ASL Program at Lexington Vocational Services Begins Enrollment for 20th Year

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM AT LEXINGTON VOCATIONAL SERVICES CENTER BEGINS ENROLLMENT FOR 20^TH YEAR

JACKSON HEIGHTS, NY – August 8, 2011 - With American Sign Language (ASL) now the fourth most-studied  language in the United States, the Lexington Vocational Services Center is currently accepting applications for the fall semester of its popular  ASL course. It will be the 20^th year the course has been offered by Lexington, the largest organization serving the deaf and hard of hearing community in New York State.

Classes will be offered Tuesdays at various times for ten weeks beginning September 20.  The cost to register is $150 before September 6 or $165 after, plus $35 for the course workbook, which is used for the first four levels.  For schedules and other details, or to register, call (718) 350-3031 or email ASL@lexnyc.org. Enrollment is limited and is offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

Enrollment in American Sign Language courses in college increased more than 16 percent from 2006-2009, according to Enrollments in Languages Other Than English in United States Institutions of Higher Education, Fall 2009 (Modern Language Association of America). With the growing acceptance of American Sign Language to meet college foreign-language requirements, its increasing value as an employment credential, and personal interest in communicating through the visual language, more than 90,000 students enrolled in sign-language classes in 2009, the most recent year for which data is available. 

The program offered by Lexington is structured to help hearing adults learn American Sign Language by studying vocabulary, sentences and grammar needed to communicate in common life situations.  Each student will learn at an individual pace using acquired skills at eight levels of fluency.

"ASL is becoming a mainstream interest and Lexington is pleased to have the staff and resources to fulfill the public’s growing fascination. The teaching and learning of ASL supports Lexington’s mission to help deaf and hard of hearing people integrate into mainstream society by bridging the gap between them and giving them a way to successfully communicate with one another,” said Adele I. Agin, LSCW, Executive Director of Lexington Vocational Services.

Lexington Vocational Services is an affiliate of the Lexington School for the Deaf, the largest school for the deaf and hearing-impaired in NY State. Lexington places hundreds of deaf workers in jobs throughout the major metropolitan area, providing a full range of training and on-the-job support, including American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters and liaison with employers. Engaging companies to hire deaf workers and enabling them to integrate deaf employees into the workplace is a key focus of Lexington’s programs. Currently, nearly 340 companies in New York City and the surrounding area employ deaf workers trained and placed by Lexington.