Newsroom
Inclusivity and service during Public Allies Arizona's Community Space Day
November 13, 2024 — The 2024-25 Public Allies Arizona cohort joined Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind to hold its first Community Space Day of the new program year.
Public Allies Arizona is a 10-month, AmeriCorps nonprofit internship program by the ASU Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation. It aims to encourage the development of new community leaders for the purpose of creating a more equitable and just society.
Part of this development includes Community Space Days — service events that look to foster a commitment to the common good and a better understanding of community needs. By working with Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind, the Public Allies focused on adapting their leadership skills to promote inclusivity.
With a vision of being “committed to respect, support and the wellbeing of all,” Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind provides education for deaf, hard-of-hearing and blind children up until the 12th grade. The organization’s Phoenix Campus, Phoenix Day School for the Deaf, brings this vision to the Valley of the Sun, serving a student body that is entirely deaf or hard of hearing.
By visiting the campus, the Public Allies were introduced to a uniquely inclusive space.
An initial tour of the school revealed the myriad ways its students navigate elementary, middle and high school.
From the bright overhead lighting throughout the halls to the American Sign Language-trained teachers staffing each classroom, students at the Day School for the Deaf are immersed in an environment specially tailored to their disability.
Phoenix Day School for the Deaf’s Director of Career and Technical Education Scott Madsen stressed as much throughout the event.
“We are the experts in accommodating those needs,” Madsen said through an American Sign Language interpreter.
Being born deaf himself, Madsen highlighted the unique experience the school offers to those who may otherwise feel othered due to their disability. Though Arizona is home to more than 1 million hard-of-hearing and deaf people, Madsen says “there’s not enough opportunity” in Arizona for the deaf and hard-of-hearing to realize their full potential.
Having access to these opportunities is especially important for deaf children, who often experience the world differently than their friends, classmates and even families.
Statistically, deaf children are most likely to be born to hearing parents — bringing a significant chance of being the only deaf person in their immediate family. However, the opportunity Phoenix Day School for the Deaf offers to be around others who share the disability can encourage more positive social experiences.
“We want to make sure [the students] realize they are capable,” said Madsen.
After the tour, the Public Allies were tasked with a variety of service projects across the Phoenix Day School for the Deaf campus. They worked with the school’s students to plant vegetables, repaint lockers, pot succulents and spray paint benches.
“I think it’s really rewarding whenever you see that you’re making a change in the community,” said Public Ally Nicole Lerma. “It’s just really nice to see people come together.”
In addition to beautifying the campus, the Allies and students managed to foster new connections — even across language barriers.
One Ally described connecting with high school students over a game of basketball in the courtyard. Another used the sign language alphabet to introduce herself to elementary school students by the garden.
“It’s just so normal,” Public Ally Zair Casanova said, describing seeing the students interact. “For us it’s a bigger deal, but for them (the students) it’s just a normal way of life.”
From the experience, the Allies walked away with a new understanding of how to connect with and understand the needs of those who are different from them.
Image: Public Allies touring Phoenix Day School for the Deaf during their Community Space Day, by Lillian Finley
Story by Lillian Finley, ASU Lodestar Center
Learn about our other Capacity Building Services
The ASU Lodestar Center offers multiple options to help your organization build capacity in our Capacity Building Services: from placing skilled volunteers into programs with Experience Matters, to creating a board governance plan, as well as Public Allies Arizona. We can help create more capacity, so your organization can do more good in the community!