June 2011 General Business Meeting Minutes

6^th National American Sign Language Teachers Association (ASLTA) Conference General Business Meeting, Part One

June 30th at 8:30 am to 10:30 am

Seattle, Washington

I.            Call to order:  8:32 am

II.          Mission Statement: Delivered in ASL  by Dorothy M. Wilkins, ASLTA Secretary.

III.        Secretary’s Report (Dorothy M. Wilkins, 2009-2013) Posted on the    

              ASLTA website:  www.aslta.org

              Motion #1:  Brian Kilpatrick moved we accepted the 2009 General Business

Meeting Minutes accepted as corrected. Carried.

IV.         President’s Report (Larry Forrestal, 2009-2011 & Glenna Ashton, 2011-2013) See Appendix A

V.          Vice President’s Report (Glenna Ashton, 2009-2011)

              See Appendix B

VI:        Financial Report (Betti Bonni, Treasurer, 2007-2011)

              See Appendix C

VII:       Standing Committees

1.      Nomination Committee, Betsy Burks, 2010-2011

See Appendix D

2.      ASLTA Evaluation System Report (Keith Cagle, 2000-present)

                             See Appendix E

              3.  Chapter Affiliated Report (Dorothy M. Wilkins, 2011)

                             See Appendix F

              4.  Professional Development Report (Vacant)

              5.  Website Project Report (Marvin Herbold, 2010-present)

                             See Appendix G

6.  ASLTA Membership Report (LaNae Philips, 2010- present)

              See Appendix H

7. ASL Honor Society & National ASL Standards Committee Reports  

     (Jason Zinza, 2007-present)

                             See Appendix I

              6.  ASLTA Newsletter & REHI Reports (Alyssa Ramussen,

      2006 to present)  

      See Appendix J

7.  ASLTA Conference Report (Barbara Hayes, 2010-2011)

              See Appendix K

 

Adjournment: 10:30 a.m.

 

6^th National American Sign Language Teachers Association (ASLTA) Conference General Business Meeting, Part Two

July 1^st, Friday at 8:30 am to 10:30 am

Seattle, Washington

Attendance:  42 voting members

 

I.            Call to order:  8:49 am

II.          New Officers’ Oath for Vice President & Treasurer

I, __________ (name) pledge to support the ASLTA Mission and Bylaws and commit to fulfill my duties.

 

III.  Unfinished Business:

A.     2009 Motions: The Results

1.      Motion 1: Jason Zinza, moved that ASLTA establish a new award for a general member to recognize his/her outstanding service to the organization.  The ASLTA membership, ASLTA committees, or ASLTA board members can make nominations.  Current ASLTA board members are prohibited from receiving this award.  The ASLTA board shall decide on the name of winner for the award.  Referred to the Bylaws Committee. WORK IN PROGRESS

2.      Motion 2: Jason Zinza, moved that ASLTA places a vote before members on the question of whether to change the membership cycle from its current January-December format to one that follows the academic year, namely September –August. Referred to the Bylaws Committee. COMPLETED  (501c3)

3.      Motion #3: Jason Zinza, moved that ASLTA create a list of current members for the ASLTA web page as a way to check one’s ASLTA membership status. Referred to the Bylaws Committee. COMPLETED (Registry)

4.      Motion #4: Darlene Swarovski (NJASLTA), moved that each state chapter be allowed to use the parent organization’s domain.  Referred to the Website Project Committee. WORK IN PROGRESS.

5.      Motion #5: James Wilson, moved that the ASLTA and its state chapter host splits the net profits of every conference, 75% to ASLTA & 25% to the state chapter, effective on the next conference in Washington State.  Seconded.  Carried.  EFFECTIVE RIGHT AFTER THIS CONFERENCE.

6.      Motion #6: Cynthia L. DuPont, moved that Nationally RID NIC Master Certified interpreters have the ASLPI and SLPI: ASL waived for their ASLTA Provisional evaluations.  Referred to ASLTA Evaluation System Committee. WORK IN PROGRESS

7.      Motion #7: Lynn Jacobowitz, moved that an Ad-Hoc Committee be established to revise the ASLTA Evaluation system.  Referred to the ASLTA Evaluation System Committee. WORK IN PROGRESS

8.      Motion #8: Leslie Greer, moved that we delete ASL Honor Society in ASLTA Bylaws: Article II #10.  Referred to the Bylaws Committee. OUT OF ORDER (501c3)

 

III. New Business:

A.  Bid for 2015 Conference

              1. Texas: Greater Houston ASLTA (17/42)

2. Minn. Loon ASLTA won the vote (25/42).

 

C. New Motions:

1. 21 Motions submitted by the members.. They were reviewed  

              with the Parliamentarian's advice.

