Volume 25 Issue 7

HOH-LD-News
Vol. 25, Issue 7
November 12, 2005

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Table of Contents
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- Article 1: TV Captioning - Part 2

- Article 2: Sound Field System Improves Communication

- Article 3: The Starkey Hearing Foundation to Give Early Holiday Gifts

- Article 4: How to Get a Human on the Phone

Our advertisers make it possible for us to provide HOH-LD-News as a free service. Please let them know you appreciate their support, and please mention that you saw their message in HOH-LD-News.

- Advertisers in this Issue
First Premium Placement: Even More Savings at Harris Communications
Second Premium Placement: Smoke Alarm for People with High Frequency Hearing Loss
Third Premium Placement: IHHD Online Educational Opportunities
Classified Section: One Education Opportunity and five Employment Opportunities

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Contact information and disclaimers are at the end of this newsletter.
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- Article 1: TV Captioning - Part 2
By Cheryl Heppner
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Editor: TV Captioning has been a real boon to people with hearing loss. It wasn't too long ago that folks would select which program to watch based almost entirely on what was captioned! Thankfully we now generally have many captioned programs from which to choose.

The next captioning issue is quality. Some of it is great, and some of it is essentially worthless. The FCC is considering writing rules that would mandate minimum quality standards for television captioning, and they want YOUR comments.

NVRC presented a wonderful captioning workshop in late October, and Cheryl Heppner took the time to write up the workshop information and distribute it as widely as possible. Cheryl's article discusses the issues to be addressed and provides detailed instructions on how to file comments with the FCC. Because we can't get all of the information in a single issue, we've posted the article on our website and include links to the various article sections below.

Please note that the first deadline for posting comments in November 10, so you don't have a lot of time. Please take a few minutes, use the links below to learn about the issues and how to send your comments, and then let the FCC know what you think. Your comment could be the one that convinces the folks at the FCC that they need to act to ensure quality captions!

Laws and Regulations
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Access/Captioning/Television/nvrc.htm#law

The Challenges of the TV Captioning Laws and Regulations
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Access/Captioning/Television/nvrc.htm#chal

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Background Information
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Access/Captioning/Television/nvrc.htm#bg

What to Comment About
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Access/Captioning/Television/nvrc.htm#what

How to Submit Your Comments
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Access/Captioning/Television/nvrc.htm#how

This is Part 2 of 3 Parts. Astute readers will notice that we published Part three last week and part 2 this week. The reason for this unusual order is that we wanted to provide information on how to file your comments before the initial November 10 deadline.

Thanks to NVRC for permission to share this information with you. If you'd like to share this article, please be sure to credit NVRC. (See credit at the end of the article.)

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The Challenges of the TV Captioning Laws & Regulations

1. Laws and Regulations
- Are meaningless unless they are monitored and enforced
- Don't always cover everything we need
- Aren't always interpreted the way we intended them to be

2. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
This federal agency has oversight of all the captioning-related laws mentioned in this presentation. It is influenced in its ability to be responsive to our needs by politics and funding

3. Decoder
- TVs smaller than 13 inches, especially ones with battery power, do not usually have caption capability
- Americans are moving to small wireless devices that have phone, pager, TV, and Internet capability -- but not necessarily caption capability

4. Digital TV
- When shopping for a digital TV, it can be difficult or impossible to test captions in stores -- sales people know little or nothing about captioning features
- Consumers are reporting many problems when they get equipment home -- service people don't understand what captioning is, how to connect devices, and how to operate the caption features
- Some auxiliary equipment such as VCRs, DVD players, and digital recorders like TiVo cause problems with recording, decoding or displaying captions

5. Closed Captioning
- Broadcasters, cable providers, and satellite providers do not monitor their captioning
- The FCC has not required reporting on the progress of TV closed captioning and has never fined a provider for not meeting its obligations or for poor quality captioning
- There is a shortage of qualified captioners
- Consumers frequently experience problems with spelling, missing captions, garbled captions, etc.
- Major networks are doing well with the amount of captioning, but cable is lagging behind
- "Electronic Newsroom Technique" gives poor quality news

