Deaf community member urges district to offer ASL in high school after hiring and certification issues

Darcy Zook, a community member and University of Illinois Springfield student, told the Springfield Public Schools Board on Sept. 15 she and other families have faced persistent interpreter turnover and asked why American Sign Language is not offered in District 186 high schools.

“ASL should be offered as well,” Zook said, adding that families sometimes relocate because of shortages of certified interpreters and that offering ASL in schools could help address workforce shortages and create career pathways. Zook said some qualified applicants for ASL roles were told they lacked a specific license that had not been listed in the job posting.

Superintendent Gill responded that the district currently has three ASL positions in the budget for the year and “we have not removed those from the budget as we seek to find teachers that the Illinois State Board will certify as teachers.” Gill said the district must follow ISBE certification rules but that “if we’re to find somebody mid year, we’ll be happy to hire somebody mid year because that money is in the budget and we will move forward with the program. It is not dead in the water. It is fully alive.”

Why it matters: Zook framed ASL as both an inclusion and workforce issue for Deaf students and families; district staff confirmed positions exist in the current budget but said certification requirements set by the Illinois State Board of Education affect the hiring timeline.

Details and context: Zook described personal educational disruption caused by interpreter turnover and urged parity for ASL with other world language offerings. Superintendent Gill committed to continuing to recruit and to hire certified teachers if they become available midyear; district staff said they are constrained by ISBE teacher certification guidelines and by the specific credentials listed for posted jobs.

Ending: The board did not take a vote on course adoption during public comment. Staff said they will continue to recruit and that the ASL positions remain on the budget for possible midyear hiring.