"The teaching field is huge, and I wanted to specialize in something," said Geiken, a teacher of prekindergarten through 12th-grade students. "That was my sign. It was beautiful. I watched in awe. I had to do that. This was my teaching specialty."
Her first two teaching jobs were to lend support to students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Her objective was to help the kids learn so they could remain in the mainstream classroom.

"Personally I think these kiddos need a regular presence and more hands on," she said.

Geiken was one of 15 people chosen in the state to receive special education to work with infants and toddlers. When a baby is born, it gets a universal newborn hearing screening. If the baby has a problem, the family is referred to an audiologist. Geiken is hired by any of 17 counties to work with the deaf and hearing impaired from birth to age 3.

"Anytime I hear about a baby born with a hearing problem I pray that I will get this baby to work with," she said. "I want to be involved with all these kiddos. This is an invisible disability, and sometimes nothing is done because of that or the family is in denial. Early intervention is crucial."

She talks to the family about what they want to see happen. She talks to them about what they can expect and how to get there. Geiken educates people about deafness and hearing loss and how it affects everyone. She guides them through developmental milestones and coaches them on things they should be doing to teach their children. She talks with them about how to work with hearing aids and cochlear implants.

"Hearing babies learn so much through incidental language," she said. "If they pick something up you might say you have a red ball. Deaf babies need to hear incidental language, too. I teach parents how to do that. The first signs we learn are mom, dad, milk, eat, all done and I love you."

When Geiken visited her first family, she was eager to help. The family, on the other hand, was somber and didn't know what they needed.
"I had to take a step back," she said. "This family didn't know what to do and looked at me as their leader and guide. We worked together at started at the beginning."
Geiken started Hand-N-Hand in 2002 as a birth-to-5 playgroup that allows deaf and hard-of-hearing children and families to mingle. Dr. Jeff Block and the Baycare Clinic Foundation contributed money so Hand-N-Hand could get not-for-profit status. Roots and Wings is a program for ages 6 and older. Sign language classes are open for anyone to attend.

•Highlights: The best part of the job for Geiken is when she sees families that she has brought together through Hand-N-Hand connect, share information with each other, know that they are not alone in a difficult journey and glean valuable information from each other.

•Lowlights: The worst part of the job is writing grants, handling office chores, doing research and asking for money or help to keep the program going.
"If I'm not here, there is no one for these kiddos that are birth to 3 years old," she said. "Early detection and help is so crucial. Studies have shown that these kids can develop almost as normally as their hearing peers if they are worked with in the first six months. If Hand-N-Hand isn't here, there is no place for these people to socialize and connect and learn and develop."

•What's needed: A degree is required to teach deaf education.
"Really there are not many people doing this, and it is an important job. I graduated in a class of four," Geiken said.
She believes good qualities to have are organization, caring, empathy and assertiveness and to be outgoing and driven.

•Advice: "If you want change, YOU have to make it happen," she said. "If you want to lose weight, no one else will do it for you; you have to make it happen. If you want your child to sign, you have to help them learn. Parents are a child's best teacher."

•Aspirations: Geiken would like to pursue her master's degree, help the state branch out with programs for the deaf and hard of hearing and expand Hand-N-Hand into the Fox Valley.
"I want to do a lot, but it all takes money that I don't have. I am very thankful for the donations and support that I do receive," said Geiken.

•Facts: Deafness or partial hearing loss is the No. 1 birth defect in the United States. One in 1,000 babies is born profoundly deaf. Two or 3 in 1,000 are born with a partial hearing loss.

(by greenbaypressgazette.com)

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

Add Comment