Deaf sports student from Cornwall up for national award

A sports student from Cornwall is up for a national award, having proved that deafness is no barrier to talent and ambition.

Imogen Gibbons, 19, has made it to the finals of the Association of Colleges (AOC) Adult Student of the Year Awards 2020-21.

Studying Sports Coaching at Duchy College Stoke Climsland, Imogen is one of only three students to be nominated for the award, which celebrates the achievements of exceptional individuals from colleges across England.

For Duchy College lecturer Stewart May, Imogen’s “attitude, intelligence and work ethic” make her “a standout candidate for this award”.

He said: “Imogen has not only excelled in her studies, but inspired her classmates and our teaching staff.

“Not only has she achieved distinctions in every module, ending up with a distinction, she is now helping other students through her work experience. She is working with Foundation non-verbal learners, assisting as a communication go-between in their lessons, thanks to her knowledge of various forms of sign language and lip reading skills.

“This work is also helping staff with their own CPD, as she is giving them insights in how best to interact with those who have differing challenges around communication, both verbal and non-verbal.”

Imogen said being shortlisted was a real honour. She added: “I was blown away when I discovered I was nominated in the adult student of year category. It was a complete surprise.”

Last year, Imogen began studying at Duchy College, a return to mainstream education for the first time since moving away from Cornwall at aged 13, to attend a specialist deaf boarding school.

She said: “Sport is very important to me, both from a physical and mental health point of view, and I knew I wanted to study it further.

“Having been previously educated at a residential school for the deaf, I was anxious about being in a mainstream college environment. However, the staff have been brilliant and my tutor Stewart May in particular has encouraged and supported me greatly to enable me to achieve my goal.”

As an accomplished footballer and member of the football team in St Agnes, Cornwall, Imogen discovered the world of futsal in her mid-teens. She is part of the English Deaf futsal team and will be attending the World Cup in Portugal next year.

“The standards Imogen has set herself, despite her seeming limitations, are inspirational in themselves. Rather than getting by, she is leading the way and inspiring those around her,” said Stewart.

“Imogen is hoping to go to university to study sports coaching and we have no doubt she will excel at anything she puts her mind to.”

The AOC awards will be announced on February 8 during the Association of Colleges’ Annual Conference.

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