Q&A With Bowling’s Morgan Gitlitz
Sep 23, 2022 | Women's Bowling
TulaneGreenWave.com is featuring junior bowler Morgan Gitlitz in the first of a two-part Question and Answer session. The first part is focused on Morgan being one of two Tulane students to sign the national anthem at the Tulane football game against Alcorn State. Our questions and her answers are below.
TGW: You signed the national anthem to the crowd at Saturday's football game against Alcorn State on September 10, was that the largest crowd that you have signed in front of?
MG: Yes, it was! This was actually the first opportunity that I had to sign in front of a live crowd. Most of the time when I sign, it is just in front of my peers or my classmates.
TGW: How did you come to perform the national anthem?
MG: The opportunity came about from mine and my friend Carina's American Sign Language (ASL) teacher. After we had approached her about starting a Tulane ASL Club during our freshmen and sophomore years, she told us about this cool opportunity where we could be the first group to sign the national anthem at the football game. We are currently working on introducing the club to others in the future so Tulane can have the same shared experience.
TGW: When did you first begin learning sign language and how did it become something that you were interested in doing?
MG: Officially, I started taking classes during my freshman year of college. Although, when I was in high school, I started to initially learn and dabble in it. There was a deaf student at my high school and his interrupter started an ASL Club, so I had my initial introduction to sign language then, but I really didn't start delving into the language and truly learning about it until college.
TGW: You are also the co-president of the Tulane American Sign Language Club, explain to us how you came up with the idea to start the club?
MG: Carina and I started with the idea that there wasn't a lot of current availability in American Sign Language classes on the Tulane campus. When we started, there were only two classes with 20 seats in each. We felt that starting a club would allow more people the opportunity to be exposed to American Sign language and become involved. Karina and I were lucky in that we were able to take the class as a freshman, but we wanted to start an environment where students didn't have to take it and learn strictly in a classroom. We wanted to have a place where the community could start to learn sign language and about deaf culture without it being mandated. There are no tests or quizzes with the club. It just a group of people that have an interest. We have discussions, presentations, and learning opportunities. It is an all-inclusive, welcoming environment.
TGW: How often does the club meet?
MG: As a new club, we are starting our meetings in October and it will be bi-weekly. Our meetings will fluctuate between hands-on teaching opportunities, guest speakers, and presentations. I am doing a presentation on different sign languages around the world. Our goal is to simply create an environment where deaf culture can be taught and learned.
TGW: How does sign languages differ around the world?
MG: American Sign Language is based off the way English is spoken here, but if you are in another country such as Russia, sign language there is based off their individual language. Countries around the world have different ways that they talk based on their alphabet, vowels, symbols, and grammar structure.
TGW: Tell us more about how those interested can join the Tulane ASL Club?
MG: Our club is on Wave Sync. If someone is interested, they can sign up and be added to the email list to receive a message telling all the particulars of where and when about our first meeting next month. We also have an Instagram account @TulaneASLClub where people can direct message us to learn more.
TGW: With September being National Deaf Awareness Month, what does the month mean to you?
MG: I think that although I am currently involved with the deaf community through the ASL Club and signing at the football game did help bring awareness, there is so much more that I personally need to learn about to improve my understanding of deaf culture. I feel inclusivity is a very important topic and this month helps shine the spotlight on the areas that we need to fix and the things that we need to do better to make it so the campus is more welcoming for the deaf population in the future.
Tulane's bowling team begins the 2022-23 season from Oct. 7-9 at the Rattler Classic in Pensacola, Fla. The program then returns home to host the Colonial Lanes Classic from Oct. 14-16 in Harahan at Colonial Lanes from Oct. 14-16. The program plays in a total of 10 regular season tournaments this season. The regular season finishes for the Green Wave with the Southland Bowling League Championships from March 24-26 in Rowlett, Texas. Last season, Tulane was defeated by eventual 2022 Southland Bowling League champion Vanderbilt in the opening round of the double elimination tournament, beat eventual NCAA runner-up Stephen F. Austin in the second round before falling to NCAA Tournament-bound Arkansas State to end the team's run. Six of the eight schools in the conference were able to secure NCAA bids last season/ The NCAA Championship Regionals will be played April 8-9 at a site that has yet to be announced. The NCAA Championships are being compete from April 14-15 in Las Vegas at the South Point Bowling Plaza.
Tulane's bowling team finished the 2022 season ranked No. 19 in RPI and had an overall record of 57-47. The program won the Southwest Intercollegiate Conference Tournament in the fall and qualified for a berth in the Intercollegiate Team Championships in the spring. The team saw Madison McCall named an Honorable Mention All-American by the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA). It was the sixth straight year that Tulane has seen a member of its bowling team honored by the NTCA. The program also had seven individuals honored with places on the 2022 Academic Honor Roll for the Southland Conference (Crystal Singh, Veronica Petrinec, Jenica Baron, Amelia Vasquez, Gitlitz, Yarelis Alvarez and Katharina Mente). The program also had two All-Conference performers as McCall was Second Team All-Southland Conference, while Mente was chosen for the All-Rookie Team. Additionally last season, Jenica Baron was chosen as the American Athletic Conference's Community Impact Award Recipient.
