This week we learned about Dr. Carolyn McCaskill. Dr. McCaskill is a Deaf counselor, author, and professor at Gallaudet University ( @GallaudetU).

During our team meetings, we are learning about contemporary Black women in STEM fields!

Dr. Carolyn McCaskill was in the first integrated class in 1968 at the Alabama School for the Deaf. Her experience there led her to discover the differences between Black ASL (American Sign Language) and "traditional" ASL.

Dr. Carolyn McCaskill earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology, a Master's degree in Counseling of the Deaf, and Ph.D in Administration and Supervision. She was the second Deaf Black woman to earn a Ph.D from Gallaudet University.

Dr. McCaskill has conducted numerous seminars and workshops related to multicultural issues in the Deaf community, and Black Deaf history community, and culture. She is a recipient of the Thomas and Julia Mayes award 2005.

Dr. McCaskill's publications include "A Minority within a Minority: Being Black, Deaf and a Female.",

Out of Ordinaries, Black Ph.d/Ed.D, the New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, Multicultural/Minorities Issues in Deaf Studies, Empowerment and the Black Deaf Experience and Black Perspectives and the Deaf Community.

Dr. McCaskill co-authored a book and video called The Hidden Treasures of Black ASL: Its History and Structure, published in 2011. She has presented on various aspects of Black ASL globally.

Dr. Carolyn McCaskill explained how Black American Sign Language is unique in video from the Washington Post