2. They were categorized in 4 groups:

a. Referred to ASLTA Strategic Planning Committee

1. Arlene Garcia-Gunderson moved that ASLTA to establish L1 (ASL as 1^st language) board to be part of the ASLTA Strategic Plan to serve Deaf students and teachers.

2. MJ Shahen moved that ASLTA Board of Managers should be empowered to appoint an Executive Director to serve as the chief administrative officer of the Association.  The Executive Director shall report to the President of the Association and shall serve as a non-voting ex-officio member of the Board.

3.  MJ Shahen moved that ASLTA shall be involved with or become a member of the organization of CAL (Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL.org) and shall American Sign Language as one of the foreign Language Resources and Professional Development on the website of CAL.

4. E. Lynn Jacobwitz moved that ASLTA appoints 3-person committee, consisting 3 non-evaluators with ASLPI of 4+/SL:PI: ASL-Advanced Plus to oversee and approve all ASLPI Centers with ASLTA Board’s approval.

5. Arlene Garcia-Gunderson moved that ASLTA to work /develop a marketing and strategic plan for accreditation through the states to recognize/require ASLTA certification for ASL teaching through and with Gallaudet University’s Regional Centers.

6.  Jason E. Zinza moved that ASLTA appoint two professional development coordinators to collaborate together when planning the ASLTA conference, to ensure transparency and minimize disruption if one of the coordinators cannot fulfill duties to unforeseen circumstances.

 

b. Referred to ASLTA Evaluation Team

1.  Cynthia DuPont moved that ASLTA waive SL:PI for CDI or

RID CI on NIC Master.

2.  E. Lynn Jacobowitz moved that ASLTA Board enforce approval ASLTA Evaluation’s L1 Certification.

3.  E. Lynn Jacobowitz moved that ASLTA Review Committee consider removal of the rule that lapsed certified members pay past dues from 2000-2012 to reinstate their certification.

 

c. Referred to ASLTA Website

1.  MJ Shahen moved that ASLTA shall be installed an “ASLTA-News E-Zine Sign up” on the ASLTA website.

2.  Rachel Loftus moved that ASLTA add another position paper that focus on “Deaf Space” for teachers to point out and present to ASL students.

3. Jay T. Levine moved that ASLTA’s website set video instruction and all the information, greetings, certification levels, etc.

4.  Jason Zinza moved that ASLTA be required to consistently publish a record of all motions submitted to the membership during the conference in the ASLTA newsletter and website, and maintain ongoing status updates regarding any and all actions made for each motion, to ensure no motions “disappear” or are “overlooked”, keeping the ASLTA Board accountable to membership.

 

d. Out of Order

1.  MJ Shahen moved that ASLTA should add one committee (SIG) research on ASL Pedagogy (ASLTA Committee Assignments & Contractual Agreements).

2.  MJ Shahen moved that ASLTA Treasurer should add the newly established memorial funds: LF2 (leadership) and Tom Riggs (chapter) and General funds ASLHS to be included in the Treasurer’s financial report at the ASLTA Conference (Business Meeting).

3.  Eric Reed moved that any registrants during current National ASLTA Conference pay ½ discount off for the next National ASLTA conference—this must be paid before the last day of current ASLTA Conference.

4. E. Lynn Jacobowitz moved that ASLTA Board award CEUs for ASLTA/CIT members only. (Not for RID).

5. E. Lynn Jacobowitz moved that ASLTA Board give 100% authority to the Professional Development Chair and its screening committee to finalize the National Conference workshops.

 

e. 3 Motions to vote

1. Motion #2: E. Lynn Jacobowitz, move that ASLTA Board consider the removal of the rule that lapsed affiliated local ASLTA chapters’ past dues from 2000-2011 and have them reinstated their eligibility. Arlene Gunderson amended to develop a guideline in terms of being inactive and when to reinstate their eligibility. Seconded.  Carried.

2. Motion #3: Leslie Greer, move that current and new ASLTA affiliated chapters change from the current officers requirement to only have Professional Development Chair (PDC) and Treasurer. Seconded. Carried.

