Dr. Peter Hauser, Director of the Research Center on Culture and Language at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at Rochester Institute of Technology, visited the college for an engaging and interactive discussion this month for CVM’s 2019 Fall Diversity Dialogue Speaker Series.

A wide variety of students, faculty and staff - both hearing and Deaf - from both the college and around campus attended the talk, which Hauser gave in American Sign Language (ASL) and two interpreters translated into spoken English.

Hauser gave attendees an overview of the Rochester Bridges to the Doctorate Program, an NIH-funded project which applies a Rochester Deaf Mentorship Model to help deaf scientists navigate a career in academia and the sciences.

After showcasing the strategy and resources the Bridges program provides, Hauser began an interactive dialogue with attendees, asking them to share their experiences with academic mentors. Both hearing and Deaf students shared how certain mentors had helped them succeed while others had made their educational journey more difficult.

Hauser stressed the importance good mentors have for everyone. “I don’t care if you’re the president of the university, everyone should have a mentor,” he said. 

Hauser discussed the concept of ‘Community Cultural Wealth,’ which he explained to be what a person already has that allows them to navigate their larger culture. He explained that wealth comprises the following aspects: aspirational, navigational, linguistic, resistant and social capital. He explained that for minorities in the sciences such as Deaf people, people of color or women can struggle with each of these aspects that those in the majority take for granted — and a mentor can help them build that ‘wealth.’

The talk also covered communication do’s and don’ts when interacting with deaf or hard of hearing people, which include being mindful of the person’s line of sight, giving lag time for interpreters and note taking, and only using video media that is captioned.

Hauser also listed best practices and recommendations, which included always providing communication access, always asking a deaf person what works best for them, accepting different communication approaches, committing to developing deaf-friendly spaces, and assisting scholars with developing a network of people who understand the Deaf and their needs. “The goal should always be equity, not the illusion of access,” Hauser noted.

As the talk wound to a close, Hauser reminded the group that, through providing more clarity and options for understanding, accommodations benefit everyone, not just those who require them.