Student employees at the UAH Systems Management and Production (SMAP) Center need to learn another language to work on unmanned aerial vehicle technologies with 30-year-old research associate Steven Forney. That's because Forney has been deaf since birth. Though he received cochlear implants in his 20s, American Sign Language (ASL) is his primary form of communication. Working alongside Forney, students learn ASL as well as the technical aspects of their jobs. "The longer they work with me, the faster they learn American Sign Language," Forney says. "The challenging part is that every semester, there will always be new students coming in, and sometimes they will be 'speechless' when they meet me for the first time. "I always remind them that there are other ways to communicate with me by using dry eraser white board, notes, tablet and learning ASL," he says. Forney also encourages students to participate in a Deaf Day in which they wear earplugs to experience being deaf. "After this experience, they are better able to understand what it feels like to be in my shoes."p>