3.  Motion #4: Jason Zinza, move that ASLTA establish a new award category, named Lawrence Fleischer Award, given in recognition of an ASLTA volunteer member who has performed valuable service to ASLTA and the ASL Teaching profession.  This award is open for nominations form the general ASLTA membership, and cannot be given to a current ASLTA Board member.

Seconded. Withdrawn the motion.

 

 

Adjournment: 10:12 am

 

Submitted by

Dorothy M. Wilkins

ASLTA Secretary

2009-2013

 

 

Appendix A

President’s Report

Larry Forestal, 2009-2011

Glenna Ashton, 2011-2013

 

Larry Forestal served as President from October 2009 to May 2011 when he passed away on May 11^th. In 2009, he helped with hosting the successful 5^th NPD Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

In July 2010, he attended the NAD Conference in Philadelphia as the official delegate for ASLTA. ASLTA’s $2,000.00 donation was acknowledged with an advertisement and sponsor listing. Larry made a motion for the National Deaf History Month and ASL as a language by federal legislation, which became the seventh priority for NAD. He was made chair for the Deaf Culture and History Section. He also presented a workshop on traits of Deaf leadership.

In October 2010 The ASLTA Board met at the CIT conference to continue work on the 501c3 application, the bylaws, the committees, and the conference. The two appointed chairs attended but unfortunately they both resigned later on in 2011 (Chapter and Professional Development).

In 2011, Larry helped work on the 6^th NPD Conference. Award nominations and election committees were set up for the conference. Larry had hoped to see the certification evaluation system and the membership system revised and updated with the use of technology.

After Larry resigned as President due to his health, Glenna became President according to the bylaws. Glenna has focused on trying to complete the projects with the ASL standards, the 501c3 IRS application, the 6^th NPD Conference. She also worked with the Board on improving the ASLTA web site with our new web master, Marvin Herbold, and finding a useful online membership system that will help ease the payment process. Glenna is also working with the Board, past presidents, and members on a strategic plan for the future of ASLTA.

 

 

 

 

Appendix B

Vice President’s Report

Glenna Ashton, 2009-2011

 

In May 2010 and 2011, as the ASLTA official delegate, Glenna attended the annual meetings of the Joint National Committee on Languages (JNCL) and National Council for Languages and International Studies (NCLIS) in Washington, DC. The critical issues were the budget cuts resulting in fewer foreign language program grants. The Alliance for the Advancement of Heritage Languages is very interested in adding ASL to their roster.

              Glenna chaired the committees on the national ASL Standards and the 501c3 IRS application, both of which are being sent in for final approval this month. The 2011 bylaws changes (paid position for the Evaluation Coordinator and section on committees’ duties) were posted on the web site and in the summer newsletter. The voting took place on line through the Survey Monkey. Current ASLTA members received the online ballot if their e-mail address was valid. The 2011 bylaws changes passed 141 to 9 with 94%.

 

Appendix C

Financial and 501c3 Reports

Betti Bonni, 2007-2011

 

The current balance as of June 30, 2011:

 

ASLTA Main Checking	$42,834.31
ASLTA Main Savings	$10,107.80
ASL Honor Society Savings	$11,400.60
ASLTA 2011 Conference Account	$65,494.70
Charles Schwab Investment Account	$59,003.70
Evaluation Account	$3,835.14
Total of all Accounts	$192,676.25

See Appendix F for more detailed information.

 

 

501c3 Committee Report:

Since the 2009 conference in Arizona, 3 people were primarily responsible for putting together the application:  Alysse Rasmussen (ASLTA  member, and FASLTA [Florida] President), Glenna Ashton (ASLTA Vice President) and Betti Bonni (ASLTA Treasurer).  The regulations for the application were revised while the application was being worked on, and it now requires financial statements for the past 5 years.

In addition, the line items required by IRS do not line up with the way our bookkeeping software categorizes all our data.  We enlisted the assistance of a CPA, who was able to pull out all the necessary data and plug it into the application.

In the meantime, the NAD asked that we close our financial ties with their organization at the end of their fiscal year, which was March 30, 2011.   Our 501c3 application had not been submitted yet, so the Board requested permission from the Conference of Interpreter Trainers for a temporary affiliation to maintain our non-profit status.  This was one of the last items of business President Larry Forestal undertook before his untimely death. 

The CIT Vice President, Carla Mathers, offered to look over our application to make sure it was written well enough to get approved.  She is an attorney, and recommended that we hire an attorney in her firm who has expertise in this area.  This is where our application is at the time of this report.  The attorney is reviewing all our documents to ensure there are no issues. 

