FRONTRUNNERS

VALUES

SAFE SPACE

FUN FACTS

OUR TOPICS

EVERYDAY LIFE

FORMER FRONTRUNNERS

FACILITIES

MEET THE TEACHERS

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you

In this e-brochure we would like to introduce you to Frontrunners - an international education programme for young Deaf people. Joining our programme is the beginning of a lifelong journey and a catalyst for a social change.

Frontrunners’ head quarter is placed in the Danish countryside at Castberggård, which originally started as a cultural center for Deaf people in the 1970s.

During the past 10 years we have educated more than 110 Frontrunners. On the next pages, you’ll meet some of them.

Enjoy!

The Frontrunners Team

WELCOME

We existDeaf people have always existed and they will always exist

We believeDeaf people are a part of the global human diversity and they are meant to beWe doWe act to strengthen our existence and be a part of the global human diversity

you

SAFE SPACE AND

INTERSECTIONALITY

In the video below, Frontrunners’ teacher Outi talks about the importance of having your own group when you are a minority. In the safe space we are allowed to discuss the diverse subjects from our own view and create our own discourses when we wish to change the majority’s view on us.

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10 YEARS ANNIVERSARY

In November 2014 more than 50 former Frontrunner students gathered to celebrate

the 10-year anniversary of Frontrunners.

Besides hugs, laughing, partying and a lot of fun there were also more serious

features on the program. Professor Ben Bahan from the University of Gallaudet in

Washington D.C flew in on Saturday to give a speech about the future.

Sundays program were all about the participants and consisted of a wide range of different presentations. Inspired by the

approach from our fifth anniversary, we encouraged all participants to make a

30-minute presentation. The advanced interest was great and the only condition for the presentation was the subject that

should be of general interest for all.

FUN FACTS- From the last 10 years of Frontrunners

100+ guest

lectures

The students come fromBelgium, India, Norway,

Tanzania, Denmark, France, USA, The Netherlands, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Mongolia, Albania, Spain, Latvia, Chile, Germany,

Ghana, Lithuania, China and Austria, Canada, Brazil, Finland,

Sweden, Argentina, UK, etc.

7 teachersOle Vestergaard, Vivian Batory, Filip Bergmann Verhelst, Outi Toura-Jensen, Bengie Feldmann, Dennis Hoogeveen and Mark Berry.

AgeYoungest Frontrunner

17 Oldest Frontrunner

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Gender49 male

68 female

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OUR TOPICSDEAFHOOD

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

MEDIA

HUMAN RIGHTS

DEAF ART

AUDISM

BILINGUALISM

LEADERSHIP

KNOW YOUR FEAR

COMMUNICATION

DEAF HISTORY

PROJECT MANAGE-

MENTSIGN LIN-GUI-

STICSSOCIAL ENTREPENEUR-

SHIPDEAF COMMUNITY

- WE OFTEN INVITE GUEST TEACHERS FROM DIFFERENT COUN-TRIES, WHO WANT TO SHARE THEIR KNOWLEDGE OR EXPERTISE ON A SPECIFIC TOPIC. THE GUEST TEACHERS ARE OFTEN VERY INSPIRATIONAL AND VALUABLE FOR OUR COURSE.

GUEST TEACHERS

- OUR EDUCATION LANGUAGE IS INTERNATIONAL SIGN LANGUAGE (ISL) WHICH MEANS WE EXPECT YOU DO YOUR EXAM OR EVALUA-TION PROJECT IN ISL. THE EXAMINATION SHOULD BE CONSIDERED A TOOL FOR REFLECTION AND CONTROL, PROVIDING A DESCRIP-TION OF THE STUDENT’S ABILITY TO COMBINE THEORY, METHOD AND PRACTICE. THE EXAMINATION FORM VARIES VASTLY FROM GIVING AN INDIVIDUAL STUDENT PROJECT TO A REFLECTIVE GROUP PROJECT (E.G. SEMINAR, GIVING A LECTURE OR PRESENTA-TION ON YOUR INNOVATIVE PROCESSES). GRADES ARE AWARDED USING THE ECTS GRADING SCALE.

EXAMINATION

CURRICULUMREAD OUR CURRICULUM AND SEE MORE ABOUT OUR TOPICS AT OUR WEBSITE, FRONTRUNNERS.DK

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EVERYDAY LIFE

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MEET 4 FORMER FRONTRUNNERS

Name: Rodrigo Nogueira MachadoCountry: BrazilAge: 32 years, Frontrunners 3Studies now: Master in Linguistics at Federal University of Santa Cara-rina(UFSC)Work: Professor of Sign Language Brazilian(Libras) at the Federal University of Ceara (UFC) and In-terpreter Sign Language Brazilian/Portuguese/International Sign.Organisation Work: Vice-President of the National Federation of Education and Integration of the Deaf (FENEIS – Brazil)

Name: Drisana Levitzke-Gray

Country: Australia

Age: 22, Frontrunners 8

Studying: Diploma of Interpreting. (to become Deaf Interpreter)

Work: Deaf Sector Community Net-working Officer for the National Relay Service

Organisational Work: Board mem-ber of WAAD (Western Australian Association of the Deaf) and sub committee for APN

Why did you want to join Frontrunners Course? I’ve always been active in the Deaf Community in Australia and after representing Australia at 2 WFDYS Camps (2009, 2011) I wanted to join Frontrunners to learn new skills relating to Lea-dership, Communication and to learn about Deaf-related topics. Importantly it was for me to learn about who I was and what I want to be which turned out to be a passionate advocate for hu-man rights of Deaf people.

