Looking to expand your experience at Bakersfield College? The American Sign Language club is the perfect opportunity for that. The newly established ASL club involves both community and learning a new language. The first meeting took place in room LA 113 and will continue to take place in the same room.

The club had a warm atmosphere and the members were friendly and inviting and had multiple interpreters to help those who have not yet learned ASL, as well as fun icebreaker games.

According to Melissa Solis, the president, the club’s goals are to fill in the gap between the deaf and hearing community here on campus and in Bakersfield. The goals are also to get people to learn ASL in an enjoyable way, as stated by Solis, “it’s fun if you make it fun.”

Erin Griepsma, the ICC representative of the club stated, “The creation of the ASL club was too inspire people to learn ASL, create awareness around the deaf community, how to interact with these members, and really encourage people to learn the language because it’s going to not only help in their professions but it’s also going to help them interact with other community members who are deaf.”

The club will be held on Tuesdays from 12:30 to 1 p.m. The members should expect to “learn ASL, interact with other people, practice, and have fun,” Solis said. The club will also be breaking their sessions into many activities, including presentations, and more to encourage others to join. “They are not always gonna be in this room, so just pay attention to the flyers,” Griepsma explained.

Additionally, the ASL club is also trying to “create deaf events on campus, which we do have a paint night that we are planning on and is being led by a deaf artist, so it’s going to really help people learn how to work with a deaf person in power. That’s one thing that a lot of hearing community members are really, not used to dealing with or working with,” Griepsma said.