Hearing the Voice Within
When a photographer’s flash punctuated Travis J. Clawson’s address to his classmates, it illuminated more than a picture of December’s commencement speaker at Pennsylvania College of Technology. It documented a portrait of tenacity, courage and leadership – traits that, as cited in his introduction, embody “the ideal characteristics of a Penn College graduate.”
Chosen to represent the Class of 2007, the Clarksburg resident, a candidate for a bachelor’s degree in computer information technology, strode to the lectern, unfurled a copy of his speech and stood poised to begin. The audience quietly paused to hear his polished distillation of 4 ½ years – a hush that, for Clawson, at least, would know no end.
Deaf since birth, he never heard the applause that thundered through the Community Arts Center at the close of his well-crafted remarks, presented in American Sign Language and given voice by an offstage interpreter.
As he had throughout his time on campus, the ambassador for the deaf and those with partial hearing loss (and a role model for everyone else he met) communicated through gestures and an infectious spirit, accented by glinting eyes that one staff member later said “can
charm anyone.”
“Rarely do I see a student who so values the importance of a college education that he courageously faces the day-to-day challenges, yet consistently applies extra effort to succeed,” said Karen A. Wilson Bodine, disability services specialist. “As a freshman, despite adapting to a complex college environment where all communication is via speech or textual English – and only two or three people know sign language – he had to learn to navigate the hurdles of seeking accommodations.”
This, then, is a story of yet another Penn College alumnus impacting the world. A story of overcoming barriers without complaint, adaptation without compromise, ability transcending “disability.”
“When Travis came to take his placement test, I made his family aware that he would be the only student on campus who is deaf, and I had concerns about his ability to socialize and transition into college life,” Bodine recalled. “His father told me that he was raised in a hearing world and would need to work in a hearing world, so his family felt this was a necessary sacrifice in order for him to get
a degree.”
With any student’s arrival on campus, adjustment seldom is smooth: friendships to form, roommates to tolerate and responsibilities to balance.
“It was not easy for me to make friends with the other students because I cannot hear or talk. I would talk to the other students in my classes through my interpreter and, after a while, they became more comfortable talking with me,” he said. “I like helping other people, so when I was asked to tutor another student in Java (a computer programming language), I said ‘Yes.’ I had just taken two courses in Java and could understand what problems a deaf person would have in learning this course.”
The biggest challenge was adjusting from an all-deaf school to a “hearing” college, Clawson said.
“American Sign Language is my first language and is very different than the English language. I was used to having teachers that signed and understood the problems deaf people have with learning,” he explained. “At Penn College, I had many different interpreters signing what the professors and other students were saying in the classroom. If I didn’t understand homework assignments or what the professors were talking about in class, I would have my interpreter ask the professor to explain to me
what I needed to know.
“I knew I had to get good grades in my classes if I wanted to get a good job after graduation, so I did whatever I needed to do to get the grades I wanted.”
His own story would be inspirational enough to enthrall an audience, but rather than relate those unique circumstances, his graduation speech inclusively recounted the journey he and his classmates endured together. He likened their odyssey to that of the travelers in “The Wizard of Oz,” an obstacle-strewn path that wove through a variety of majors, extracurricular activities and work experiences, and ended at a common goal: an Emerald City in which they were granted their diplomas.
“We all were able to overcome the personal problems, sicknesses, hard professors and taking courses we really didn’t like that the Wicked Witch threw our way. Somehow, we managed to get back on the Yellow Brick Road and keep going,” he said. “Of course, it helped finding friends along the way. We never could have made it without our new friends, the assistance of the professors, the staff, our advisers and, in my case, my interpreters and note-takers. They encouraged and guided us when the going got tough, and we will always be grateful for that.”
While “shocked and honored” to be chosen as commencement speaker, Clawson later said his theme – drawn from one of his favorite movies – matched how he felt about his experience at Penn College. And if his knees knocked like the Tin Man’s, he again faced his fears and persevered.
“Even though I had practiced my speech many times before I got on stage, I was very nervous waiting until it was time for me to stand up and start signing. My heart was racing sitting there looking at all the people that would be listening to what I had to say,” he said. “Once I started signing and thinking about what I wanted to say, I was no longer so nervous. I felt confident in my message and knew my interpreter, Cindy Allen, would do an excellent job of voicing what I was signing.”
Clawson exhibited the same sort of fearlessness when applying for a summer assignment with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Hispanic-Serving Institutions National Program, looking beyond his apprehension to the very real career benefit of an internship in Washington, D.C.
“Being deaf, I knew I needed more in my résumé than ‘hearing’ graduates. I felt it was a necessity for both the job experience and to list on my résumé,” he said. “With the help of my professors, Pat Coulter and Asesh Das, I was able to contact someone in the USDA. Once I was chosen to be one of the interns, the staff did everything to make the transition as easy as possible.”
Clawson’s main responsibility was to update the agency’s Web site, and he created promotional materials for a career fair and a leadership symposium. He also was invited by his executive director to attend October’s annual conference of Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities in Chicago, helping staff a booth and attending meetings offered to students.
“Recently, I have been asked to join in the weekly telephone conferences for all of the staff in our office. From my home near Pittsburgh, I call the Sorenson relay service (a video aid for the deaf and partially deaf) to get an interpreter who signs to me what is being said on the telephone and voices
what I sign in response. With the use of this relay service, I am able to take part in these almost-hourlong meetings, and it makes me feel more a part of the office.”
The internship, which ultimately continued past graduation and into February, was the basis for his capstone presentation. “He showed utmost sincerity and commitment in the senior project,” said
Das, professor of computer science and one of Clawson’s faculty supporters in the School of Business and Computer Technologies. “He was very regular in reporting all work – all done immaculately
– and his portfolio became a great item to display and study.” His work already has been shared with students in Das’ junior classes.
“Now we have everything we need for our next adventure,” the soon-to-be-graduate told his peers in December, when he also received the President’s Award for leadership and service. “The choice is ours.
All we have to do is click our heels, and off we will go down another Yellow Brick Road.”
Like his Oz-bound counterparts, Clawson has learned that he possessed all along what he sought: brains, a heart, courage … and a home, always a home, with his Penn College family.
To view PDF file of Spring 2008 ‘Pennsylvania College of Technology’ magazine.