Not again
It was a shame the university failed to a provide an interpreter for its deaf and hard-of-hearing students at January's speech by the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
But fortunately, the university is trying to make sure something like that never happens again.
Dean of Students Bruce Roscoe said in a Friday story that a formal policy, which would make it mandatory for interpreters to be at all large university events, is being drafted for University President Michael Rao's consideration later this month.
This is a great idea, and it should immediately be put into effect once it lands on Rao's desk.
It's not like it's going to cause a big inconvenience to anyone. And it certainly won't greatly affect CMU's budget.
Friday's story reported that it costs about $40 an hour to compensate an interpreter for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. That's not much for events that rarely exceed a couple of hours.
This policy should be approved and there should be interpreters on hand for all upcoming major events, including April speeches by retired Gen. Wesley Clark, Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough and former World Wrestling Entertainment athlete Mick Foley.
What happened in January should never have happened. Bob Ebner, director of university events, was right to say in Friday's story that failing to have an interpreter at Jackson's speech was humiliating.
But with a simple signature from Rao, it doesn't have to happen again.
