More Choices and Chances

A few years ago, Morgan Greene, the only deaf student at Bayshore High School in Sarasota, Florida, told his mother he wanted to communicate directly with hearing people instead of having to use an interpreter. His mother and father explored some technology with iSolutions and came up with a solution of their own. It is called the iCommunicator TM
system. The iCommunicator system changes typing to speech and has a sign language dictionary. Greene uses the iCommunicator system
every day to communicate with his classmates. Editor’s note: After he was interviewed for this article, Greene had a big success—his classmates elected him homecoming king. Congratulations!

Odyssey: Do you like the iCommunicator system? Greene: Of course, I love it. It has helped me in many ways. Odyssey: How did you get the idea for the iCommunicator system? Greene: I wanted to be independent from adults,
just like the others. I wanted to walk into the classroom and do work on my own without having to sit next to an adult…. Also, there used to be only one way I could communicate with girls—by writing on paper back and forth. Odyssey:
How long have you attended school with hearing kids? Greene: I went to Florida School for the Deaf and Blind through my freshman year, then I transferred to public school where I am now a senior. Odyssey: Do you enjoy being the
only deaf student in your school? Greene: After the first year, I really loved it. Odyssey: Why do you love it? Greene: Almost everyone knows who I am and what I do. I think it is because I play football. I was on the junior varsity team during my sophomore year. Plus it is easy for them to remember me, “the deaf guy.” Odyssey: Does using the iCommunicator system mean that you use your own speech less often? Greene: I don’t think that’s true. I think it should be the deaf kid’s own choice. We are just giving them more choices and chances. Odyssey: : What are your favorite subjects? Greene: My favorite subject is computer programming. Odyssey: What are your plans for the future? Greene: First, I will go to Manatee Community College near my home. I want to take computer programming and software programming. I hope to be a software engineer.

Copyright © 2003 Gallaudet University Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center
800 Florida Ave. NE
Washington, DC 20002
Key Contact Information
Contact Information Systems and Computer Support if you have any difficulty viewing this page.