Honors student accepted to American School of Classical Studies in Greece

Honors student Brenna Smith has been selected to join the summer program at the American School of Classical Studies (ASCS) in Athens, Greece. She also received the Charles M. Edwards Scholarship of $500 to defray her costs. 

Brenna, a senior from Bolivia, North Carolina, is the first and only deaf student to attend the prestigious summer program, a six-week intensive introduction to Greece from antiquity through the modern period. The program provides the most extensive exposure to Greece, ancient and modern, for participants with interests in Classics and related fields. It has a strong academic component with participants researching and presenting topics on site.  The program also offers unique opportunities to interact with eminent archaeologists in the field.  

Founded in 1881, ASCS provides students and scholars from a consortium of about 190 North American colleges and universities a base for research and hands-on study in Greece. Approximately 20 students are accepted into the summer program each year.

Brenna transferred to Gallaudet just last year, and is on track to graduate this year with a B.A. in History. She plans to study for a master‘s degree in Deaf Studies, then pursue doctoral studies in Classics. With her degrees, she looks forward to researching the classics and deafness, as well as other disabilities. She also plans to work with classical history museums to improve their accessibility for deaf and hard of hearing people, including ASL access and captioning.

Congratulations, Brenna!