Several students have begun an appeal to the University to add American Sign Language to the Shea House, a multi-langual immersion community.
The University has had an ASL program since 1996, ASL Programs Director Gregory Propp said. Students in the College have been able to use ASL to fulfill the foreign language requirement since 1998.
There have been extensive talks within the program about including ASL in language housing, Propp said.
“That’s always been one of our goals as we progress forward and look ahead,” Propp said.
The process was spearheaded by students this semester, who have been going through the approval process with the University. Thirteen students are currently interested in living in Shea House, said Eleni Papageorge, a first-year College student involved in the movement.
“That’s a lot considering most of the languages in Shea House have the max of 12 students,” Papageorge said.
Papageorge said one of the hardest parts so far has been getting through the red tape.
“Trying to find the right person that’s in charge of instituting the languages has really been the hard part, and it’s also deadlines,” Papageorge said.
The application deadline to live in the Shea House is Nov. 4, and Papageorge has been told it is unlikely they will get in with the deadline being so close.
Since the language houses are a collaboration between Housing and Residence Life and the College of Arts and Sciences, any potential program must have the support of both groups.
In order to become a part of language housing, a program must have the support of a sponsoring academic department as well as the Associate Dean for Arts and Humanities, said Vinay Patel, housing and residence life area coordinator for Shea House, in an email statement.
The movement for ASL currently has the support of Propp and other members of the faculty, and the group is currently drafting a letter to give to one of the deans of humanities, Papageorge said.
“We’re trying to get a letter fully drafted so that we can send it to her and have her at least think about it and be involved in the process,” Papageorge said.
In addition to looking at becoming a part of Shea House, Papageorge has also looked into the process of forming a language pod in Bice House.
“We have faculty support, we have student support, we just need to get it approved,” Papageorge said.
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