Webcast June 26, 2008
Campus Emergency
Response and the
Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Community: Bridging the
Communication Gap
Webcast Moderator
Cassie Franklin
Cassie Franklin works as a Student Advisor for the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee's
(UWM) Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program, working with students with hearing loss and
assessing their accommodation needs. In addition to her duties at UWM, she also works
as an Outreach Specialist for the Postsecondary Education Programs Network -– Midwest
Region, providing information, resources and technical assistance, along with trainings to
High school, colleges and university programs serving Deaf and Hard of Hearing students.
Cassie graduated from UWM with her Social Work degree in 1997, and is currently
studying for her Master's degree in the same area. Prior to working at UWM, Cassie
advocated for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing as a Specialist with the Wisconsin Department
Of Human and Family Services and worked as a Child Care Counselor with the Wisconsin
School for the Deaf. In her spare time, she continues to volunteer for the Wisconsin
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf and the Wisconsin Association for the Deaf.
Webcast Presenter
Neil McDevitt
Neil McDevitt is the Program Director for Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing, Inc’s (TDI) Community Emergency Preparedness Information Network (CEPIN)
project and manages deliveries of its DHS-certified “Emergency Responders and the Deaf
and Hard of Hearing Community: Taking the First Steps to Disaster Preparedness”
curriculum. The class is the first of its kind nationwide to focus on the implications of a
specific disability population in emergency management and also bring the two groups
together in a structured setting. He is also involved with the National Response Plan and
National Incident Management System working groups for special needs populations. As a
Volunteer firefighter in suburban Philadelphia, McDevitt is one of a handful of emergency
responders in the country who are also profoundly deaf. In addition to hands-on fire and
rescue experience with the Fire Department of Montgomery Township, he has provided
fire safety presentations to deaf children and adults and given non-verbal communication
classes to firefighters, police officers and emergency medical technicians (EMTs).
Mr. McDevitt was originally involved with CEPIN as one of its leading subject matter
experts in developing the CEPIN course.
Webcast Presenter
Ijeoma Agulefo
As a Health Education Specialist for the Emergency and Risk Communication Branch (ERCB)
on the Community Health Outreach and Education Team (CHET) at CDC (October 2006
March 2008), Miss Agulefo was responsible for implementing behavioral interventions and
tailoring messages specific to Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deaf-Blind communities affected
by Public health emergencies. She developed and maintained hands-on contact with
these communities, as well as state and local public health educators, to ensure that
information related to an event is tailored and accessible communication to community
members. After her article titled “Emergency Messages for the Deaf” was published on the
CDC intranet webpage, CDC staff in Atlanta inquired about learning American Sign
Language (ASL) and with the support of Ijeoma's input and suggestions, the "American
Sign Language (ASL) Courses Levels 1 and 2," have been selected as part of CDC
University's Fiscal Year 2008 training and workforce development activities. She is on the
Clinician Communication Team (CCT) which is also part of ERCB at CDC. She is the
CCT/CDC-INFO State liaison with the primary responsibility of outreach to the states
regarding assessment of communication surge capacity. She coordinates and conducts
outreach to US states and territories for the purposes of determining the appropriate
contact person(s) and assessing the current capacity for public and clinician
communications during a local, regional, national or global public health emergency.
Webcast Presenter
Jason Altmann
Jason is a certified CERT trainer and CEPIN training participant. Jason has experience in
consulting and training local emergency responders on how to effectively work with deaf,
deafblind, and hard of hearing individuals in times of crisis and disaster. Jason is actively
involved in the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community in raising awareness and importance
of emergency and disaster preparedness. Jason currently holds leadership positions at:
• Southeast WI Wisconsin Emergency Preparedness Special Populations Committee
• Community Coalition Committee for Emergency Disaster Preparedness
• Wisconsin State Court Interpreting Advisory Board
• Dept of Health and Family Services' Crisis Intervention Committee
• Independence First's AODA Advisory Board
• State Deaf and Hard of Hearing Transition Advisory Committee
• State Deaf and Hard of Hearing Suicide Prevention Project Committee
• Deaf Bilingual Coalition State Representative
Jason was the recipient of Meritious of the Year Award from Wisconsin Association for the Deaf in 2005
for exemplary contributions and services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people from 2003 to 2005.