We are fairly confident that the application is well put together.  We look forward to finally obtaining our own 501c3 status by the end of 2011.

As part of the Treasurer's report presentation, a copy of the 501c3 application was displayed on the screen and quickly skimmed through.  This application is still in revision.

 

Appendix D

Nomination Committee

Betsy Burks, 2010-2011

 

The committee consisted of Barbara Ray Holcomb from Rochester, NY, and Betsy Burks from Seattle, Washington.  They received nominations from various members and sent out the Survey Monkey on the ASLTA website to vote the new Vice President and Treasurer for a new term from 2011 to 2015.

              There were two candidates running for the Vice President ‘s position.  They were Dr. Brian Kilpatrick, Houston, Texas and MJ Shahen.  Dr. Kilpatrick received 81.4% of votes (92 out of 113 valid votes).

There was only one candidate running for the Treasurer’s position.  That was Cathi Bouton, Alaska. She received 100% of votes (107 out of 107 valid votes).

 

 

Appendix E

ASLTA EVALUATION CHAIRPERSON REPORT 

Dr. Keith Cagle, 2000 to present

 

l.            Current number of certified members

                                                                        Paid                    Unpaid                           

                                                                        members         members         Subtotals

              a.           Professional –              75                        15                        90

              b.           Qualified –                     49                        38                        87

              c.           Provisional –                76                        99                        175

                                                          Totals  200                     152                     352

 

2.           12 Professional Interviews in Seattle

3.           From Evaluation office

a..          Professional evaluations

b.           Qualified evaluations

c.           Provisional evaluations

d.           Re-evaluations -

e.           Extensions -

f.            Renewals -

g.           Valid stamps

h.           Paid back and got the certification back -

i.            Updates with Membership office

j.            Responded many inquiries and emails.

k.           Updated Certification section in website

4.  Moving toward a paperless system

              a. Starting with Qualified, send written exam and a candidate can send

his/her exams back electronically. Then send the exam to the three evaluators electronically.

b.           Explore into YouTube with secret password for Provisional evaluation’s video part.

              c.           Develop an online application for all 3 levels.

              d.           Explore about future Professional interviews via videophone.

              e.           Digitalize the files

5.  Trained 5 new evaluators in Charlotte, NC on May 21-24, 2011.  Amy Rowley of California, Lisa Johnston of New York, Sharon Lott of North Carolina, Christine M. Kraft of Indiana and Brian Kilpatrick of Texas.

6.Evaluation System Revision committee – Dr. Bill Newell, Dr. Rachel Stone, Glenna Ashton, Leslie Greer and Amy Rowley

7. Membership renewal fee and certification renewal/extension fee are ORANGE and APPLE.  And membership renewal fee is due in EVERY JANUARY of year. 

 

 

 

 

Appendix F

Chapter Affiliation Chair Report

Dorothy M. Wilkins, 2011

              There are 18 active chapters, 19 inactive chapters, 1 new chapter, and 1 reactivation of the former chapter.   The total of chapters that ASLTA has is 39. The active chapters are California: Sacramento Valley, California San Diego, Florida, Indiana Willard, Illinois: Chicagoland, Kentucky Bluegrass, Maryland (state-wide), Michigan, Minnesota Loon, New Jersey, New York: Rochester, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon: Northwest, Pennsylvania, Texas: Houston, Washington, and Wisconsin. 

              The new chapter formed is Idaho and the former chapter Oklahoma has been reactivated. There are a couple of reasons why some chapters have not been active due to no replies, no interest, not paying annual Chapter Fee, and not submitting the Biennial Report.

              The Annual Chapter fee is $35 a year.  The starting date is January.  These chapters that paid their fees are California: Sacramento Valley, California San Diego, Florida, Indiana Willard, Kentucky Bluegrass, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York: Rochester, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas: Houston, Washington and Wisconsin.

              Eleven chapters that submitted their Biennial Report which included updated/revised Bylaws, a list of members, and a list of workshops given.  They were California San Diego, Florida, Indiana Willard, Minnesota: Loon, New Jersey, NY: Rochester, North Carolina, Oregon: Northwest, Texas: Houston, Pennsylvania

And Washington.

