My name is Katharine, and I am profoundly hearing-impaired.
I work at the papers at James Madison at UVA,
and I firmly believe every community
needs bridge-builders.
I grew up as the only Deaf student in a public school
division in the early '50s and '60s,
long before mainstreaming was introduced
to schools in the 1970s.
I didn't think I was that different, I was just a kid
eager to learn.
I had one extraordinary second-grade teacher
who believed in me.
Concerned that a third-grade teacher would not
invest in my learning, she taught me
the third-grade curriculum while I was in second grade.
One English professor asked me where
did I learn such excellent English
such as using the correct word "who" instead of the word
"that."
My parents saw to it that my hearing loss was no excuse
not to master English.
They treated me no differently from my siblings,
knowing that I had to deal with the real world.
I am very fortunate to have these wonderful bridge-builders
in my life.
I would like to invite President Ryan and others to build
bridges by learning two very important concepts.
One, a person's disability is part of that person but does
not define that person, and two, just because a person can't do
one thing out of ten does not mean that person cannot do
the eleventh thing that no-one else can do.
[APPLAUSE]
For example, I can read upside-down and backwards.
I can also write two words, one right-side-up to the right,
and one upside-down to the left at the same time.
I happen to be an ambidexter, although that
hasn't make me rich.
[APPLAUSE]
I straddle the fence between the hearing and Deaf world
and understand both, but sitting on that fence
has not always been easy.
Although I speak English, listen, and lip-read,
someone at UVA's medical community
automatically assumed I sign and need a professional interpreter
for a doctor's appointment.
A friend of mine nearly fell to the floor laughing in disbelief
at such ignorance.
As well, one person once said to me, oh, I didn't know you're
Deaf.
You don't look like a Deaf person.
[LAUGHTER]
What does a Deaf person look like?
About two years ago, we employees
at UVA watched a video to satisfy a requirement,
and learned that they had omitted the closed caption
option.
This issue was quickly resolved.
Years ago at a former job, a man jumped backwards instead
of shaking my hand during an introduction.
He thought he might "catch" my hearing impairment.
One classmate in the 10th grade let
me know I was not welcome on the first day of school
by paying her brother a quarter to throw
toilet paper all over me.
I kept cool, but my sister furiously
slammed a quarter into his hand and asked him
if he was proud of his quarter.
My sister the feisty bridge-builder
is a Legal Aid attorney who currently
works to protect the rights of immigrant children
and refugees.
When I won the top prize at a photography school,
my teacher took the trouble to tell me
that he had hoped that prize would
go to a certain male classmate of mine.
After mastering a class, of course,
in sign language for a play and winning the Actress of the Year
award, my supervisor at work was angry
while the Deaf community gave me a cold shoulder.
I betrayed their Deaf culture by growing up
speaking and lip-reading instead of signing.
Because of their entrenched beliefs,
they could not see that I was able to succeed.
Not someone like me, anyway.
In contrast, I ran into a wonderful, lovely teacher
of the Deaf while out at lunch one day.
You never attended Deaf schools, did you,
she asked after looking around to make sure she would not be
overhead uttering such heresy.
She said, if I had a Deaf child, I'd
want my child to grow up the way you did.
These negative experiences did not define me.
I have been raised by bridge-builders,
and as you can see, there were wonderful experiences as well.
Here at UVA I invite President Ryan and others
to build bridges, eliminate ignorance, fear, assumptions,
jealousy, and stereotypes that happen to all of us.
Teach acceptance, respect, and tolerance.
Be mentally curious and open-minded to all fears.
That should be the norm, not the exception.
Thank you, President Ryan, from the bottom of my heart,
for providing this wonderful opportunity.
I am very fortunate to have colleagues like you at UVA
who see me as an equal despite my hearing loss.
I am truly blessed.
[APPLAUSE]