Follow Tulane bowling on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, All-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
TGW: You signed the national anthem to the crowd at Saturday's football game against Alcorn State on September 10, was that the largest crowd that you have signed in front of?
MG: Yes, it was! This was actually the first opportunity that I had to sign in front of a live crowd. Most of the time when I sign, it is just in front of my peers or my classmates.
TGW: How did you come to perform the national anthem?
MG: The opportunity came about from mine and my friend Carina's American Sign Language (ASL) teacher. After we had approached her about starting a Tulane ASL Club during our freshmen and sophomore years, she told us about this cool opportunity where we could be the first group to sign the national anthem at the football game. We are currently working on introducing the club to others in the future so Tulane can have the same shared experience.
TGW: When did you first begin learning sign language and how did it become something that you were interested in doing?
MG: Officially, I started taking classes during my freshman year of college. Although, when I was in high school, I started to initially learn and dabble in it. There was a deaf student at my high school and his interrupter started an ASL Club, so I had my initial introduction to sign language then, but I really didn't start delving into the language and truly learning about it until college.
TGW: You are also the co-president of the Tulane American Sign Language Club, explain to us how you came up with the idea to start the club?
MG: Carina and I started with the idea that there wasn't a lot of current availability in American Sign Language classes on the Tulane campus. When we started, there were only two classes with 20 seats in each. We felt that starting a club would allow more people the opportunity to be exposed to American Sign language and become involved. Karina and I were lucky in that we were able to take the class as a freshman, but we wanted to start an environment where students didn't have to take it and learn strictly in a classroom. We wanted to have a place where the community could start to learn sign language and about deaf culture without it being mandated. There are no tests or quizzes with the club. It just a group of people that have an interest. We have discussions, presentations, and learning opportunities. It is an all-inclusive, welcoming environment.
TGW: How often does the club meet?
MG: As a new club, we are starting our meetings in October and it will be bi-weekly. Our meetings will fluctuate between hands-on teaching opportunities, guest speakers, and presentations. I am doing a presentation on different sign languages around the world. Our goal is to simply create an environment where deaf culture can be taught and learned.
TGW: How does sign languages differ around the world?
MG: American Sign Language is based off the way English is spoken here, but if you are in another country such as Russia, sign language there is based off their individual language. Countries around the world have different ways that they talk based on their alphabet, vowels, symbols, and grammar structure.
TGW: Tell us more about how those interested can join the Tulane ASL Club?
MG: Our club is on Wave Sync. If someone is interested, they can sign up and be added to the email list to receive a message telling all the particulars of where and when about our first meeting next month. We also have an Instagram account @TulaneASLClub where people can direct message us to learn more.
TGW: With September being National Deaf Awareness Month, what does the month mean to you?
MG: I think that although I am currently involved with the deaf community through the ASL Club and signing at the football game did help bring awareness, there is so much more that I personally need to learn about to improve my understanding of deaf culture. I feel inclusivity is a very important topic and this month helps shine the spotlight on the areas that we need to fix and the things that we need to do better to make it so the campus is more welcoming for the deaf population in the future.
Tulane's bowling team begins the 2022-23 season from Oct. 7-9 at the Rattler Classic in Pensacola, Fla. The program then returns home to host the Colonial Lanes Classic from Oct. 14-16 in Harahan at Colonial Lanes from Oct. 14-16. The program plays in a total of 10 regular season tournaments this season. The regular season finishes for the Green Wave with the Southland Bowling League Championships from March 24-26 in Rowlett, Texas. Last season, Tulane was defeated by eventual 2022 Southland Bowling League champion Vanderbilt in the opening round of the double elimination tournament, beat eventual NCAA runner-up Stephen F. Austin in the second round before falling to NCAA Tournament-bound Arkansas State to end the team's run. Six of the eight schools in the conference were able to secure NCAA bids last season/ The NCAA Championship Regionals will be played April 8-9 at a site that has yet to be announced. The NCAA Championships are being compete from April 14-15 in Las Vegas at the South Point Bowling Plaza.
Tulane's bowling team finished the 2022 season ranked No. 19 in RPI and had an overall record of 57-47. The program won the Southwest Intercollegiate Conference Tournament in the fall and qualified for a berth in the Intercollegiate Team Championships in the spring. The team saw Madison McCall named an Honorable Mention All-American by the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA). It was the sixth straight year that Tulane has seen a member of its bowling team honored by the NTCA. The program also had seven individuals honored with places on the 2022 Academic Honor Roll for the Southland Conference (Crystal Singh, Veronica Petrinec, Jenica Baron, Amelia Vasquez, Gitlitz, Yarelis Alvarez and Katharina Mente). The program also had two All-Conference performers as McCall was Second Team All-Southland Conference, while Mente was chosen for the All-Rookie Team. Additionally last season, Jenica Baron was chosen as the American Athletic Conference's Community Impact Award Recipient.
Follow Tulane bowling on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, All-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
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