By james art 
A group of students from the California School for the Deaf-Fremont (CSD) graduated before they could see the end result of a legislative proposal they made last fall to increase their school’s visibility. Now that the bill inspired by that proposal has been signed into law, the US government teacher who spearheaded the project with her 12th graders says they’ll feel the impact anyway.
Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed AB 2367, paving the way for the installation of highway signs for public special schools like CSD. The bill, authored by District 24 Assemblyman Alex Lee, aims to raise awareness of these schools. During the legislative process, they also advocated for the construction of highway signs for the nearby California School for the Blind.
“As my students graduated last summer, they talked about how powerful it would be to see this freeway sign one day on their commute home from college and know that families with young deaf children would see the California School for the Deaf as a resource for their child,” CSD social studies teacher Molly Christensen said in a release.
“Throughout the legislative process, the students of the California School for the Deaf in Fremont were engaged and committed to moving their cause forward,” said Lee, whose district includes Milpitas and parts of San Jose. “This bill is an excellent example of how young people can participate in our democracy.”
CSD enrolls approximately 350 deaf and hard of hearing students and offers instruction in American Sign Language and English. The campus is located near Interstates 680, 238 and 880.