The Communication Station

Letter from the Director

2020 is finally coming to a close! During these months of social distancing and mask wearing our lives have completely changed. With working and schooling from home to solitary family holidays we are all adjusting to the new normal. The COVID constraints have opened some new opportunities - classes and other events have been converted to virtual venues making it easier to attend. In this edition of the Communication Station, we have highlighted some opportunities to get involved in. in this edition of the Communication Station. On behalf of the Childhood Communication Center at Seattle Children’s Hospital, we wish you a healthy and peaceful holiday season.

Kathy Sie, MD
Director, Childhood Communication Center

Effort to Advance Legislation to Require Commercial Insurance to Cover Children's Hearing Aids

Jill Bujnevicie, parent of a child with hearing loss is working tirelessly for the second year in a row to pass state legislation in 2021 to require commercial insurance plans to cover hearing aids for children.  As a non-profit, 501c3 organization we cannot directly ask patient families and other stakeholders to engage in direct advocacy or lobbying with government on policy and budget proposals.

We are able to share information to raise awareness about current relevant issues and to inform you about opportunities to engage in the democratic process. Please see Jill’s update here.

Scholarship Opportunity for College-Bound Students

As the Telecommunications Relay and/or Captioned Telephone service provider for Washington, Hamilton Relay acknowledges that opportunities for higher education affect the future of Washington’s high school students.
 
The Hamilton Relay Scholarship opportunity is for graduating high school seniors in Washington who are deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind or have difficulty speaking.

All candidates are required to submit an application, write an essay on the topic of communication technology and provide a letter of recommendation in order to qualify. The application documents can also be found online.
 
The scholarship deadline is January 30, 2021 and applications must be received or postmarked by that date. The scholarship is in the amount of $500 and the winner will be determined on or before March 1, 2021.

Sight & Hearing Association Releases 2020 Annual Noisy Toys List ©

The Sight and Hearing Association was established to prevent vision and hearing loss through screenings, education and research. Each year, Sight and Hearing tests toys against standards set by the National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH). The NIOSH mandates hearing protection for noise exposure over 85dB. Of the 24 toys tested on this year's toy list,14 of them were louder than 85dB.

Read more about about it here.

World Kindness Day

World Kindness Day is observed around the world on November 13. Watch this video of youth who are deaf/hard of hearing across Washington State share what kindness means to them and how to pass it on. Be Kind!

CDHY Hosts Coffee Chats

Washington Center for Deaf Hard of Hearing Youth (DCHY) American Sign Language specialist assistant, Krissy Walker, hosts interactive discussions via Zoom on Deaf education, culture and community. January discussion topics include Clerc Center resources and Deaf Center support. Additional information and details can be found here.