Definitions
Emergency: Absent a Presidentially declared emergency,
any incident(s), human-caused or natural, that requires
responsive action to protect life or property. Under the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act, an emergency means any occasion or
instance for which, in the determination of the
President, Federal assistance is needed to supplement
State and local efforts and capabilities to save lives and
to protect property and public health and safety, or to
lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in any part of
the United States. (IS-200- ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action
Incidents, FEMA)
Disaster: a calamitous event, especially one occurring
suddenly and causing great loss of life, damage, or
hardship, as a flood, airplane crash, or business failure.
(Online Dictionary)
Questions
1.) Could you define what we're
talking about when we say
emergency and disaster
because they are often used
interchangeably?
Questions
2.) Why would we need to tailor
emergency messages to suit
individuals who are deaf, hard
of hearing or deafblind?
Questions
3.) Can you discuss the CDC
Emergency and Risk
Communication Branch's
response to the needs of
individuals who are deaf, hard
of hearing or deafblind?
Questions
4.) How can institutions develop
an emergency campus plan
that is accessible to
individuals who are deaf, hard
of hearing or deafblind?
Questions
5.) What are the responsibilities
and priorities of emergency
responders to students who
are deaf, hard of hearing or
deafblind on the college
campus?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
• Can you please repeat the URL for the CDC?
http://www.emergency.cdc.gov/disasters/hurricanes/psa.asp
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
I know that after the levees broke in New Orleans
many people were still trapped in houses, and boats
were passing by homes and using a bullhorn to give
out information and to check for help. Also people
were sent to various shelters and buses etc ... How
is the emergency response teams dealing with those
issues on a greater scale?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
How would those messages be tailored for specific
area (e.g. cities, counties or states)? If the message
is already recorded, it is not flexible. If a tornado is
coming through, the exact location has to be
specified?
Questions
6.) What are the responsibilities
and priorities of individuals
who are deaf, hard of hearing
or deafblind on the college
campus in an emergency
crisis?
Questions
7.) What is the role of the deaf, hard
of hearing or deafblind individual
in response to an emergency
crisis?
Questions
8.) What is the role of the Office
of Disability Support Services
in response to an emergency
crisis?
Questions
9.) In thinking about different
types of emergencies, what
are some response strategies
to provide access for
individuals who are deaf, hard
of hearing or deafblind?
Questions
10.) What training opportunities
are available to help
emergency responders and
consumers?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
Utilize the “Ask” Feature/Button
at the top of the webcast
presentation
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
In Philadelphia we will have a new high school built. It is in
the process right now. We also have 40 deaf students and
deaf teachers attending this high school along with their
hearing peers. However, I doubt there is any plans for our
deaf students( like special lights if there is an emergency)in
the builders plans . What can be done to force Phila school
district to include something visual in this building? and how
can we alert the necessary people that there are deaf
teachers and students in this school?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
I'm always concerned what will happen if one of our deaf
students has an emergency in the parking lot. What is your
suggestion for the best "blue phone" system?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
How can we better help the emergency responders in a rural
Iowa community be better trained to assist a deaf or hard of
hearing person when called upon? We are lacking the
training for these responders in our area?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
You stated that the FCC only requires emergency information
on the news be supplied "visually" as a crawler or overlay. I
am surprised to hear this. What is the difference between
captioning and a crawler? Where can I find current
information about federal and state law requirements for
emergency information being provided via captioning?
Questions
11.) What should administrators
of deaf programs know about
the National Incident
Management System?
Questions
12.) If you work in a secondary or
postsecondary program, how does
your campus/program currently
handle emergency situations?
