Recently, there have been many new groups and clubs popping up at Highland Park High School including the American Sign Language Club. The ASL Club held its first official meeting in February where they watched the movie CODA. CODA stands for “child of deaf adult,” and the 2021 film of the same title follows the story of a teenage girl who aspires to be a singer as the only hearing member of her family. Watching this movie was an important bonding moment and jumping-off point for the ASL Club, especially since its advisor, Ms. Luksa, is a child of a deaf adult herself.
The ASL Club meets every Tuesday after school in Ms. Luksa’s room to learn about the non-verbal language. They learn vocab and have started learning how to have simple conversations with each other. The environment provides a great opportunity for people to practice and learn. Lucy Scott said of the ASL Club, “I’m enjoying it, and I enjoy…getting to learn with other people.”
The club goes at the pace of its members, and they decide among themselves what they want to learn next. Eneya, one of the club’s founders, described the environment to be “very comfortable and relaxed,” which she hopes to keep up even as the club continues to expand.
The American Sign Language Club continues to increase its knowledge and has a goal to be able to sign the lyrics to songs by the end of the school year. They want to keep recruiting for the club and meeting members of the deaf community. As Eneya said, “I think everyone should come and check it out.”