6. Visual Information in Emergencies
- Broadcasters still quibble about the definition of emergency
- Consumers can't write a good complaint about what information is missing when they don't have captions to know what's being said in the first place
- FCC investigations take a lot of time; most actions were taken right before the deadline
- Broadcasters are beginning to lash back at the FCC for doing its job

7. Emergency Alert System
The system is not often used in many places; how do we know that it will be effective?

Another Challenge:

More and more news is moving to the Internet, with video clips that are not captioned. There are no regulations to cover captioning of the Internet. Congress or the FCC must decide whether the Internet is an information service or telecommunications service. The FCC has no jurisdiction over information services, and thus would have no authority to regulate and enforce captioning.

One hopeful sign is that "data mining" could be our friend. New software can search a video if it is closed captioned, just like you search for text data on the Internet. This is a powerful and exciting new tool that may make captioning highly desirable and help us avoid a long struggle to make captioning widespread on the Internet.

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Background Information

We now have an opportunity to work to fix some of the problems with captioned TV. Let's tackle them by sending comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about potential changes in the captioning regulations. You do not need to be deaf or hard of hearing to send comments. Poor caption quality affects everyone. Friends and family members also know how important high quality captions are to building reading skills and vocabulary, and how they enable us to enjoy television together instead of turning TV watching for education or entertainment into a frustrating experience. And sometimes, even without hearing loss, people depend on captions in noisy places or to watch TV when the kids are sleeping.

In 2004, Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TDI) drafted a Petition for Rulemaking to address many issues that affect caption quality and how complaints are handled. The final petition was signed by TDI, National Association of the Deaf, Self Help for Hard of Hearing People, the Association of Late-Deafened Adults, and the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Consumer Advocacy Network. It was submitted to the FCC on July 23, 2004.

The FCC reviewed the petition and decided that our requests merited action. In July 2005, it released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which was recently published in the Federal Register. The notice talks about our consumer petition and asks for comments to answer a number of questions. The deadline for the comments to be received by the FCC is November 10, 2005. If you miss this deadline, there is a second chance to meet the deadline 15 days later on November 25, 2005 to send "reply comments".

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association sent comments to oppose our consumer petition when it was filed, but the National Association of Broadcasters did not send in any comments, nor did any other businesses or trade organizations that would be affected by changes to the captioning regulations.

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(c)2005 by Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons (NVRC), www.nvrc.org. When sharing this information, please ensure credit is given to NVRC.

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Smoke Alarm for People with High Frequency Hearing Loss
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Dear Abby: "Do they make a smoke alarm for people who can't hear high pitch sounds? My older friend cannot hear his smoke alarm."

This article inspired a new product. There is one company that makes a low frequency smoke detector for people who have trouble hearing high pitched sounds. It's battery operated and needs no special installation.

The company website is www.loudenlow.com

The original Dear Abby article is also reprinted there.

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- Article 2: Sound Field System Improves Communication
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Editor: We've published articles on sound field systems in previous newsletters, and I think it's time for a refresher. These are basically small public address systems that include a microphone, and amplifier, and speakers. Their purpose is to increase the volume of the speaker's voice, and they do a great job of that.

I've seen these systems used on a regular basis in retirement homes, where the residents and administrators LOVE them. I think a sound field system is worth considering in any situation where a single speaker is doing most of the talking.

This article is republished with the kind permission of the MetroWest Daily News. It originally appeared in their October 24, 2005 edition.

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Speaking up: Teacher's sound amplification system catches the ears of students.
By Theresa Freeman / Daily News Staff

ASHLAND -- Ten students listened to teacher Sandra Gavin read about fictional character Miggery Sow meeting a fairy-tale princess, hearing every word.

For about a month Gavin has been using a new sound amplification system in her multi-age classroom, technology donated by the nonprofit Hard of Hearing Advocates of Framingham. The sound system helps students focus better on classroom discussions and directions, she said.

"It's just made a remarkable difference," said Gavin. "Even when you are not hard of hearing, it takes a conscious effort to listen. They are not struggling."

