Keary Niarkos, an ASL ( American Sign Language ) teacher at Prairie High School (PHS) continuously makes a quiet classroom enjoyable. Niarkos never had a passion for ASL until she took a class at PHS. She took ASL and developed a burning passion for the language. She graduated from Prairie and got her associate’s degree at Clark College. She then transferred to Western Oregon and got her bachelor’s degree in ASL studies.
Right after she graduated college, she started interpreting, having no intentions of teaching. Her teacher in high school, Kelly Swindell, swayed Niarkos’ perspective on ASL and made her love the subject even more. She had the opportunity to attend an experience at the expo center, which allowed her to see the different sign languages there and to experience being around deaf people and communicating with them in their language. Niarkos came alongside Swindell with the ASL club. This club ran for around 15 years and Niarkos helped to run all 15 years of that class.
Niarkos states that she “always tries to stay fairly positive” and “always tries to be welcoming”.
She states she has been to “many weddings, baby showers, and even grad parties, which shows the amazing and tight connections she can make with her students”.
One of her top students, Jaden Frazier, has developed a close relationship with Niarkos. She states that Niarkos has an interactive teaching style and makes her class fun and engaging, which is challenging for a nonverbal class. Frazier loves her welcoming presence and positive attitude towards all students. She also loves Niarkos as a teacher and “hopes Keary feels proud of her and the deaf community.”
