Welcome to STEM Stories with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Professionals. Hands & Voices, in partnership with a sponsorship from the NTID Regional STEM Center at RIT/NTID, created this interview series with Karen Putz sharing stories of Deaf/Hard of Hearing adults working in the STEM field. Each one of the videos below is a free-flowing conversation with a variety of questions about career, home, and fun!
STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. STEM covers the topics of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics. At its core, STEM is a teaching philosophy that integrates all four disciplines together into a single, cross-disciplinary program which offers instruction in real-world (as opposed to purely academic) applications and teaching methods.
Below are four Interviews/Episodes - each episode has various communication accomodations included in them. Every video has ASL incorporated as well as English captions and embedded Transliteration via Cued American English.
Keith Bonilla is a science teacher, teaching middle school science to 6-8th graders, covering a variety of topics. Keith was born with jaundice, which resulted in a condition called Kernicterus. Kernicterus caused Keith to have low muscle tone on the left side of his body as well as burned out the nerve endings along the auditory canal. Keith had to go to physical therapy for most of his elementary years to build up muscle tone to rebalance his body. The complications associated with birth and jaundice do not seem be hereditary, however, it did point to a bad mixing of genes. Keith now wears hearing aids.
Keith went to RIT for a degree in science because he wanted to be a doctor, only to be derailed by a double concussion. He then switched to business and obtained an associates in business with the support of his family. Upon recovery-- both, physically and emotionally, Keith began working at a school as a Teacher’s Assistant. While working, Keith returned to school to obtain a BA. Keith is now pursuing his masters in both Deaf Education and Curriculum and Instruction.
This version of Keith's interview in ASL includes:
This version of Keith's interview in ASL includes:
Sheila Xu (She/Her) is currently pursuing dual MPP and MBA degrees at Harvard University and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Sheila earned her Bachelor of Science in Humanities and Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is the first Deaf Asian female pilot and has interned at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Sheila is interested in developing and investing in accessible space technology and advocating for policy changes to open up aerospace and aviation traditionally closed to people with disabilities.
This version of Sheila's interview includes
This version of Sheila's interview includes
Breanne M. Kisselstein is a DeafBlind woman scientist, who identifies as someone with chronic invisible illness and is part of the LGBTQIA2S+ community. Currently, she is finishing her PhD in Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology at Cornell University, researching the population genetics of the grape powdery mildew fungus in Finger Lakes vineyards in New York. At Cornell, Breanne works closely with student leaders and administration to advocate for students from marginalized backgrounds, especially those with disabilities.
This video includes Closed Captions and ASL interpreting
This video includes Closed Captions and Transliteration via Cued American English
Diane Bass holds three Bachelors’ degrees: Health Science, Psychology, and Nursing. She also holds other certifications/minors in Leadership, Child Welfare, and Nurse Assistant. Diane has been working in various healthcare settings such as home health, nursing facility, rehabilitation center, and hospital. She currently moderates a Deaf/HOH nursing group on Facebook since 2015. Diane also has personal experience as a caregiver for a long time, providing respite care. Diane works for Right at Home. Her favorite quote: “Failure will always create the next opportunity.”
This version of Diane's interview includes
This version of Diane's interview includes
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