To Table of Contents positive influence on the Deaf communities .
Also , being honored with a STAR award from SupChina based in New York City for being one of the rising female leaders .
As an advocate for the Deaf community , what was your first project ? As a Deaf person in China , I had first-hand experiences of the barriers and limitations that impacted Deaf people ’ s educational and work opportunities within society . Nevertheless , growing up , I was unaware of what I could do to help make changes until I went to the university in South Korea . While there , I learned the beginning of what Deaf advocacy meant . I became more involved by creating a play about recognizing that if there were no Deaf schools , there would be no Deaf communities . My play won second place in South Korea . Only when I came to America did I witness the full strength of the Deaf identities , including Deaf advocacy .
My first Deaf advocacy project was helping to set up a summer camp for Deaf students in
Beijing . The goal of the summer camp was to promote Deaf identity and leadership by showing them the power of sign language and why they should be proud of it . While the Deaf summer camp was a success , finding financial support for it was somewhat difficult . In the end , the efforts were worth it , and I would gladly do it again if given the opportunity .
What have been some of your major projects at St . Cloud State University over the years ? I was honored to create a Deaf music video for the Zero Project organization , using their Zero Project Anthem song . We managed to recruit Deaf people from around 18 different countries worldwide and piece it all together into a beautiful music video . It is one of the projects of which I am incredibly proud . It would not have been possible without the support of so many Deaf people from around the world . It is amazing what we can do when we all come together and create positive influences for everyone to enjoy , regardless of whether we are Deaf or hearing .
I grew up with friends and relatives who were Deaf , Hard of Hearing , and people with disabilities in general .
What do you think is the biggest misperception about Deaf people ? How can we help change this ? One of the biggest misperceptions in China is that since Deaf people cannot hear , they cannot be effective parents , cannot drive cars , cannot have higher education , cannot have strong reading and writing skills , and many more . Coming to America , I have learned that for many hearing people , the idea of not being able to hear is foreign or scary because they have not had positive exposure or experiences with Deaf adults . However , from interacting with the Deaf community worldwide , I have come to appreciate what Gallaudet President I . King Jordan once said , “ Deaf people can do anything but hear .” One way to help is to connect with The Center for International Disability Advocacy and Diplomacy ( CIDAD ) which is a new Center through St . Cloud State University . Recently we have been focusing on a Deaf leadership and advocacy