Packed rooms, zero phones and hands in motion; K-State’s Sign Language Club builds bridges between hearing and hearing-impaired communities.
Imagine you’re in a conference room at K-State’s Hale Library, moving your fingers to mimic the group leaders as they sign the alphabet. The area is packed, students filling all the chairs, sitting on the floor and enthusiastically interacting with each other.
“We had people waiting outside the door before the meeting began because they were so excited,” said Annika Salgado, president of the sign language club. “Throughout the meeting, nobody touched their phones, everybody was so engaged and just happy to be there.”
The K-State Sign Language Club has been maxing out capacity because so many students are interested in learning to sign. At every meeting, they start by teaching the alphabet and how to sign a greeting and your name.
Out-of-the-box activities
Not only does the club host amazing holiday-themed meetings, but it also organizes fun events like watching movies with sign language covers, travelling to the school for the deaf, sign language games and more.
“The goal of the club is to bridge communication between the deaf and hard of hearing community, and the hearing community,” Salgado said. “It’s about connecting people because there is a language barrier that isn’t typically talked about.”
The K-State Sign Language Club is just one of many student organizations that inspire connection throughout the campus, putting smiles on students’ faces and new skills in their tool kits.
By Kate Ellwood