              ASLTA offered Chapter Luncheon by invitation.  It was on July 1, 2011 from 11:45 to 1:15. 14 different chapters representatives came to the Luncheon.  The chapters were Florida ASLTA (2), Indiana: Willard ASLTA (1), Kentucky: Blue Grass Chapter ASLTA (1), Metro ASLTA at NYC (1), Minnesota: Loon ASLTA (2), North Carolina ASLTA (1), Oregon: Northwest ASLTA (2), Pennsylvania ASLTA (1), Texas: Houston ASLTA (2), Virginia: Veditz (2), and Washington ASLTA (2). Lance Forshay was our special guest speaker for the Chapter Luncheon.  He presented “ASL NOW, THE BIG PICTURE.” It was a remarkable presentation that the representatives can bring back to their chapters and share what they all learned.

              We would have a new Business to bid which chapter will host 2015 Conference.  The record of the past conference was 1999 in Rochester, NY, 2003 in Indianapolis, IN, 2005 in Las Vegas, NV, 2007 in Tampa, FL, 2009 in Phoenix, AZ, 2011 in Seattle, WA.  The future conference will be in Charlotte, NC in 2013. What chapter will host for the conference in 2015?  The criteria for the chapter to have before it can bid for a conference are first preference is during the summer but will consider spring or fall depending on low season rates, weather, etc.; hosting the 2015 conference must show evidence of good standing by paying Annual Chapter Fee, offering at least 2 workshops a year, having at least 8 active members and having Bylaws.

              Dorothy M. Wilkins is an interim chapter affiliation chair.  The new replacement will take place sometime after the conference.  The responsibility of the chapter affiliated chair is remind about Annual Renewal (Officers, Renewal Fee, & PD workshops at least 2 times a year),implement/revise New Chapter Application, contribute $500 matching fund for new chapter, work with Conference, offer Chapter Meeting and Leadership Training, SIG: Chapter, and Chapter Luncheon during the ASLTA Conference, encourage chapters to send their news to the Newsletter Editor, review, revise, and approve  the Bylaws, attend board and general meetings, submit the Chapter Affiliated Report & listen and support their own issues.

              Dorothy M. Wilkins would like to express her gratitude to Barbara Hayes, Conference Chair, Jaine Richards, Food Committee for the Chapter Luncheon, Cathi Bouton, Designer for Chapter Luncheon Program “Handout”, Pat Beech, past Chapter Affiliated Chair, and ASLTA Board members: Glenna Ashton, Betti Bonni, & Keith Cagle for their support.

 

 

Appendix G

ASLTA 2011 Webmaster Report

Marvin Herbold, 2010 to present

 

October 27, 2010

Marvin was first contacted by Larry Forestal to discuss ASLTA's website needs.

 

November 9, 2010

ASLTA became a customer.  Marvin took over maintenance of the ASLTA website from Leslie Riggs.

 

November 12, 2010

Marvin gave Larry Forestal and Barbara Hayes access and ability to modify the website content using the existing Joomla! CMS (Content Management System).  Marvin also trained Larry and Barbara on how to make the changes they need to make.

 

November 13, 2010 to Today

Assisted Barbara Hayes with various things related to posting 2011 ASLTA Conference information on the website.

 

November 18, 2010

              Gave Keith Cagle access to modify the ASLTA website contents.

 

March 8, 2011

              Barbara Hayes first reported some kind of “virus” on the website.

 

March 18, 2011

Marvin tracked down the virus to a modified file on the ASLTA website.  This file should not have been modified, so I have lost faith in the security of the ASLTA website.  Marvin also had a frustrating time dealing with DeafVision (the web hosting company) – they have some bizarre limitation on how many files I could download before they locked my computer out.  At this time Marvin contacted Larry Forrestal about moving the ASLTA website to one of his own web servers and starting fresh.  He agreed to his proposal.

 

March 19, 2011

Worked on the new website begins.  The new website uses the Drupal CMS instead of the Joomla! CMS, and also is hosted on his own web server instead of DeafVision.

 

March 28, 2011

Fixed some issues with Betti Bonni not getting emails from the old website.  The old website was not configured to send emails to Betti's personal email account.

 

March 29, 2011

              First invoice was sent to Larry Forrestal.

 

April 4, 2011

              The new website goes live.

 

April 5, 2011 to Today

Assisted the board members (Glenna Ashton, Dorothy Wilkins, Betti Bonni, and Keith Cagle) with various things on the new website.

 

April 9, 2011

Some discussion with the board about setting up group video chat on the new website.  2^nd invoice sent to Larry Forrestal.

 

April 16, 2011

              Added search feature to the new website.

 

April 30, 2011

              New service agreement sent to ASLTA and approved by the board.

