6 Valdosta State University has created a special community within a community, one that gives students who are deaf, hearing, and hard of hearing a unique opportunity to live together in an environment where American Sign Language is used every day. Located on the first floor of Hopper Hall, the American Sign Language Living-Learning Community began accepting residents at the start of the 2017-2018 academic year. It is open to Deaf students, students who already know American Sign Language, and students who are in the process of learning the language. 鈥淪everal years ago, I attended a conference in California,鈥� shared Laura Byers, coordinator for deaf and hard of hearing services with VSU鈥檚 Access Office. 鈥淭wo disability service providers from another university interviewed Deaf students who had left their university to enroll in other schools. Their main reason for leaving was not academic. It was that there was no sense of belonging, no one they could talk to in their own language. That was the seed for the program. It took a couple of years and some other folks proposing the idea in the Office of Housing and Residence Life, but we got it off the ground. 鈥淭he goal for the American Sign Language Living-Learning Community is to have Deaf and hearing residents who all sign in common and private spaces. This environment would reinforce language use and development for students who are learning American Sign Language and provide an accessible community for Deaf students who are frequently marginalized in university settings where most of their peers do not sign.鈥� Building a Sense of Belonging VSU CREATES AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE LIVING- LEARNING COMMUNITY WRITTEN BY JESSICA R. POPE PHOTOS BY PAUL LEAVY