Disability Services assists in education

By Elise Sakievich, Scroll

Disability Services aids students with disabilities on campus so they can have a learning experience at BYU-Idaho. According to
the Disabilities Services Web page, they have assistive technology, computer hardware and computer software to accommodate
those with disabilities.
HUNTER PARAMORE | Scroll Illustration

Disability Services at BYU-Idaho is striving to create an equal learning experience on campus

for students, teachers and community members who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Valerie Sturm, disability services coordinator, oversees the needs of all people on campus who
need help because of listening disabilities.
Anything that is opened to the public has to be accessible to any member of the public, Sturm
said. Graduation services for families, campus plays, Boy Scout jamborees and anything on
campus.
Sturm said more than 600 students have disabilities at BYU-I, but she only takes care of the 40
who are deaf and hard of hearing.
The needs of the deaf and hard of hearing require a lot of attention and expertise, she said.
Sturm has worked at BYU-I for two and a half years but has been an interpreter for 30 years.
Sturm said she interpreted all over the world on a cruise ship and at BYU for a year and worked
for the government interpreting at conferences and trainings.
I got to interpret for every prophet since President Kimball, and I was the first female
interpreter for the General Priesthood Session, Sturm said.

Sturm said that as a licensed transcriber and experienced interpreter, she saw how she could be
useful at BYU-I.
She said transcribers translate speech into text using technological systems. Interpreters translate
speech into signs and signs into speech.
Sturm said that the distinction between people who are deaf and people who are hard of hearing
has nothing to do with their level of hearing. This classification depends on the chosen means of
communication.
Deaf people use sign language, and hard of hearing people use some form of English, Sturm
said. Most of the time, anybody identifies with the English language will call themselves hard
of hearing even if they cant hear a thing. Its just an identifier.
Sturm said the difference between sign language and transcribing is that sign language is more
straightforward.
She said seven interpreters work at the school, and there are 17 transcribers to help meet the
needs of those who are hard of hearing have.
Trenton Perry, a junior studying biology, works as an interpreter on campus and at devotionals.
Perry said his responsibility is to go to the classrooms of deaf students, help them communicate
effectively with others and help maximize their learning experiences.
When the deaf student is using their hands, I am using my voice, Perry said. When the teacher
or fellow students are using their voices, I am using my hands.
Sturm said interpreters must have a good grasp of language and vocabulary to communicate
accurately and effectively.
A lot of returned missionaries did sign language on their missions, and theyre hot stuff when
it comes to gospel topics, but they cant sign their way out of a paper bag when it comes to
biology or math, Sturm said.
She said interpreters dont have to study the subject to express what they are hearing, but that
they need to understand how to make accommodations and adjustments.
Ryan Carnahan, a recent BYU-I graduate, used to work as an interpreter.
The interpreter has one main function: to become anothers voice entirely, he said. We try to
act like were not there, just a fly on the wall, but instead of being passive, we mimic everything
that happens in the room.

Perry said he used to interpret at a high school and had to study the material ahead of time to be
able to express what the teachers were saying. He was doing the same homework as the students
were.
Carnahan said interpreting for college courses is difficult because of the more advanced content.
His job wasnt only conveying subject matter. He said interpreting involves context, emotion,
inflection, facial expressions and body language that enhance the content.
Sometimes I dont know how to describe the concept right off, or even at all, he said. Thats
why we call it interpreting, not translating, but we do our best.
The Idaho Educational Interpreter Act states that interpreters need official certification to
interpret for those in grades K-12, but not for those in college.
Sturm said she uses the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf website, rid.org, to hire students.
This site offers certification though speaking and translating tests.
I kind of follow that model, Sturm said. But instead of sending a tape to the organization and
waiting, I just sit them down in my office, put on a video and say go ahead.
The students who interpret on campus dont just work at devotionals.
The students that interpret for me interpret for everything, she said.
Sturm said interpreters have worked at counseling sessions, student government meetings and
even vet tech programs for the artificial insemination of cows.
I love the fact that Im in a classroom all day, Perry said. Getting to learn as I work is a great
blessing.
Perry said he recognizes the responsibility of communicating for someone else. He said at times,
making sure the intent of the speaker isnt lost, can be stressful.
There are, however, times when I know that Im spot on and am totally rocking my signs,
Perry said. Those are always the moments that I truly enjoy what I do.
Carnahan said his ultimate goal is to bring clarity. Because American Sign Language doesnt
contain every word in the English language, he has to simplify whats being said without losing
meaning.
The greatest interpreters are those who dont get all the words in, but those who can sum up
what the speaker said in two words, Carnahan said. Most of the meaning of a persons message
can be conveyed in sign language through facial expression, body language and pictures.

Sturm said she works with students who are deaf and hard of hearing to figure out whether they
prefer signing or transcribing. She and each student try to choose the option that will create the
most comfortable circumstance. Most hard of hearing students prefer to see print.
Captionists are transcribers who type what they hear so the student who are hard of hearing
can see it on their computer screen.
The goal is to give the same opportunities to deaf and hard of hearing students that are enjoyed
by every other student on campus, Sturm said.
Carnahan said interpreters are not responsible for their learning. Disability Services is there to
create an opportunity for the students to learn on their own.
We dont make it better for them, Sturm said. We make it equal for them.