What was your best experience at the Frontrunners Course? The best experience would have to be studying and learning with other Deaf youth peers from all over the world and to also have 3 Deaf teachers (from 3 different countries) to work and to learn from. Having that mutual understanding helped me to learn and to grow rapidly during my time in Frontrunners.

What are the benefits from Frontrunners Course? Frontrunners has helped me in finding out who I am and what I want to do with my life. It also helped develop the skills I needed to become an active leader and advocate for the Deaf Communi-ty. I learned how to talk and to negotiate with people especially those in government and managerial positions to advocate on behalf of the Deaf community. In January 2015, I became the Young Australian of the Year which is a massive honour and it is all thanks to my time at Frontrunners!

Name: Amanda Everitt

Country: New Zealand

Age: 31, Frontrunners 1

Studying: I have a Masters in Online Education

Work: I am a Learning Technology and Education consultant. See my website at www.playbyeye.com

Why did you want to join Frontrunners Course? I was in law school but my arguments were missing an important element. How could I explain the deaf experience to people? How could I create a story about what it means to be deaf in today’s world? Frontrunners seemed to be the perfect course to get more practical experience. I went. I learnt so much.

What was your best experience at the Frontrunners Course? There were so many highlights I could not possibly choose one! But I loved thinking, arguing and laughing with the 11 other Frontrunners from 10 different countries. It was an incredible fusion of countries and culture.

What are the benefits from Frontrunners Course? Frontrunners helped me with my media and website skills. I was able to learn how to write blogs, to edit videos and write good news copy. I was able to polish up my presentation skills in front of a camera and a live audience. I also was able to apply many of the topical issues discussed during Frontrunners to my profes-sional life after Frontrunners. In all, I gained many important skills for my working life.

Name: Jenny Nillson

Country: Sweden

Age: Frontrunners 4

Studying: Masters in Human Rights and intern at Danish Hu-man Rights Institute and former WFDYS president.

Why did you want to join Frontrunners Course? I wanted to live and have fun in an international environment and Frontrunners looked exciting with awesome course program. I also wanted to develop my leadership and discussion skills to use in my future work.

What was your best experience at the Frontrunners Course? My best experience was my fellow Frontrunners mates, we be-came close friends, had a lot of fun together and I loved how we exchanged our experiences in a deaf space. All of us were interested to make a difference and to change the world. Through this I im-proved my leadership and discussion skills very much.

What are the benefits from Frontrunners Course? Frontrunners gave me determination to continue in my interest in the international political system, I attended university studies in politic science and international relations. This path had lead me to further studies in human rights. I have been working at the UN in Geneva and undertook an internship at Human Rights Watch in New York. I also became president of the World Federation of the Deaf Youth Section where my network and knowledge about how to work in an international environment were an huge benefit.

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WHERE?Frontrunners is placed at Castberggård in the Danish countryside.

Denmark is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, it is southwest of Swe-den and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany.

The country consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, of which around 70 are inhabited. The islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. Denmark covers an area of 43,094 square kilometres and a population of 5,699,220.

Danes enjoy a high standard of living and the country ranks highly in numerous comparisons of national performance, including education, health care, pro-tection of civil liberties, democratic governance, prosperity and human devel-opment. Denmark is frequently ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world in cross-national studies of happiness.

The country ranks as having the world’s highest social mo-bility, a high level of income equality, has one of the world’s highest per capita incomes, and has one of the world’s highest personal income tax rates.

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FACILITIESFrontrunners headquarter at Castberggård offers many facilities including:

* Modern video equipment

* A Gym

* A hall with a climbing wall

* Beautiful surroundings with nature trails

* Cozy livingrooms

* Outdoor equipment such as mountainbikes, kayaks and climbing equipment

* A creative kitchen

* Free wifi

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SHORT FACTSWhen?September 2016 – June 2017

Where?Denmark, Castberggård

Who can participate?Deaf People aged above 18 years. No more than 2 applicants from each country can be accepted.

How to apply? Click here and read more about the application procedure.

Financial information66.500 DKK (board and lodging included)

Language:International Signs

MEET THE TEACHERS

Filip Bergmann Verhelst

Outi Toura-Jensen

Ole Vestergaard

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JOIN US AT FRONTRUNNERS.DK