No Means 'Try Harder': Blogging from Verona, Italy

If Anne Reuss had continued to believe that an international education wasn't open to her, she may have never become the first Deaf student (that she knows of) from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana to study abroad. In her blog, "Verona Visivamente," which records her senior year of study in Verona, Italy, Anne shares how she got started:

"Studying abroad was just a small thought that would surface once in a while.  I saw charming pictures of the green rolling hills of Ireland and the leaning tower of Pisa in Rome. I repressed the thought of myself in another country because I assumed it wouldn’t be plausible for me to get an English/American Sign Language interpreter in a different country....I had a revelation: I wanted to go to Europe. Simple as that. One of my personal mantras is: 'No means try harder'”.

Several factors contributed to Anne's positive experience in taking language courses in Verona. By working with her university's disability resources office, Anne was able to arrange for an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter to accompany her to Italy. Having used ASL as a primary language from an early age, Anne recognizes that her experience growing up in an English-speaking environment gives her an advantage when learning Italian Sign Language (LIS) and Italian, since she has already spent much of her life in a "foreign speaking" culture. In addition, her Italian teacher enhanced the learning process by providing visual cues and common signs.

Read Anne's blog, "Verona Visivamente" to discover the meaning of her blog's name, what it's like to think in four languages, and communication tips for navigating the classroom and country.