Gavin, who teaches students in grades 4, 5 and 6 at David Mindess School, said none of her students are hard of hearing. But, some children in her classroom have learning disabilities, have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or are English language learners, she said.

Six of the 10 students have been in her class before, Gavin said. "I see a difference in their attention and understanding during lessons," she said.

Gavin wears a microphone, that hooks around her ear, most of the day. Her words, broadcast by infrared light, are amplified through an overhead speaker.

She said it helps them block out the noise of a heating and ventilation unit in the room and noises from around the classroom or outside.

"They all love it," said Gavin. "They say that no matter where I am in the room, they can hear me."

For private conversations, Gavin can switch off the system with a cell-phone-sized pack she wears at her waist.

Chris McDonald, 10, said the sound system helps him more easily follow the stories Gavin reads in class. Classmate Jahnelle Williams, 10, just thinks it's "cool."

Hard of Hearing Advocates creates and implements programs and solutions for people who are hearing impaired. Volunteer Janet Keeler coordinated the gift, but Director Warren Hanna contacted Gavin about the donation of the nearly $900 system, she said.

"He would like to see more systems donated to schools and is trying to raise awareness and money for these systems," said Gavin.

The Acoustical Society of America estimates that students in a typical classroom can miss 25 percent of what the teacher says, Gavin said. Research shows that elementary-aged students are dependent on soft, subtle consonant sounds, she said.

Such sound systems have been shown to help increase class participation and boost test scores, Gavin said.

All of the classrooms at the new high school building, scheduled to open in January, are outfitted to easily install such a sound amplification system, said Gavin.

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You're Career Oriented... Career Driven...and Hard of Hearing or Deaf
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The Institute for Persons Who Are Hard of Hearing or Deaf (IHHD) is a nonprofit Congressionally-funded agency dedicated to facilitating workplace and career advancement for aspiring professionals like you.

IHHD provides important online educational opportunities to share experiences, access top professional leaders, and develop crucial communication and business skills. Choose from a number of programs that cover all aspects of career growth - from starting a business to leadership and advocacy development.

These month-long courses are delivered online using National University's acclaimed state-of-the-art interactive learning system to provide optimal accessibility. Visit: http://cha.nu.edu/ec/formihhd-careerdev.html?ypd002
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- Article 3: The Starkey Hearing Foundation to Give Early Holiday Gifts
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Editor: Do you know about the Starkey Hearing Foundation? They provide hearing aids to people who are unable to afford them. The vast majority of their recipients are in foreign countries and most are children. Here's a bit about their current mission. For more information please point your browser to www.sotheworldmayhear.org

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The Starkey Hearing Foundation to Give Early Holiday Gift of Hearing to Nearly 4,000 Patients in Five Countries

The Starkey Hearing Foundation today announced that it will be completing six major hearing aid mission trips over the next six weeks through which it will provide more than 6,000 hearing aids to nearly 4,000 adults and children in five countries. The mission trips will include stops in Guadalajara, Mexico; St. Domingo and Santiago in the Dominican Republic; Cali, Colombia; Kingston, Jamaica; and sites in the United States.

"It's so important that people--friends, families, communities--are able to connect with each other fully, and the ability to hear allows them to do that," said William F. Austin, founder of the Starkey Hearing Foundation. "We're truly delighted to be able to help so many people in need throughout the world by giving them the gift of hearing, and we thank our partners and sponsors who are making these mission trips possible."

Mission trips are paid for by donations to the Starkey Hearing Foundation. Every year at the Foundation's annual "So the World May Hear" Awards Gala, Gala attendees have an opportunity to bid during a live auction to fund a mission trip. Sponsors of these upcoming mission trips include several Audibel hearing aid offices that are together funding the Guadalajara mission; Rayovac, a leading battery manufacturer, and Sonion, a leading acoustical components manufacturer, who are together funding the Dominican Republic missions; Starkey Southeast, whose hearing aid customers joined together with Phil Morrell of the Morrell Foundation and are funding the Colombia mission; and Starkey's Canadian division, whose customers are funding the Jamaica mission. The Starkey Fund and the Foundation's Hear Now Project are sponsoring the U.S. efforts.

