Julie Hochgesang

Chicago, Illinois
Graduate student
Linguistics program

When I was eight months old, I contracted spinal meningitis. I was hospitalized for a month and almost died. The doctors said I had a 20% chance of survival. Before I became ill, I had started talking, but after my illness I stopped trying to talk and babble. My family noticed it and began to wonder. They did a typical test -- while I was watching TV, my mom banged on a pot behind me. I was unresponsive, and Mom immediately knew what was wrong. She brought me to an early intervention center where a specialist confirmed that I was deaf.

In New Jersey, where I finished kindergarten, my family realized that maybe that wasn’t the best environment for me. They felt that specific New Jersey school probably did not fit my needs. They decided to move to Illinois, to an area north of Chicago. I was placed in a mainstreamed school, after having been enrolled in an oral day program. The mainstreamed school had a deaf program, but it was 45 minutes away from my home. I remember not being happy with the commute and decided to switch to my "home" school -- not the kind where you're educated in the home, but a local school nearby --- where I attended from fourth grade to seventh grade. I was the only deaf student in the school. The education was wonderful. It was a great area, and the teachers were fantastic, but it was different with the students. Of course, middle school students can be mean during that time of their lives. Although my education flourished, I had no social life. I sat alone at the lunch table every day. I would sit down and the kids would move away. It was a bad time for me socially.

By the 7th grade, I had enough. My family thought the teachers were good, but they wanted social opportunities for me. So they placed me in a high school with a deaf program in northern Chicago. I remained there throughout high school.

I thought I wanted to be an English teacher so I did that for a while. Although I did enjoy it, I eventually realized that teaching English wasn’t for me. However, my B.A. degree was in English. Realizing this, I didn't know what I wanted to do for a career. I quit my teaching job and tried a few different jobs, while deciding what to do next.

During that time, I met my husband. We discussed what we wanted to do with our lives, and agreed that while we were young, we would travel the world. We joined the Peace Corps and went to Kenya, in east Africa. We taught at a school for the deaf there for two years, at the elementary level.

We discovered that Africa was an entirely different world. It was an eye-opening experience. I saw so many things that made me realize I was lucky to have grown up deaf in America. We have so much education and access, and many of the same rights hearing people enjoy. I appreciated that more, but at the same time, I wanted these same opportunities for people in other countries, who have none. I was deeply disturbed. In response, I decided I wanted to study more about the languages of deaf people -- how to increase their access to language, how to prove to the world that sign language is not a bad thing, how it is ideal for deaf education. Often, students are educated in orally based programs, which work for some, but don't work for many. That made me to question, "How do I show the validity of sign language as a language and that it is okay to use it?”

The linguistics program at Gallaudet came to mind. Gallaudet’s linguistics program is the best in the world, period. If you want to study sign language linguistics, you come to Gallaudet. While I was over in Kenya, for two years it was like I didn't have a deaf community. I taught at a school for the deaf, yes, but my contacts were with children. I didn’t have any peers who spoke my language. I did have my husband, but it was just the two of us throughout the two years. I was craving to be back in the States, to be immersed back in the deaf community, and to be back with deaf adults. Gallaudet was the perfect place to dive right back into my world -- to be in a fully accessible environment, with stimulating direct communication.

After I finished the Peace Corps, I headed to Gallaudet's graduate program in linguistics. I wanted to settle into a profession. I'm fascinated with research and in improving my understanding of life in general. Being here is awesome because I can network. I work at the Gallaudet Research Institute, known as GRI. I have plenty of opportunities there to meet other researchers, and do my own research. Well, not my own-- I actually assist others, but I do analyses, write, and research information. I also assist my linguistics professors with their research projects. There are many opportunities to do research, and meet other people who are interested in the same type of work. If I'd gone to another school, I doubt I'd have the same kinds of opportunities I've had here.

When I first came to D.C., I went to a restaurant called Chipotle’s. I was getting ready to order my food and was gearing up to gesture with the person taking my order, but before I could do it, the waitress beat me to it and signed, "You want a tortilla?” Amazed, I signed, "Yes.” She then signed, "You want vegetables or meat?" I was floored. She knew right off the bat how to deal with deaf people. Most of the time people become flabbergasted when it comes to communicating with deaf people. But she was downright comfortable and took it all in stride. I thought to myself, "Wow, that's cool," assuming it was just an isolated incident -- but, that scenario has played itself out again and again at different restaurants and stores.

In many places in D.C., people are already familiar with deaf people. They will sign or gesture, or write back and forth. It’s really more open. Of course, there are still the same issues. However, it’s much better here. It's been fantastic. I really like that about D.C. I know I'm going to be spoiled when I leave town and live somewhere else. I will miss that about D.C.