The Visit of American Colleagues from the NTID in Rochester
at Charles University in Prague

From November 20 - 22, 2003 there were held several meetings of American colleagues from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at Rochester Institute of Technology with the teachers of the Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague. The negotiations concerned the further steps in cooperation on the PEN-International Project which is aimed at improving the tertiary level of deaf education in different countries of the world, especially at educating better qualified teachers of the Deaf. Charles University was visited by Prof. Jim DeCaro, Director of the PEN-International Project, with his wife, Prof. Pat DeCaro, and Prof. Bill Clymer, Project Coordinator.

The first festive meeting took place in the ancient Carolinum, the oldest part of Charles University, on November 20, 2003. Prof. Ivan Wilhelm, Charles University Rector, expressed his great thanks to American colleagues for their help with improving the situation in education of Czech deaf university students. He especially stressed how important it is for Czech Deaf Community to educate highly qualified English teachers.

Dr. Janáková, Head of the Faculty of Arts Language Resource Centre and Deaf Studies English Coordinator, was speaking about the preparations of the future Prague international teacher-training seminar which will be organized by the Faculty of Arts Language Resource Center in August 2004. It was settled that the NTID together with the University of Wolverhampton would provide the experienced seminar lecturers.

Charles University Vice-Rector for Study Affairs, Prof. Jaroslava Svobodová, together with the Director of the Institute for Czech Language and the Theory of Communication, Prof. Alena Macurová, who is the mother of the pilot study program at the Faculty of Arts, called Czech in the Communication of the Deaf, took also part in this very special meeting. There were discussed the perspectives and possibilities of enlarging the cooperation between Charles University and the NTID as well.

The second meeting was held at the Faculty of Arts on November 21, 2003. The American delegation was met by the Faculty Dean, Prof. Jaroslav Vacek. During the meeting there was signed the Cooperation Agreement between Charles University and the NTID in Rochester. The document concerns the organizing of Prague International Seminar in August 2004 and providing the sponsorship for this event. Together with American colleagues and Dr. Daniela Janáková, also Dr. Libuše Drnková, Director of the Faculty of Arts Language Centre, and Helena Fikarová, MA, English teacher of the Language Centre, took part. Prof. Vacek expressed his great support to the future seminar and he was speaking about long tradition of Prague linguistics at the Faculty of Arts.

When the meeting at the Dean´s Office was over, the American colleagues met deaf and hard-of-hearing students at the Faculty of Arts Language Resource Center. The American guests appreciated the results which have been achieved in Deaf Studies English by the LRC so far. The atmosphere of the meeting was very warm and friendly. Prof. Jim DeCaro asked the students to take part in the coming Seminar 2004 as well. During the meeting there were also discussed the program conception and seminar preparations.