Aireyonah Crockett
About Me
My name is Aireyonah Eileen Crockett, but call me Airey. I grew up oral and hard of hearing (as a baby), with limited access to communication that felt natural or without burden. I was born and raised in Spokane, Washington, where ASL appeared in my life at different moments but was not consistently accessible to me. For much of my early life, decisions about my language access were made for me.
Education
As I got older and gained more control over my own access, I returned to ASL on my own terms. I began formally learning ASL in community college, where language finally became something that felt shared, visual, and grounded in community rather than effort and exhaustion. That experience shaped not only how I use ASL, but how I understand access, identity, and learning. My approach to teaching ASL is deeply informed by that journey. I am attentive to students who are new to visual language, who may feel unsure, or who are still learning what accessible communication looks like. I teach ASL as a living language connected to people, culture, and responsibility to the Deaf community—not just vocabulary or grammar.
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As an educator, I value visual clarity, respect for Deaf norms, and creating learning spaces where students can grow without fear of making mistakes. As a Deaf person, I value knowing that people are learning about my culture not just as an abstract understanding. As a member of a language- and culture-rich community, teaching ASL is meaningful to me because I know what it is like to lack access, and I believe language education can and should open doors rather than close them.
Experience
As an educator, I value visual clarity, respect for Deaf norms, and creating learning spaces where students can grow without fear of making mistakes. As a Deaf person, I value knowing that people are learning about my culture not just as an abstract understanding but as real as we are standing in from of the students in the classroom. Teaching ASL is meaningful to me because I know what it is like to lack access, and I believe language education can and should open doors rather than close them.