 

May 13, 2011

              Some discussion with the board about using Wild Apricot to handle the member registry.

 

May 16, 2011

              Manual for modifying website content released to the board members.

 

May 23, 2011

              Account with DeafVision terminated.

 

 

Appendix H

ASLTA Membership Report

LaNae Philips, 2010 to present

 

Membership Category	Total	Comments
Professional	75	Certified by ASLTA
Qualified	58	Certified by ASLTA
Provisional	87	Certified by ASLTA
Associate	213	Currently teaching ASL - not ASLTA certified
Supporting	16	Supports ASLTA - not teaching ASL
Other: ASLHS	61	Sponsors of High School Honor Society Chapters
Institutional	6	Institutions that support ASLTA
Grand Total	516

ASLTA tracks its members using a searchable Excel database.  The current system is all hand-entered, meaning the Membership Coordinator manually enters all information from the membership form.  Plans are in progress to test a new online system, where members can fill out and submit the form online, as well as, pay dues online!  We are excited about this possibility and will let the membership know when it’s ready.  An online member registry has been implemented. If you initialed the membership form indicating you did not want to be part of this, be assured your name will not be included.

 

Geographic Distribution: 

The current 514 members of ASLTA represent 45 states, Washington, DC, and 2 members from Canada.

 

Collaboration/Other: 

Certification: The Membership Coordinator works closely with the Evaluation Coordinator to ensure certified members are current on yearly membership dues and that individual certification expiration dates are accurate.  The certification expiration date is printed on the back of the membership cards to assist members in tracking their dates and keeping current in both yearly membership dues and certification renewals.

 

ASL Honor Society: The Membership Coordinator works with the ASL Honor Society when questions arise regarding membership with ASLHS.  Occasionally, there is confusion that by checking and paying the ASLTA membership category for ASLHS Sponsors means that they were members of ASLHS.  This is not the case. 

ASLHS is a separate organization and there are separate dues associated with each organization: ASLTA and ASLHS.  ASLTA has removed that category from the 2011 membership form, to reduce this confusion.  To be an

ASLHS sponsor, you must be a member of both organizations.  Please see the ASLHS website for more details, http://aslhonorsociety.org/. 

 

Emails/Surveys:  The Membership Coordinator provides the ASLTA Board with membership email addresses when voting needs arise.  Emails are never shared with a third party and are only used for ASLTA related needs such as voting or to communicate with members.  

 

Appendix I

ASL Honor Society Report

Jason Zinza, 2007 to present

 

From: Jason E. Zinza, on behalf of the ASL Honor Society and advisory board (Members: Tricia McCarthy [NY], Howard Gilliland [CA], Karyn Houston [IL],

Rhonda Leslie [FL], Grace Wilkin-Yoder [FL])

 

Summary:

Since 2007, the ASL Honor Society (ASLHS) has continued its mission of supporting ASL teachers and students. It is a program that is a direct benefit of ASLTA membership. Each year has brought strong growth and the ASLHS is now encountering growing pains and larger challenges, but is confident that it will continue to provide tangible benefits to ASL teachers and students. The following information highlights each of the major accomplishments the ASL Honor Society has performed in the 2010-2011 term.

 

1) Membership

There are now 126 campus chapters of the ASL Honor Society. The majority are high schools with a handful of college members. We met and surpassed the 10% growth goal for 2011 set at the end of last year. We intend to see at least 10% more growth for 2012.

 

ASLHS does not have the resources to engage in advertising, so growth is based on word-of-mouth. The ASLHS website statistics show an average of 9,000 hits per month. The ASLTA website also includes some information on the ASLHS. Information about ASLHS appears in the ASLTA newsletter, the TeachASL Listserv, the AS Instructors Yahoo group, and the online CIT newsletter.

 

Very few colleges are interested in joining ASLHS for unknown reasons. This year, individual students from 7 colleges sought to join as members or sponsor a chapter themselves, since they could not find a willing ASL faculty member to do so. The ASLHS advisory board feels individual students should not be sponsors, so the alternative is to encourage more colleges to join.

 

Membership Notes

- 22 different people joined ASLTA for the first time in order to set up an ASLHS chapter on campus.

- 1 university program from Canada joined.

- 14 colleges are members.

- 1 school for the Deaf is a member (Ohio). Two others are considering joining in 2012 (Calif. School for the Deaf - Fremont and Texas School for the Deaf).

 

2) Finances

Currently, the ASLHS has approximately $14,000.00 in the bank. The majority of these funds come from selling graduation materials (honor cords and medals).