Through these missions, nearly 4,000 adults and children will receive more than 6,000 hearing aids as well as training on hearing aid care and maintenance and a supply of hearing aid batteries.

About the Starkey Hearing Foundation

Since 1973, the Starkey Hearing Foundation has been giving the gift of hearing to the world's underprivileged--especially children--through its internationally recognized mission program and its domestic program, Hear Now. Since 2000, the Foundation has provided more than 115,000 hearing aids to those in need around the world. Visit www.sotheworldmayhear.org to learn more.

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- Article 4: How to Get a Human on the Phone
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It seems that voice menu systems are popping up everywhere - you know, the systems that ask you to press one for sales, two for service, etc. Of course, they're horrible systems for people with hearing loss. I seem to recall an effort a year or so ago to establish a standard number sequence to bypass the menu system and get directly to a human, but I haven't heard anything about it in a long time.

But there is a website that tells you how to get to a live person when you call many commonly called organizations. You might want to save this one in your "Favorites": https://www.quickbase.com/db/bam6rdiey?a=q&qid=5

Of course, if the person who responds speaks with a thick Indian accent, you may be better off with the voice menu ;-)

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- Classifieds
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One Education Opportunity and five Employment Opportunities appear in this issue. (Ads appear after this brief table of contents.)

Education Opportunity
Ph.D. and Specialist Psychology Programs
Gallaudet University
Washington DC

Employment Opportunity 1
Various Employment Opportunities
North Suffolk Mental Health Association, Deaf Services
Boston, MA

Employment Opportunity 2
Senior Accountant (full-time, exempt)
Deaf Community Services of San Diego, Inc.

Employment Opportunity 3
Various Opportunities
GLAD
Various Southern California Locations

Employment Opportunity 4
Director, Early Education Programs for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing
Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind (CSDB)
Colorado Springs, CO

Employment Opportunity 5
Tenure-Track Assistant/Associate Professor of Deaf Education and Director of Center on Deafness
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN

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Education Opportunity
Ph.D. and Specialist Psychology Programs
Gallaudet University
Washington DC
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Interested in pursuing graduate studies in psychology?

The Department of Psychology at Gallaudet University offers both an APA accredited Ph.D. program in Clinical Psychology, and a NASP/NCATE accredited Specialist degree program in School Psychology, both of which include specialized training for work with Deaf and Hard of Hearing people and their families.

The Ph.D. program requires four years of coursework plus a one year full-time internship. The School Psychology program requires two years of course work and a full-time, academic year internship. Limited financial support is available. Applicants should possess a bachelor's degree in psychology, or be in the process of completing their bachelor's degree, and have either a psychology major or substantial course work in psychology. Relevant work experience is desired, though not required. Deaf and hearing applications are encouraged. For more information, contact Patrick J. Brice, Ph.D., Clinical Program Director (patrick.brice@gallaudet.edu), or Lynne Blennerhassett, Ed.D., School Psychology Program Director (lynne.blennerhassett@gallaudet.edu).

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Employment Opportunity 1
Various Employment Opportunities
North Suffolk Mental Health Association, Deaf Services
Boston, MA
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North Suffolk Mental Health Association, Deaf Services, in Boston Massachusetts is looking for outreach workers, a part time clinical coordinator, interpreters, residential counselors and a vocational counselor to work with our population of Deaf mentally ill adults who live in the community or in our group home.

Experience with this population is necessary. Skill positions require experience in the skill area along with necessary licenses and accreditations. To apply contact Nick Simonelli Assistant Director via e-mail at nsimonelli@northsuffolk.org

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Employment Opportunity 2
Senior Accountant (full-time, exempt)
Deaf Community Services of San Diego, Inc.
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General description: Under the general direction of the Executive Director, the Senior Accountant is responsible for all fund accounting, bookkeeping, financial reporting, and contract invoicing work, as well as audit support functions.

Education: Bachelors Degree in accounting or finance required. Masters in accounting or business management or CPA preferred.

