BURBANK : Stamps to Recognize Program for Deaf

Two new stamps recognizing the deaf community and American Sign Language will be unveiled in Burbank in recognition of a local program for mainstreaming hearing-impaired students, postal officials said.

“This will give more credence to the fact that sign language is a language, and is a viable means of communication,” Carl Kirchner, executive director of the Tripod program, said Friday. “It’s the fourth most widely used language in the United States.”

Tripod, a private agency, has helped hearing-impaired children and their families since 1982.

With only 15 employees, the group runs a nationwide toll-free advice line for the hearing-impaired and in 1989 formed a partnership with the Burbank Unified School District, getting deaf and hard-of-hearing students into the regular classrooms.

The new postage stamps will be issued out of Burbank on Sept. 20 in a ceremony at the Starlight Bowl amphitheater with actress Marlee Matlin, who is deaf.

One stamp, recognizing American Sign Language, displays the hand-sign for “I love you,” with thumb, index finger and pinky extended.

The other stamp, recognizing deafness, shows a mother giving that sign to her baby.

“This stamp will be on millions of letters seen by millions of people for years,” said Terri Bouffiou, a local Postal Service spokeswoman.

“It’s a strong way to express an idea, and everyone wants their cause selected.”

Every year the postal service gets more than 10,000 suggestions for stamps, of which only 30 to 40 are picked by a citizens advisory committee, Bouffiou said.

“Others looked at us saying, ‘It would never work,’ saying you can’t have deaf teachers work in regular classrooms,” Kirchner said.

But Tripod students, who have deaf teachers working with the regular classroom teachers, score better than the national average for deaf students, Kirchner said.

In other mainstreaming programs, deaf students join regular classes only briefly, he said.

“They were not totally involved in or accepted in the classroom,” Kirchner said.

“The whole educational process broke down.”

Five other school districts across the country, and one each in Canada and England, are trying out similar programs.