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Children in Missouri who are deaf or hard of hearing should get a helping hand thanks to a new law which took effect Aug. 28.
The law creates an advisory committee to help establish language development milestones for deaf and hard of hearing children from their birth to age five. The law also places an emphasis on getting more resources to parents so deaf children have a strong foundation in language and literacy going into kindergarten.
“The more research we did, the more we understood the importance of learning sign language for our child,” Amy DeAngelo said.
DeAngelo’s daughter, Mila, was born deaf. The 15-month-old toddler can sign between 20 and 30 words. She also wears cochlear implants. Mila and the DeAngelos stand to benefit from Missouri’s new law to prepare her for life as a student.
“She communicates with us using ASL and it’s a bonding experience,” DeAngelo said. “If you don’t have that language, it’s hard to bond with your child.”
The new law is part of a nationwide initiative called LEAD-K, an acronym for Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids. Kansas already has a LEAD-K law.
“The goal here is to see deaf and hard of hearing children be able to become part of their communities, make friends, become working professionals,” Clark Corogenes said.
He is deaf and helped put this law on the desks of legislators in Jefferson City. Corogenes credits the Parent Leadership Training Institute-Kansas City for giving him the confidence and capabilities to advocate for the new law.
“It’s been a pleasure to be a part of a movement that doesn’t want that cycle to continue," Corogenes said. "Realizing that something needs to be changed, something needs to be fixed."
His day job is working at The Whole Person where he helps with deaf and hard of hearing services. The state has a deadline of July 1, 2024, to implement the standards and metrics this law asks the committee to establish.
In the meantime, several agencies offer services for the deaf and hard of hearing community around Kansas City:
- Museum of Deaf History, Arts & Culture in Olathe, Kansas
- The Whole Family Project
- Missouri Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
- Missouri School for the Deaf's Families First Program
And several organizations offer classes in American Sign Language at varying costs:
- Olathe Health
- Kansas School for the Deaf's Family Signs Kansas program
- Johnson County Community College
- KU Edwards Campus
- Metropolitan Community College's Maple Woods campus
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