Orientation Packet

This piece titled “Where ‘s My Space?” was created using only my orientation packet from my first week at Davidson College. The yellow background is the folder in which all flyers and pamphlets came in. I chose to use only orientation materials as it signifies my struggles with having a space and community as I entered college.

CODA

One of these struggles is being a CODA, or child of deaf adults. Through this piece, I highlight my struggles with belonging in both the deaf and hearing community.

Being a CODA means missing out on sitting at the kids table on Thanksgiving. It means learning the vocabulary for doing taxes because I had to interpret at H&R Block every year. It means interpreting for my grandparents who never cared to learn American Sign Language to communicate with their own kids.

Being a CODA means going to school and acting like I did not live a completely different life when I got home.

First Generation

Another aspect this piece focuses on is the struggles that have arisen from being a low-income, first-generation college student.

Davidson College gave me a space to move forward through the Quest Bridge Scholarship, but finding belonging in a school where most of my peers are affluent, attended difficult high schools, and have strong support systems from college educated parents is isolating.

My county public high school had an achievement rate of only 28%, meaning that 72% of students did not test on grade level for math, English language arts, science, and social science. Despite this, I made it to Davidson, and I will take up space even if it is uncomfortable and challenging.

“CODA” and belonging

This image highlights both “CODA, child of deaf adult” and “Everyone belongs here all except for you!”

These two sections express my feeling of never belonging fully to a community. I am restricted to using American Sign Language at home because both of my parents are deaf, yet I do not belong to the deaf community fully because I am not deaf. I can hear and use English in my daily conversations, but I never feel like I am understood by my peers.

“I Love You” Sign

The American Sign Language “I Love You” sign is made up of words that describe my experience navigating the spaces of being a CODA and a low-income first-generation student at Davidson College.

The words listed are disability, Davidson, College, access, limited, community, financial literacy, inclusive, action, and initiative. The final summative word in the palm of the hand is “hurt.”

Language and Connection

The first section highlighted in this image reads “English is not my first language.” This section represents my constant struggle with legitimacy in knowing American Sign Language. By discrediting American Sign Language as a language, the challenges that my family and I have faced because of it are also discredited. ASL is my first language. Yes, it is a legitimate language.

The “Stay connected to where you are… from” section expresses the struggle of being a college student where I am no longer constantly engaged with my CODA “side” anymore. I need to “stay connected to where” I am. The line pauses, then states where I am “from.”