ASL in the Freshman Building

Throughout the last few years, the current American Sign Language (ASL) program has grown very rapidly throughout all of Lakota. This increase in teachers, students, and passion for ASL has proven that it is time to expand the program. Therefore, the district has decided to add a course to the freshman building, as well as adding an ASL 4 to Main Campus. Just like all other foreign languages offered, this expansion will give students the opportunity to take their knowledge from prior ASL classes and prepare for a career as an interpreter or American Sign Language teacher. According to Mrs. Frye, an ASL teacher at West, this was not an easy process as it started over a year ago with a proposal to the curriculum department at central office. The curriculum team reviewed the enrollment numbers and saw an enormous growth. Over the past seven years the sign language department has grown from three teachers to the current six teachers (four hearing, two deaf.) With the above data and several conferences with Mrs. Frye, the curriculum team came to the conclusion that it meets all of the necessary requirements to become a class.