In this month's update, President Jenny shares a recap of the NAD Board's visit in Puerto Rico and ends with some #NAD2024 deadline reminders.

1. Bylaws Amendment Proposals due April 30th: chicago.nad.org/bylaws-amendment-proposal
2. Priority Proposals due May 7th: chicago.nad.org/priority-proposal
3. Resolution Proposals due May 7th: chicago.nad.org/resolution-proposal
4. Early Bird Registration deadline is May 15th: chicago.nad.org/registration
5. Run for a position on the NAD Board due May 17th: Link
6. Regular Registration deadline is May 31st: chicago.nad.org/registration


[VIDEO DESC & TRANSCRIPT: Jenny is standing in front of the camera.

JENNY: Hello! The NAD Board met in Puerto Rico for our Spring meeting, earlier this month. It was a wonderful experience. In case you were not aware, Puerto Rico is one of the U.S. territories. At the NAD Conference two years ago, Delegates decided that the NAD should also include the U.S. territories as part of the communities the NAD represents and serves; this decision prompted the NAD Board to plan our visit to Puerto Rico and meet their communities. We were truly fortunate to meet and engage with different communities in Puerto Rico. First, we joined their traditional weekly Wednesday gathering, we appreciated the opportunity to meet and learn their stories. On Thursday, we went to the deaf school, Colegio San Gabriel -- during the campus tour, we learned about their programs and met their students, and enjoyed visiting different classrooms. After the tour, we began our meeting which started with a training provided by a local Deaf Puerto Rican. They shared their experiences and barriers and how the Government works. They explained how the Deaf communities are trying to navigate through such barriers for Deaf children, adults, and all deaf communities to have access to language. We definitely learned a lot. After that training, we resumed our Board meeting for two full days (into the evenings as well) -- we discussed a lot of topics, including the upcoming NAD Conference, the accreditation of interpreting agencies, and the ongoing situation. Then on Saturday, we attended two community events. First, we went to a university that has an Interpreting program as well as a Teach of the Deaf program. While we were there, we were able to join their conference and presented about the two of the NAD's five priorities: ASL Resources for Deaf Babies and Well-being for Deaf, Youth -- those two priorities were discussed to highlight how deaf youth are impacted by language deprivation and the lack of mental health resources. Our presentation shared ideas and resources on how to support deaf children through such challenges. After the conference, we went south west to Yauco, which is known for coffee. We met with Sordos Unidos de Puerto Rico Inc. and enjoyed meeting their members; they shared their stories and experiences. We learned how they navigated through different challenges, such as hearing people taking away opportunities as one example. They learned that the U.S. laws do not apply. It was a productive afternoon where were able to share different stories and experiences and compare between the US and Puerto Rico; the NAD Board is committed to supporting Sordos Unidos de Puerto Rico Inc. and see them break down their barriers. Now, it’s almost May which means we have several things due soon. If you’d like to run for a position on the NAD Board, you need to apply by May 17th. Go ahead and register for the #NAD2024 conference. See you in Chicago!]