 

Income

- ASL literature competition entry fees:                                   $800.00

- Honor cords:                                                                                     $5,113.00

- Medals:                                                                                                 $3,750.00

- Pins:                                                                          (approx)           $1,000.00

 

Expenses

- ASL literature competition prizes:                                                         $600.00

- Honor cords:                                                         (approx)           $2,500.00

- Medals:                                                                    (approx)           $2,000.00

- Pins:                                                                          (approx)           $600.00

- Shipping                                                                  (approx)           $900.00

- ASL Scholarships:                                                                            $5,000.00

- ASLTA Conference donations:                                                    $3,000.00

- Teacher Mini-Grants                                                                      $1,350.00

 

Concerns: The ASLHS is beginning to work with large sums of money, particularly when ordering medals and cords. Is it possible to obtain some type of credit / debit card tied specifically to the ASLHS funds? Someone charging the materials and requesting reimbursement has made each major purchase. This system has made it difficult to find volunteers who are willing (and financially able) to take leadership positions.

 

Finances Notes

- We would like to maintain a reserve of at least $6,000.00, and have met that goal.

- We want to award at least 5 scholarships per year at a cost of $5,000.00.

- 2011 saw a higher than usual level of expenditures due to supporting the ASLTA conference.

 

3) Competitions

The ASL Honor Society sponsored the 4th annual ASL Literature Competition. This year, 230 students competed from all over the United States (to compare, 146 students competed in 2010). No college students entered. Competition categories were "ASL Narrative: Describe the Perfect Day Off" and "ABC Story."

 

Winning entries can be viewed at the ASLHS website. Link: http://aslhonorsociety.org/Literature_Competion.html

 

Competition Notes

- The quality of submissions has improved over previous years, but it is clear many ASL teachers and students do not understand basic elements of ABC story development.

 

4) Teacher Mini-Grants

One benefit of ASLHS membership is the opportunity to apply for mini-grants to help obtain materials, pay for guest speakers, or other needs in the ASL classroom. A requirement is that the funds be used in a way that exposes ASL / Deaf culture not just to ASL students but the larger community as well.

 

The ASLHS awarded the following mini-grants:

a) $700.00       Governor's High School, VA. Class of 20 students attended the interpreter / ASL Fair held in Baltimore, MD. The funds paid for half the registration fees. Students were paired with Deaf mentors for the whole day, attended workshops, and gave a presentation.

 

b) $400.00       Land O'Lakes High School, FL. 10 webcams purchased to create an ASL lab and allow video chat exchanges with ASL students and Deaf instructors in other locations.

 

c) $250.00       Lisbon High School, ME. Funds used for honoraria for two Deaf guest speakers / workshop leaders / school-wide ASL entertainment.

 

Teacher Mini-Grant Notes

- New for 2012: A cap on grant requests will be set at $500.00.

 

5) ASL Scholarships

The ASL Honor Society has awarded $5,000.00 in scholarships for 2011. Recipients are:

 

- Nichole Conrad, from Maine. Will attend Keuka College (NY)

 

- Breanna Dargel, from Texas. Will attend Gardner-Webb (NC)

 

- Melissa Reeves, from New York. Will attend McDaniel College (MD)

 

- Curtis Leach, from Texas. Will attend Lone Star College (TX)

 

- Melissa Helms, from Idaho. Will attend Utah State University (UT)

 

Scholarship Notes

- Interest in the scholarship ballooned dramatically:

              - 2010 (43 applications)

              - 2011 (236 applications)

 

- Of the 236 applicants, only 8 were from current college students. Unfortunately, none of those colleges are members of the ASL Honor Society and so were disqualified.

 

-A VRS provider has expressed interest in donating funds on an annual basis to support the ASL Scholarship program. The most recent communication indicates it is waiting for ASLTA to obtain full non-profit status, though this is not a requirement.

 

6) Graduation Honors

In 2011, ASLHS awarded:

 

- 487 honor cords to high school seniors who studied ASL for two years minimum, had at least 3.5 GPA in their ASL coursework, and performed service hours to benefit their local Deaf community.

 

- 21 Alice Cogswell Medals to college students who had studied ASL for two years minimum, at least 3.5 GPA in their ASL coursework, and performed service hours to benefit their local Deaf community.

 

- 288 Laurent Clerc Medals to high school or college seniors who had studied ASL for three years minimum, at least 3.7 GPA in their ASL coursework, and performed service hours to benefit their local Deaf community.