How does this impact your
D/HH/DB population? What
changes have you implemented (if
so) to improve access for and to
D/HH/DB individuals?
Questions
13.) How do you communicate
to the D/HH/DB individuals on
your campus/in your program
about their personal
responsibilities in responding
to emergencies? What were
some successful ways in
communicating these
responsibilities? What didn’t
work?
Questions
14.) If you have implemented
changes on your campus/in your
program regarding how we
communicate and assist D/HH/DB
individuals – were these changes
easy to implement? What
roadblocks did you encounter?
What are some of the strategies
you are currently working on (to
improve access in emergency
situations)?
Questions
15.) Many institutions and
programs have staff
interpreters and speech-to-text
service providers. In the event
of an emergency, are these
staff members expected to
interpret/provide STS? What
about if the emergency occurs
“after-hours”?
Question(s) from
Audience(s) Member
Two Questions from On-site
Audience Members
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
I recently received an emergency alert on my cell phone to
take shelter immediately due to a suspected tornado in
Rockville, MD. I did so, but there was never an alert to tell us
when the danger had passed, and there was no actual
tornado. Is there an effort to train agencies sending out
emergency alerts to be more thorough in the information they
provide?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
If a community creates a registry for persons with disabilities,
how can that community best utilize that list during
emergencies?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
A student in a secondary school tried to join another
classroom one time when we had a fire drill instead of staying
with the group from the room student had been in. How do I
explain to the student more clearly that where they are is fine
that the teacher knows where their friends are in other
classrooms?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
Please have the panel comment on evacuation instructions
for deaf/hh community during large gatherings or stadium
events.
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
It sounds like different groups are working on different plans
(CDC, emergency responders, university personnel, disability
resource centers, etc). Has there been an effort to make sure
that these different groups are communicating with one
another?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
If an emergency occurs during a class that an interpreter or
speech to text person is in, should they inform the student?
Should they stay on campus and work with students until
emergency is resolved rather than leaving?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
How do we as interpreters inform our students at the high
school level get all this information to them before they leave
for college we don't have time during the day to take them
and teach this to them?
Question(s) from
Audience Member(s)
After the Virginia Tech tragedy, many college and university
campuses began looking for and using new alerting systems
that can send out alerts via cell phones, pagers, landline
phones and building alarm systems. Does anyone on the
panel have any comments on the accessibility of such
systems for deaf and hard of hearing people?
Final Thoughts
from the Panel
Special Thanks to Our
Moderator and Presenters:
Cassie Franklin
Neil McDevitt
Ijeoma Agulefo
Jason Altmann
Special Thanks to Our
Facilitators:
Michelle Swaney
Amy Hebert
THANKS!!!
Special Thanks to the
UTK – IT Engineering Services
Service Providers:
Interpreters and
ACS for Providing Captions
http://www.acscaptions.com
What Does PEPNet Do?
 Conducts training with secondary, postsecondary,
vocational, and adult education professionals and
support staff regarding transition and postsecondary
educational services for students who are deaf and
hard of hearing
 Develops a technical assistance network for the
target groups
 Demonstrates how technology can be used to
provide access and accommodations within programs
for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing
PEPNet-Midwest
St. Paul College
235 Marshall, St. Paul, MN 55102
651-846-1337 (Voice)
651-846-1537 (TTY)
651-221-1339 (Fax)
PEPNet-West
National Center on Deafness
California State University,
Northridge
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, California 91330-8267
818-677-2099 (tty/v)
818-677-6270 (fax)
PEPNet-Northeast
National Technical Institute
for the Deaf
Rochester Institute of Technology
52 Lomb Memorial Drive,
Rochester,
New York 14623-5604
(585) 475-6433 (tty/v)
(585) 475-7660 (Fax)
PEPNet-South
Center on Deafness
239 Bailey Education Complex
The University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-3442
(865) 974-0607 (tty/v)
(865) 974-3522 (Fax)