Honestly, I had not put any thought into this yet and I am thankful for this discussion post
to help start that process. I also know I will share this post and my thoughts with my mentor to
get their input to see what they think I would be more successful with researching.
I think what I would like to research is how the Deaf community is being underserved. I
know from personal experience, services and accessibility from state to state is drastically
different. When I moved from Minnesota to Texas, I thought I was spoiled in Minnesota. The
accessibility and services in Minnesota and Texas are significantly different. However, I have
started to look at it from a different perspective. I was never spoiled in Minnesota, and Texas is
lacking in serving my community. I have had to fight for medical services, education, and so
much more in Texas. I understand, in some ways, states are independent. They have some laws
that other states may not have, but being Deaf is protected at the Federal level with the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Deaf community is often misunderstood. People
think that Deaf people are uneducated, shouldn't drive, can't work, and are seen as less.
To narrow it down, one topic to look further into would be healthcare and the barriers
Deaf people face. I know for myself I have had to fight to get services and explain how having
an interpreter in person instead of a video interpreter is needed. I have a medical background
which makes me fortunate by providing me the information I need in order to know what should
be happening and when to speak up. If I didn't, I would have been seriously injured by medical
providers because I am Deaf. "Communication barriers between healthcare providers and
patients contribute to health disparities" (Hommes et al., 2018, p. 956). This is just scratching the
surface of the issues that Deaf people face in the healthcare system.
Another specific topic is the education system for the Deaf. For me, a challenge is
making sure I have accessibility to the materials for class. Often, I have to take on an additional
role to ensure I can equally access class material. However, this role should be done by the
school. More often than not, I must check if videos have captions. Sometimes they have
captions, but frequently they are auto-generated and wildly inaccurate. These are two simple
accessibility issues that I am left to deal with as a student. But, as a student, it is not my
responsibility to make sure my classes are accessible for me. Classroom and material
accessibility is the school and the professor's responsibility. "Unimpeded classroom
communication are not characteristic of hard-of-hearing students alone, but extend also to deaf
students in mainstream settings, so that issues of educational access cannot logically reduce to
mere questions about technologies" (Holmström & Schönström, 2017, p. 31). This topic, much
like healthcare, has many other issues that need to be addressed.
These are just two of many different subjects within the Deaf community that could be
researched, and I have access to many different resources for these topics. Some resources are
Deaf people, agencies supporting the varied Deaf topic, and schools with Deaf students. I also
like to look at it from the other perspective and use the resources of teachers/professors who have
taught Deaf students, interpreters, and educators who are teaching hearing people to work with
Deaf individuals. My desire to look into a Deaf topic shows how much it affects me, and I want
and need to see a change for the Deaf community. "There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or
free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28, New Living
Translation). When I read that, it says to me we need to make sure all are included, and I believe
it applies to the Deaf as well and many others.
References
Holmström, I., & Schönström, K. (2017). Resources for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in
mainstream schools in Sweden. A survey.CDeafness & Education International,C19(1), 29–
39. https://doi.org/10.1080/14643154.2017.1292670
Holy bible new living translation. (2021). DaySpring; Candace Cameron Bure
Hommes, R. E., Borash, A. I., Hartwig, K., & Degracia, D. (2018). American sign language
interpreters perceptions of barriers to healthcare communication in Deaf and hard of
hearing patients.CJournal of Community Health,C43(5), 956–961.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0511-3
Rolfe, A. (2017). What to look for in a mentor.CKorean Journal of Medical Education,C29(1), 41–
43. https://doi.org/10.3946/kjme.2017.52C
Response 1: Jeffery Manzer
I enjoyed reading your post. I have known my best friend since he was 5 (I guess he is. more like
a brother) is a police officer in northern Minnesota. I was also a paramedic in Minneapolis,
Minnesota, along with serving on the 3rd precinct citizen council for the Minneapolis Police
Department. It is very interesting to see what different police departments require for education.
Like in Minneapolis, you need a two year law enforcement degree or a four bachelor's degree in
anything to become an entry level officer. Where other cities just have you pass their local police
academy. Something I think would be great is to see if there is an actual impact in higher
education of officers or if maybe an internal education is a better approach. I read that there is no
official evidence showing that those officers who have a college education are any more
effective than those who had not had a higher education (Paoline et al., 2015). I know current
and former law enforcement officers teach many courses taught in law enforcement degrees.
With how fast the world is changing, I wonder if former officers are the right ones to be
teaching. There is no disrespect to them, but things are so different in the world we currently live
in. I also see where some education needs to happen and also some partnerships. I have seen
officers struggle with situations that include people in a mental health crisis. When it is possible
to partner with other agencies would be a great help to all involved (Samuelsohn, 2021). There is
no easy answer, but if we keep the verse "fear of the Lord teaches wisdom; humility precedes
honor" (Proverbs 15:33, New Living Translation), we know we are doing our best.
References
Bongaerts, D., Mazzola, F., & Wagner, W. (2021). Closed for business: The mortality impact of
business closures during the Covid-19 pandemic.CPLoS ONE,C16(5), 1–17.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0251373
Franklin, J. (2020). UK’s Covid-19 business support leads to confusion.CInternational Financial
Law Review, N.PAG.
Holy bible new living translation. (2021). DaySpring; Candace Cameron Bure
Response 2: Ricky Mason
The topic that you are thinking I think will be interesting to read when you are done. There will
be a lot pull from with so many varied issues, but I don't think many would think to research
leadership direction when it is really needed. You brought up the loans available during COVID.
I was sad to hear when huge companies were applying for them, and the smaller companies
could not get them. One approach you could take is to see how we compared to other countries.
IN the U.K., they set up loans as well for companies to get. The U.K. set it up from the beginning
that it was only for small businesses (Franklin, 2020). I am sure no loan system that was set up
because of COVID was perfect. It was such an unknown situation for everyone involved. One
other thing I found interesting was when the leadership of businesses decided to close, close at
all and when they reopened. I am sure it was a dilemma for many business leaders trying to
decide what to do. Even comparing the U.S. to other countries and seeing how they did or didn't
rebound compared to how much of the country had to close down. "On March 25th additional
sectors comprising 32.5% of the economy were closed. Importantly, this "one-size-fits-all"
closure policy affected Italian municipalities differently" (Bongaerts et al., 2021). To see the
percent of the company for different countries and how they sustained themselves could lead to
some significant findings. Also, if possible, see how Christian businesses or the leadership of
businesses that and know Christian how they handled COVID. " TheCLordCsays, “I will guide
you along the best pathway for your life.CCCI will advise you and watch over you." (Psalm 32:8,
New Living Translation). Hopefully, if they leaned on their faith, they make the right and best
decisions for all.
References
Gisbert-Trejo, N., Landeta, J., Albizu, E., & Fernández-Ferrín, P. (2019). Determining effective
mentor characteristics in inter-organizational mentoring for managers: an approach based
on academics’ and practitioners’ perspectives.CIndustrial & Commercial Training,C51(2),
85–103. https://doi.org/10.1108/ICT-06-2018-0051
Jain, R., Chaudhary, B., & Jain, N. (2016). Impact of mentoring on academic performance &
career self-efficacy of business students.CIndian Journal of Industrial Relations,C51(4),
684–693.
Holy bible new living translation. (2021). DaySpring; Candace Cameron Bure
