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[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
Hello, my name is Deanne Bray. I am one of the celebrity spokespersons for the LEAD-K core team. That team wrote the bill that was proposed to the state of California, the bill passed and has become a law. That bill, SB210, also called the LEAD-K bill in the state of California, occurred ten years ago, in 2015.
The purpose of LEAD-K is to focus on deaf babies between age 0 to 5 in making sure they are reaching a strong understanding of language in order to be ready for kindergarten. They must be ready to learn in school with a strong understanding of language.
Maybe you’re wondering what LEAD-K stands for.
L is for Language, both in ASL and English.
E is Equality. That means ASL will be equal to (the English Language). For many years, ASL has been the last choice. Spoken language / hearing have been the first choice. It wouldn’t be until age 8 or 9 that they finally start learning sign language. ASL cannot be deprioritized. That’s what the letter ‘E’ stands for, Equality. Also, we want to emphasize the word ‘and’ and no more of ‘or’. We cannot force a choice between English and ASL. The LEAD-K bill makes sure the word ‘and’ is included. Resources, data, evidence and research will be presented. Parents would have informed decisions for this bilingual approach and its benefits for children.
A stands for Acquisition meaning the child will acquire language and we need to make sure both languages are internalized rather than by memory. Language being internalized impacts cognitive thinking skills.
D would be for Deaf children aged 0 to 5. K means kindergarten ready. So they’re prepared for kindergarten with a strong grip on language they’re already acquired, making them ready to learn in school. K is kindergarten ready. That sums up LEAD-K.
Now, where are we with this? Not all states have this law, only 23 states in total actually do.
[Image shown of states that have passed a LEAD-K law]
[Sheri Farinha – LEAD-K National Director]
The law is our protection.
[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
Sheri Farinha, from the state of California, called a Deaf Education Summit inviting about 60 people. They were Deaf education stakeholders. Legislators, Deaf schools and public schools representatives, nonprofit organizations and private sector people among those from all over. Community members at large were included as well and everyone gathered for 2 days at Bethesda, Maryland on April 4th and 5th.
[Sheri Farinha – LEAD-K National Director]
We went to Capitol Hill yesterday. We met with senators and house of representatives members. We got the political pulse of what it’s like there. We got a sense for the federal bill.
[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
On the first day, we reviewed the LEAD-K law and then checked where we were now with the LEAD-K process from each state representative in the room. We have been collecting data and sharing with each other that day. We felt the room to see where we are with Deaf children.
[Image shown of pie charts comparing DHH children up to age 8 from Kansas who were assessed in ASL and English. 89 students assessed in ASL met criteria 4% of the time while 179 students assessed in English met criteria 9% of the time.]
[Luanne Barron, M.ED – Kansas]
We talked about data collection. And how that report would be drafted in terms of working with families, school districts and early intervention providers. We wanted to make sure we have a template.
[Julie Rems-Smario, Ed.D – California]
The pamphlet is parent/family friendly. What to expect at age 1, age 2, 3, 4 and age 5. See the child at the end. A superhero being kindergarten-ready.
[Andy Imparato – Executive Director of Disability Rights in California]
I appreciate being here. I just want to start by acknowledging that there are a lot of Deaf people in the room who have decades of experience working with Congress. So, it’s a little awkward to have two hearing people telling Deaf people how to navigate Congress. Because you all have a lot of experience doing it. I’m hoping that this conversation is going to be a conversation and we can strategize together.
[Cut to clips showing white paper letter notes with titles including Training (support/mentorship), Public Relations, Campaign Plan (visibility).]
[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
We all brainstormed, made lists and wrote a proposal for the bill that’s ready to be introduced at federal level. We all had many ideas listed then we picked out specific ones to put together a simplified version of the bill. When the bill passes, it will impact all 50 states in our country. LEAD-K would be a law of the land.
[Images shown of following valuable members of LEAD-K core team]
Dr. Marla Hatrak – LEAD-K team speaker & facilitator
Kavita Pipalia – LEAD-K team facilitator
Dr. Roz Rosen – LEAD-K team facilitator
[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
As Dr. Roz Rosen said, “Language is a human right for deaf children.” Marvin Miller added, “Human rights? Hmmm…. Language is a birthright, really.”
[Image shown of LEAD-K developmentally appropriate milestones listed from age 0 to 5.]
[Followed by pictures of LEAD-K summit]
[Marvin Miller]
I’m impressed by what I’ve seen here.
[Deanne Bray – Celebrity Spokesperson for LEAD-K]
It’s already been two weeks now. The folks from Maryland are already doing the assigned tasks. They’ve spread out and made appointments with their US senators. Some already wrote letters and one of them shared with one another to get feedback. The Core LEAD-K team guided and trained 60+ members who met in Maryland are now the National LEAD-K team. Some of them have already mentioned they wrote a letter to send to one of their state representatives and they are asking for feedback. There has been activity amongst the team and Sheri has provided her input. Things are in motion and now we are working together like an army sending our troops. It will happen. Together, we can make it happen.
[Cut to clip of LEAD-K Core Team cheering and receiving their applause on stage]
[Donations are welcome for LEAD-K]
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