energy and creativity of these millions
of capable Americans.”
Buddy Chambless, the new director of development at
Deaf-REACH, a community organization based in
Washington, D.C., served as the White House liaison for the
students. Allen Talbert, work experience specialist at MSSD,
who accompanied the students to the White House, is working
with the White House Department of Transportation
and Office of Personnel Management to set up summer jobs
and internships for MSSD students.
During the event, the MSSD students—Aaron Brock,
Matthew Kohashi, Bellame Bachleda, Jason Lopez, and
Andy Donatich—were paired with volunteer staff mentors in
different federal departments to discuss employment in the
federal government. Some also observed a deaf employee at
the Department of Transportation teaching a sign language
class for federal workers.
“The students were able to ask questions about what kind
of qualifications people needed for their jobs and about
what kind of communication or access barriers they have
experienced on the job,” said Talbert.
At the conclusion of the conference, the Office of
Personnel Management sponsored a reception to highlight
the release of Accessing Opportunity: The Plan for Employment
of People with Disabilities in the Federal Government. The plan
will serve as a framework for federal departments and
agencies to use as they create strategies and initiatives to
recruit, hire, develop, and retain more employees with
disabilities. It can serve as the foundation for the corporate
community in their efforts to employ people with special
needs and disabilities.
Spring 2000
Mitsubishi Grant
Enables Clerc Center to Train Teachers in Technology
The Gallaudet University Laurent Clerc National Deaf
Education Center is establishing a Center for Teaching and
Learning Technologies. Made possible by a $100,000 grant
from the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation, the new
center is the core of a two-year teacher training project,
“Technology in Education Can Empower Deaf Students” or
“TecEds.” The goal is to train teachers to incorporate technology
appropriate for visual learners in the classroom.
One or two teachers from each Clerc Center academic
team will be selected as the project’s technology leaders.
These individuals will assist in the design of the training
center, locate and develop training programs, and serve as
liaisons with their teams. In addition, an in-depth, one-week
summer training course will be available for teachers. As a
result, students at the Clerc Center will experience technology
as a vital tool for learning and communication, develop
group and team skills, and use different types of learning
and processing skills.
ABOVE: Buddy Chambless, director of development for Deaf-REACH,
standing in center, and MSSD students Matthew Kohashi, left, and
Jason Lopez, right, met Becky Ogle, front, executive director for the
President’s Task Force for the Employment of Adults with Disabilities
at the White House’s job mentoring day. Other MSSD participants were
Aaron Brock, Bellame Bachleda, and Andy Donatich.
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