Experience/Knowledge: Five or more years of accounting experience, preferably within a non-profit organization reliant upon grant funding. Familiar with FASB accounting standards and principles. Experience with Quickbooks NonProfit highly desirable, or with other nonprofit accounting software programs. Proficiency in MS Excel and MS Outlook. Developed business management skills. Ability to maintain confidentiality.

Familiarity with Deaf culture, knowledge about Deaf and Hard-of- Hearing people, and fluency in American Sign Language is a definite plus. Willingness to become familiar and to acquire at least basic signing skills is essential (learning opportunities will be provided).

Email resume to: mailto:gliptak@dcsofsd.org

or mail to:
Deaf Community Services,
3930 Fourth Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, CA 92103

Attention HR

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Employment Opportunity 3
Various Opportunities
GLAD
Various Southern California Locations
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COMMUNITY INTERPRETER - Los Angeles

JOB DEVELOPER/INTERPRETER - West Covina and Anaheim

PROGRAM ASSISTANT/INTERPRETER - Los Angeles

COMMUNITY HEALTH EDUCATOR-Community Challenge Grant - Los Angeles

BUILDING/MAINTENANCE MANAGER - Los Angeles, Part-Time

HARD OF HEARING SPECIALIST - Los Angeles and Riverside Part-Time

HIV PROGRAM INTERPRETER - Los Angeles

For more information on these employment opportunities, please point your browser to http://www.hearinglossweb.com/res/emp/glad.htm

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Employment Opportunity 4
Director, Early Education Programs for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing
Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind (CSDB)
Colorado Springs, CO
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The Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind (CSDB), located in Colorado Springs at the foot of the beautiful Rocky Mountains, invites you to consider our employment opportunities. Interested persons are invited to visit CSDB's website at.... http://www.csdb.org, where the job announcement for this position may be found in its entirety (including minimum qualifications, responsibilities, and application instructions), under Non-Classified Employment.

CSDB is an EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

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Employment Opportunity 5
Tenure-Track Assistant/Associate Professor of Deaf Education and Director of Center on Deafness
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN
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The University welcomes and honors people of all races, genders, creeds, cultures, and sexual orientations, and values intellectual curiosity, pursuit of knowledge, and academic freedom and integrity.

The College of Education, Health and Human Sciences at The University of Tennessee is seeking an assistant/associate professor to be an active part of its teacher preparation program in deaf education and to serve as the Director of the Center on Deafness. Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience and qualifications. Position begins August 2006.

The College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences is a multidisciplinary unit with 150 tenured/tenure-track faculty members, housed in 7 departments. The Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education offers programs of study that lead to initial teacher licensure in many areas as well as an undergraduate program in educational interpreting, a graduate level urban specialist certificate, programs leading to several teaching endorsements, masters and educational specialist degrees, and doctoral degrees.

Duties/Responsibilities

Include teaching courses within the department (particularly in the field of deafness); advising of students; maintaining a research agenda; and performing service activities within university, community, and professional settings. The person appointed to this position will administer the $2.3M Research and Development Center on Deafness and pursue external funding.

Requirements

Applicants must hold a Ph.D. or Ed.D. in deafness, rehabilitation, education, linguistics, or a related field, be proficient in sign communication, show evidence of potential for scholarly productivity, teaching, and grant writing.

Desired Qualifications

Applicants who have prior university teaching experience, an employment history that includes contributions to the field of deafness, evidence of success in obtaining grants and contracts, and administrative experience in higher education.

Application Process

Application materials should be sent to Dr. Kathleen Warden, Theory & Practice in Teacher Education, Claxton Complex A213, Knoxville, TN 37996-3442, (865) 974-4137 or via e-mail: mwarden@utk.edu. Application materials must include: cover letter, vita, three references (including names, addresses, telephone numbers, and if possible e-mail addresses), outline of key competencies, experiences, and evidence of scholarly activity and external funding. Review of applications will begin on December 1, 2005 and will continue until the position is filled. Applications from women, minorities, and individuals with disabilities are strongly encouraged.

The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. For additional information go to: http://web.utk.edu/~oed/

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- Contact Information and Disclaimers
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