 

Graduation Honors Notes

- We desperately need a better way of providing funds to pay for shipping. This year, two separate money transfers were made ($500.00 each, for a total of $1,000.00), and all shipping was paid for in cash. For best bookkeeping records, we need a better system.

 

7) ASLTA Conference

The ASLHS is a silver sponsor of the conference ($1,000.00), and also donated $2,000.00 to help defray the cost of the luncheon.

 

At the conference, the ASLHS advisory board will meet to plan for future growth, complete cross training, and reach out to interested individuals to form an ASL Scholarship Review Committee.

 

Conference Notes

There is no booth in the exhibit hall since no one was willing to man the booth and answer questions.

 

8) Goals for 2011-2012

- At least 10% growth in chapters

- Expand college chapters to at least 10

- Pursue external funding opportunities for the ASL scholarship

- Host the 2012 ASL Literature competition (categories to be determined)

- Recruit at least 3 new advisory board members

 

Appendix J

ASLTA Newsletter

Alysse Rasmussen, 2006 to present

 

Responsibilities:  Contact potential advertisers and authors.  Publish 4 issues per year.  Authorize postal address check annually.  Locate reliable publisher.

Logistics:  Funds and advertising copy sent to Treasurer who confirms and forwards to editor.  Articles sent to editor.  Drafts sent to board for approval.  Final draft sent to publisher who prints and distributes.

Recent issues:  copy quality of ads, solution pending

Volunteers needed:  reviewers, authors.

Types of projects sought:  articles on L1, L2, Action Research, Hands-on, Tips, Theories

Deadlines for submission:  Dec, Mar, Jun, Sep

Deadlines for publication:  Jan, Apr, Jul, Oct

 

REHI (Research in Higher Education)

Alysse Rasmussen, 2007 to present

 

Responsibilities:  draft pilot survey, test, redraft, contact 2000 4-year colleges (mail and email), collect data, follow up, analyze, and prepare reports.

Logistics:  Admissions directors will not respond to email requests; only 10% respond to paper requests

Volunteers needed:  make direct phone or VP contact, solicit answers to 5 questions, and enter the data

Needs:  access to ASLTA membership list and emails

Preliminary results:  10% reporting:  45% accept ASL on some level; 38% do not require any foreign language; 16% do not accept ASL.

 

Appendix K

ASLTA Conference Chair

Barbara Hayes, 2009-2011

 

The core team members are Cathi Bouton, Lance Forshay, Barbara Hayes, Claudia, & Terry Sasser.

 

Facts:

1.15 Sponsors

2. Registrations:  401

3. Exhibitors: 30 – sold out

4. Art Room/Silent Auction with Deaf Artists’ artwork

5. Pre-Conference:

6. Signing Naturally 50 attendees – sold out

7. Master ASL 62 / 75 attendees

8. Two Keynote Speakers; 40 workshops with over 50 presenters; two poster sessions; one plenary session

9. Presenters’ intro videos and handouts: all online

10. RID CEUs and Clock Hours for all workshops

11. SLPI:ASL and VP-ASLPI Services

12. Two videophones for attendees

13. Tours and Fun events; Entertainer Patrick Fischer

 

Sponsors:

1. Sign Media, Inc.

2. Dawn Sign Press

3. ASL Honor Society

4. University of Washington

5. Renaissance Seattle Hotel

6. Purple Communications

7. Deaf Bilingual Coalition ~ Washington

8. WA GUAA

9. Washington State Association of the Deaf

10. Visually Speaking

11. NW ASLTA

12. Gallaudet University

13. WA ASLTA

14. RIT / NTID

15. VRS Interpreting Institute

 

Support Services:

1. ASL Interpreter Network (ASLIN)

2. WSRID with volunteer interpreters

3. iDeafNews with media service

4. Seattle Central Community College with volunteer interpreters and SSPs

5. Seattle Art Museum with free passes to tour Douglas Tilden

               

Contract with Renaissance Seattle Hotel

1. Based our Group Sales Agreement with this hotel:

•we have approximately 605 rooms booked with 15 complimentary rooms

•Complimentary WIFI in all guestrooms and meeting space

•Hotel will provide ASLIN ASL-Certified interpreters for conference planning and throughout the conference

 

WA ASLTA Core Committee will develop Conference Guideline Handbook immediately after the conference.

 

Thank you all for your support and making our conference a huge success!

We hope you all have a grand time here!