Hear Families Here

CHASE

We Hear Here is very proud to share the accomplishments of one of my former students. Chase came into my classroom when he was four years old. We grew the classroom program together as teacher and student until Chase graduated into the mainstream for third grade. Since that time, Chase has had many successes.

“Chase was selected as a 2020-21 Gubernatorial Fellow by Governor DeSantis’ Office. After a rigorous application, writing, oral interview, and vetting process he is one of nine university graduate and law students chosen statewide who display academic achievement, highest character, and leadership. Besides learning from and working with the Governor’s Office he will be assigned to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation with Secretary Halsey Beshears. He and the other eight Fellows will gain invaluable hands-on governmental experience and insight as they interact for the next nine months with the state’s top leaders! He also recently received the Sharon Connell Award for continuing outstanding service as a student at UF from Florida Blue Key where he is a member and past secretary. Chase truly is his mother’s son and holds a Bachelor’s degree from the College of Agriculture at UF and is close to finishing his Master’s degree in the College of Agriculture at UF!”
-- Chuck Brannan

UPDATE: Since July, Chase has been chosen to represent the Governor's office and Florida's interests in Washington, DC. Congratulations to Chase for this latest accomplishment.

THOMAS

I am the parent of a 5-year-old son who underwent his Cochlear implant surgery two days after his third birthday. Sure, with most parents in our shoes, there has been plenty of second guessing, doubt, anxiety, and most importantly hope and joy. Our son was born overseas (Singapore) and passed his newborn hearing screening. After his birth we relocated back stateside and had no developmental concerns whatsoever. He was a happy, curious, and smart baby that appeared to be hitting all his milestones right on cue. Needless to say, the shock of the news that somewhere along the way he completely lost his hearing floored me.

Like a lot of families in Arizona, we spent plenty of time in the pool and as a result he dealt with a spat of ear infections. Despite not knowing the true cause of his hearing loss, one theory is that the ear infections could have played a role, albeit a longshot. Not sure if we'll ever truly know, but we dove headfirst into learning what options there were. We toured the Deaf school in town as well as the Listening & Spoken Language (LSL) option and determined we preferred the latter route for his future. So many forms and doctors’ visits later, he got implanted and things seemed on track.

But of course, it's never that simple. The school where he could have received his essential LSL education felt he was not behaviorally ready to attend, and they pretty much passed the buck onto us to figure it out. Fortunately for us, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise.  We had family in Jacksonville, Florida, so we signed up for the summer session as a trial.  As the summer session came to an end, we met with Cynthia Robinson, Co-Director, to get her thoughts.  She had personally spent time with our son, and she felt he had made progress over the summer. He was graciously admitted to the Clarke Schools for Hearing & Speech.  We relocated to Jacksonville.   In my humble opinion, this has been the perfect placement for him, and I credit all their staff current and past for his growth.

I recently went back and watched the video of his first day of speech therapy at Clarke, and it is an amazing sight. At the time he was about 4 and a half and could only say a handful of words max. A year and a half later we are able to converse with one another! He still has a long way to go but is on track to mainstream in the next couple years. To any parent struggling, please know you are not alone. There are going to be plenty of sleepless nights and worry. The biggest lesson I have learned through all this is how important it is to be an advocate for your child. We were parents that had more of a go with the flow attitude and this whole experience has truly sharpened our skills when it comes to getting what is best and necessary for any of our kids. It has certainly not been an easy road, but you will get through this and become stronger and more resilient than you could have ever possibly imagined, pretty nice consolation prize if you ask me.
-- Logan and Sydney Wilson

BECKETT

Meet Jillian and Beckett. Beckett is currently “flying like an eagle” in mainstream 4th grade.

This is Beckett, and his incredible journey from early detection to today.  I can reassure you that each child has their own path, and that no two are identical, but I hope that as you close this piece today you leave knowing that Beckett’s accomplishments are todays possibilities for a child born deaf.

The road to Beckett’s birth wasn’t the straight and narrow without bumps along the way, but he was blessed with early detection at just a day old, when he failed his newborn hearing screening.  That early detection led to a string of appointments that ultimately ensured he had a team of professionals in place and received a set of hearing aids, before he was a month old.  While his diagnosis is profoundly deaf, access to the hearing aids along side early intervention through Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech was the absolute key to Beckett’s success.  At a year old, Beckett received bilateral Cochlear Implants and his path to listening and spoken language was forged.  In our time with Clarke Schools, we met Cynthia Robinson and through partnership with her, Beckett’s progression really soared.

I asked Beckett what Cynthia helped him achieve, and he looked at me very seriously and told me “Cynthia helped me gain access to learn and grow!”  By age five, Beckett was able to mainstream into our local public school for Kindergarten with his peers.  As I reflect on his comment, he could not be more correct.  Access to sound, and the right tools are the key to progression!  Those tools and the best set of professionals will unlock your children’s journey and to their world of education.

-- Jillian

Jillian and Beckett would be happy to mentor families. Contact crobinson@wehearhere.org to connect.

ZANE

I would like to introduce you to Zane, who was my student in the early 2000s. He has a wonderful story, and he is destined to be our first doctor! He is hoping to support families looking for tutoring between now and the first of the year. He will help children who are deaf or hard of hearing or children with typical hearing. If your child could use a boost, connect with Zane to learn more.

Having the opportunity to attend Clarke School for the Deaf in Jacksonville has changed my life tremendously in a positive way. I remember my first day of school at Clarke and my teacher was Miss. Cynthia, which i could not pronounce correctly. Therefore her name became Miss Stinky.

Throughout my time at Clarke I learned how to speak and hear like a mainstream person, if I didn't have the opportunity to attend Clarke I have no idea where I would be today. i am currently a medical student at American University of the Caribbean. Being deaf has not been easy, it has been a long journey but well worth it.

I do enjoy tutoring students when I can, especially if I'm not busy with school (usually do it when school is not going on, mostly on my holidays). It is exciting to see my students excel and take away my teaching strategies and grow from them. I would never have these techniques if it wasn't for Clarke.

-- Zane

AVANI

"Avani, our younger daughter, is applying to colleges and getting acceptance letters from them! It is one of the most exciting milestones of her life and all our lives. A deaf girl listening, talking, reading and writing! This is our miracle. And this miracle came about because of the technology and all the people – friends and professionals, who worked to make it happen. Cynthia Robinson is Avani’s PreK teacher from 13 years ago. And I believe that that is where Avani’s literacy skills flourished and set the stage for her success today. No matter where she goes, Avani will owe all her successes to her medical and educational teams which had teachers like Cynthia Robinson. Thank you, Cynthia!!!"

-- Geeta and Vijay Shandilya

Geeta and Avani would be happy to mentor families. Contact crobinson@wehearhere.org to connect.

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