DawnSignPress has named two winners of its annual College Scholarship:  Jennifer Harris of the Kentucky School for the Deaf, and Shanna Grossinger of  the California School for the Deaf, Fremont (CSDF).

The quality of  applicants was so high this year, said the company’s president, Joe Dannis,  that, in a departure from its usual practice, DawnSignPress decided to reward  two of the candidates. Harris and Grossinger will each receive a full $2,000  scholarship for their freshman year in college.

Shanna Grossinger is the  Salutatorian of the CSDF Class of 2006. An editor of the CSDF yearbook, she  contributed to the school’s newspaper, Cal News, and its web page. She won first  place in the Optimist Club’s Public Speaking Competition, in the Mr. and Miss  CSD competition, and in the Career Exploration Class Job Interview competition,  where members of the business community served as judges. She has taken Advanced  Placement English classes for two years and passed the challenging AP English  test. Active in the Drama Department, Shanna performed the lead role in Beauty  and the Beast. She also had the opportunity to travel to Russia with the  International Studies program and has participated in sports and in committees  supporting school programs. 

Grossinger’s English teacher, Farrah Nolan,  described her as “a very motivated student…and also a wonderful member of the  Deaf community. Degree of hearing loss and parent lineage doesn’t matter to her.  She welcomes people with open arms.” Nolan added, “I think that Shanna is going  to be extremely successful in both college and in life.”

Shanna has also  chosen to attend Gallaudet and will focus on English, Creative Writing, and  Linguistics. She wants to translate her passion for journalism into global  travels to meet Deaf people from other countries and publish books on the  universality and richness of Deaf culture. “I want to prove Deaf people can  write,” she says, “and help the next generation grow more literate.” Established  in 2004, the DawnSignPress College Scholarship will begin accepting applications  for 2007 in February. For more information, go to www.dawnsign.com/about/dspscholarship.html