Three freshmen at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School are teaching themselves American Sign Language from library books and a dictionary app, and they want the Shawnee Mission School District to make ASL a for-credit course.

Ellie Tritsch and Amelia Bachamp launched an ASL club during the second week of school this fall, meeting in world regional studies teacher Olivia Chavez's seminar room. They started with the basics: "thank you" and "please." Beyond outdated library books and online posters, they had little guidance.

"I have found a dictionary app for ASL, so whenever someone tells me a word, I look it up," Bachamp told the SMNW student newspaper.

Bachamp didn't stop at the club. She emailed school board contacts and secured a spot to speak at a public comment meeting. After waiting hours for their turn, Bachamp delivered a prepared speech asking the district to offer ASL as a credit-bearing class. Tritsch sat beside her.

A district curriculum official approached the students afterward, Bachamp said, though she did not name the person. She said she and Tritsch may return to speak again.

Their argument centers on access. According to the Northwest student newspaper, taking ASL at JCCC through the school schedule occupies two block periods. The SMNW student paper reported that many students are unwilling or unable to give up that much schedule space.

The students also pointed to a neighboring district. The SMNW article stated that the Olathe school district is the only district in Kansas to offer sign language as a foreign language credit. A September article in the Olathe West student paper offered a slightly different picture, reporting that "besides a few schools in the Shawnee Mission district, Olathe seems to be the only district in Kansas that truly offers their students the opportunity to learn sign." Whether some Shawnee Mission schools already offer ASL in some form could not be confirmed from available sources.

At Olathe West, ASL teacher Colby Mnich told the student paper he has about 100 students enrolled in ASL 1 and 50 to 60 in ASL 2. Three of his students earned the seal of biliteracy last year, the Olathe West paper reported.

Back at Shawnee Mission Northwest, the club gained a third member with deeper experience. Freshman Abby McCoy, who has studied ASL since elementary school, helps develop the club’s lessons, the student paper reported.

The three freshmen practice during transition periods and outside school hours.