The Most Rewarding Job

by Lynn McCulloch

Since October of 1999, I have been working as a full-time CART provider for Broward Community College in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This, by far, has been the most rewarding job of my entire career. As a former teacher, I love being in an academic environment where my skills as a court reporter can assist students in learning. It is so wonderful to witness deaf and hard of hearing students receiving equal access to all the class lectures and interactions as their hearing peers. Because of CART, they not only are able to read every word spoken in class, but they also have the added benefit of receiving a complete set of class notes afterwards for study purposes.

In my current position, I have worked with a wide range of students, from one who is hard of hearing to one who is completely deaf. The courses I have captioned include economics, accounting, computer programming, algebra, English, public speaking, geography, world religions, philosophy, psychology and art history. As you might suspect, the more technical the class, the more the students seem to appreciate receiving CART services. This is because when they are learning new and difficult vocabulary, it is helpful to have the visual reinforcement of seeing the words printed before them. Some students even jot down these words as they appear and later look them up in the dictionary or in their textbook.

After his first week of receiving CART, one of my students commented to someone in the Disability Services Office, "I love CART! It makes me feel I'm just like everyone else." Because of CART, he said he felt much more included in class, both in terms of understanding the material being presented and the general classroom banter that goes on. One of the most moving things for me as a CART provider is hearing my deaf students simultaneously laugh at a joke with the rest of the class because I am aware how much casual conversation they usually miss out on in their lives.

The instructors also seem to appreciate having CART in their classroom. Last semester, an economics professor was fascinated by the service I was providing my deaf student, and he provided me with an LCD projector so my notes could appear on the front wall for the entire class to see. After class, he then posted the class notes on his Web site, and students from all three of his Eco I classes could access these notes. This was an instance where although I was technically in class to help one deaf student, the service extended to many others as well. The non-native speakers of English especially appreciated having these notes.

CART is certainly not the right accommodation for every deaf student. Those who are strong in American Sign Language generally prefer having an interpreter. However, for the student who truly needs the accommodation of CART, it works beautifully. Broward Community College has been a pioneer in creating a full-time CART position in order to more easily offer this service to its students, and I am extremely grateful to be able to serve in this capacity.

If you have any further questions about CART, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at (954) 969-2026 or through e-mail at lmccullo@gw.broward.cc.fl.us.