The Best of Both Worlds
Megan Majocha, graduate of the WPSD Class of 2015 and Plum Borough High School, was born in 1997 into a Deaf family; her parents, Alan and Jan Majocha, are WPSD alumni.
When Megan was a toddler, the Majocha family joined WPSD’s Parent Infant Program, where they were able to interact with many families who were not familiar with deafness or signing. Megan’s first language was American Sign Language, with printed English running a very close second – her father would translate TV and movie captions for Megan and her younger, hearing sister, Mandy. Unaware that Mandy could hear the spoken dialogue, Megan took on the role of Megan’s translator when dad wasn’t present. She has recently admitted to her family that she made up most of the lines!
At age three, Megan continued at WPSD through preschool and elementary school, where she developed social and academic skills. Her “mainstreaming experiences” started began when her parents enrolled her in the local community soccer and gymnastics clubs.
She continued full-time at WPSD until seventh grade, when her parents, the local school district (Plum), and WPSD decided that Megan would attend classes in the Plum School District, to experience a public school and learn how to use an interpreter, while maintaining the support of WPSD classes and activities. In 7th grade, she took reading class at Plum in the morning, and then returned to WPSD for the rest of the day.
In her freshman year, Megan took Honors English I, Biology, and Spanish I at Plum. Fortunately, her interpreter knew Spanish and could spell Spanish words and use ASL. They worked together to develop shortcuts and clues to achieve effective communication for this tri-lingual experience! Megan took Honors English II, Spanish II, and AP Psychology at Plum her sophomore year. Junior year she took Spanish III, Anatomy and Physiology, and Geo-Science at Plum, and returning to WPSD for AP English.
As a senior, Megan had completed all of WPSD’s graduation requirements except 1⁄2 credit in health, physical education and social science. Megan’s parents strongly supported her attending community college, and with the support of both Plum School District and WPSD, she attended CCAC for Western Civilization, Advanced Reading 103, and Health/PE. She continued to attend Plum in the mornings for Honors Spanish (fourth year) and Forensics (her eighth science course!). She attended WPSD for Economics first semester and Pre-calculus and personal finance second semester. She took English 101 and Psychology at CCAC second semester.
Megan maintained her WPSD identity by participating in all sports and activities through the years. She feels comfortable and at home at WPSD, interacting with her friends and coaches in the same culture with no language barrier. Megan was chosen Homecoming Queen at WPSD, as well as Miss Deaf Teen WPSD, and participated in the national pageant in Riverside, California where she was crowned Miss Deaf Teen America! She was inducted into the National Honor Society at both Plum and WPSD.’
Taking advantage of WPSD’s Transition Program, Megan was afforded a job shadowing opportunity at UPMC with a nurse who is deaf. This galvanized her decision to go to Gallaudet University, where she was accepted into the honors program. She plans to pursue a doctorate in Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh.
It wasn’t easy to balance all of these opportunities and activities, but Megan made it through with flying colors, and earned the honor of representing her class as the 2015 WPSD Valedictorian.
Now a freshman in the honors program at Gallaudet University, Megan is majoring in biology with a minor in Chemistry.
“My transition from WPSD to college was smooth because WPSD prepared me very well, says Megan. I’m still working hard to reach my dreams and I love my new life at Gallaudet!”
WPSD salutes Megan as a success story. She has truly had the “best of both worlds,” and is a person who sees challenges as
opportunities instead of obstacles!
She feels comfortable and at home at WPSD, interacting with her friends and coaches in the same culture with no language barrier.
This article is published on The Western Pennsylvanian, Fall 2015, Volume 129, Number 1.
