<div dir="ltr">And a Happy New Year to All.  We recently celebrated the graduation of five deaf students from the high school in Altagracia, island of Ometepe (Niccaragua)--photo attached, including their interpreter.<img src="cid:ii_kjeltesh1" alt="5 Students.Claribel.jpg" width="440" height="248"><br>One of these deaf students (the tall guy on the left) consistently achieved the highest grade point average in his class throughout the five years--including all of the hearing students.  It's been a long journey, beginning almost fifteen years ago when we first had contact with these students and learned that they did not know that any sign language existed they could use to communicate with family and friends.  Two of these young people have plans to attend college--one to become a sign language teacher for the deaf, the other a math teacher for the deaf. Considering that few of them had anything resembling an elementary school education, this is an extraordinary achievement for everyone.  Many thanks to James Kegl and the Nicaraguan Sign Language Project, with whose assistance this would not have been possible.<div><br></div><div>Cheers,</div><div><br></div><div>Dale Spoor, Chair</div><div>Special Needs Committee</div><div>Bainbridge Ometepe Sister Islands Association  </div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Thu, Dec 31, 2020 at 2:08 PM Valerie Sutton <<a href="mailto:sutton@signwriting.org">sutton@signwriting.org</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left-width:1px;border-left-style:solid;border-left-color:rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex"><div style="word-wrap:break-word;line-break:after-white-space">SignWriting List<div>December 31, 2020</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>HAPPY NEW YEAR!</div><div><br></div><div>2021 will be a spectacular year!!</div><div><br></div><div><img id="gmail-m_-627730627415521798453F8C9C8-C798-468C-A618-D9A1E8551F92" src="cid:176bf2ac1a9b8711f441"></div></div>
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Valerie Sutton
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Valerie Sutton
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