UW American Sign Language students have begun mobilizing to protect the number of ASL courses offered, which have been reduced to accommodate university budget cuts, resulting in one full-time professor on staff.
Students of ASL Professor Justin Vollmar received an email on Oct. 13 informing them that his short-term contract with the Department of Linguistics wasn’t renewed, and three ASL courses, rather than five, will be offered spring semester.
The advocacy efforts gained momentum when students across campus started signing a petition on Oct. 14, which originated from ASL student Isabella Ferak…