Protactile Theory Seminar

Hello everyone!

Protactile language and practices are evolving so rapidly! Our understanding of this epochal moment can barely keep up, but “Introduction to Protactile Theory” is here to help you catch hold and for us to learn more together!

The four-week group email seminar welcomes community members, educators, interpreters, administrators, co-navigators, parents, and anyone interested in learning more about the Protactile movement. For interpreters, it is a RID CMP and ACET Activity, and 2.0 CEUs in the category of Professional Studies will be offered by the DeafBlind Interpreting National Training and Resource Center, an approved CMP and ACET sponsor.

Here are some things participants in the most recent seminars said about their experience:

“I learned so much about why and how Protactile came to be, how it developed naturally, organically, when DeafBlind folks took the reins. I learned how important contact is, a no-brainer, really, yet the sharing of your stories really knocked that one out of park for me. You have a gift for inciting thoughtful conversation among your students. I don’t think I’ve ever participated in an online workshop with so much rich and extensive conversations!”

--Interpreter

“I cannot express all that taking part in this seminar has meant to me. I have bounced between my own inner experiences of learning, watching myself confront my own ignorance on various issues, and the big picture of how this is world-changing, at a thrilling moment in time, taking off at an unprecedented speed… The readings you selected for us were an excellent fit for both the beginners and experienced ones, and it felt like we all could grow together.”

--Administrator

“I think I probably learned more in this ‘online’ workshop than I have in any others. I thought the number of emails would be overwhelming but I found it to be completely manageable. I would definitely recommend this class to my colleagues.”

--Interpreter

“I am a person who does not enjoy online courses. No one could have convinced me that this course would be any different until I took it. It truly was an informative, provocative, enlightening, ENJOYABLE--I could go on with so many more adjectives but I will stop--experience. I recommend this course for everyone.”

--DBII Alumna

“I have studied PT at workshops, read some of John's published texts, and attended Seabeck as a volunteer, but I have never truly grasped DB culture until now. I would not venture to say I fully understood everything I read, but my approach to anyone in the DeafBlind community will be vastly different than what it was before taking this course.”

--Interpreter

“This course surpassed my expectations and left me with many things to explore. I'll be revisiting and sitting with the materials from this course for weeks to come. I loved the wide net of topics the group tackled throughout the last few weeks!”

--Law Student 

Title: Introduction to Protactile Theory

Instructor: John Lee Clark

Dates: April 5-30, 2020

CEUs: 2.0 (20 hours, 5 per week, no partial CEUs are awarded)

Registration fee: $200 (PayPal or check)

Course description:

This distance learning opportunity focuses on the social and intellectual contexts in which the Protactile movement emerged. Key concepts include distantism, vidism, virtual and corporeal spaces, co-presence, co-navigation, and autonomy. We will discuss the ramifications of these concepts, Protactile practices, and protactile language. This four-week, discussion-intensive course is designed to deepen the knowledge of participants at any stage of their Protactile journeys, from those who haven’t even started to the most fluent Protactile speakers.

IMPORTANT: The course is conducted via a secure email listserv. THERE ARE NO SET TIMES TO MEET OR SHOW UP. The discussions are ongoing, and you can read and contribute at your own pace within each weekly block. You are responsible for obtaining a copy of one book; all other reading materials are provided.

Participation expectations: Read materials, post several messages per week, and write a short (300-400 words) essay. We will use a flexible literacy approach; Deaf English and other pidgin writing styles are fine.

Instructor bio:

John Lee Clark is the author of the essay collection “Where I Stand” (Handtype Press, 2014). A nationally recognized Protactile trainer, he is a core team member with the DeafBlind Interpreting National Training and Resource Center at Western Oregon University; a research consultant for a National Science Foundation grant studying Protactile phonology, Drs. Terra Edwards and Diane Brentari principal investigators; and an adjunct instructor with the Department of ASL Studies and Deaf Studies, Gallaudet University. His essays and poems have appeared in many publications, including American Poetry Review, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Minneapolis Star Tribune, The Nation, The New York Times, The Paris Review, Poetry, Sign Language Studies, and Wordgathering. He lives in Hopkins, Minnesota, with the artist and author Adrean Clark, their three sons, and an angel of a Deaf cat!

Registration deadline: March 15, 2020

To apply, please contact me at jlc@johnleeclark.com for further information.

Join us in building a new world!

John