I think people hear the title of this class and think that it is some kind of a "filler" (probably because they don't take disability studies seriously, but I digress). Do NOT be fooled. It is very difficult. This class has a lot of reading, which you really had to do if you wanted to participate. CK is clearly very intelligent and passionate about his field, which I respect, but he can sometimes come off as condescending. The class feels more like an English class than anything, and the writing assignments are very harshly graded, so be warned if that's not what you're looking for.

This class is very informative and interesting. You'll learn a lot that will stick in your mind and can be applied to other things. I enjoyed the material a lot. I like Professor Krentz as a person, but he is a little annoyingly picky with grading and the reading is a lot. If you want to read all of it and truly understand it, it'll take you a while, but most people in my class skimmed it. If you're confident in your essay writing abilities, you'll do fine on them. If you're not, make sure you give yourself extra time to edit, because he grades writing a little harshly. The exams are annoyingly specific and it's hard to feel truly prepared for them. Make sure you do well on other assignments so you can buffer a few bad ones.
Overall, very interesting, a little annoying and demanding, but not super miserable. #tCFspring22 #tCFspring2022

This course is eye-opening, to say the least. The class is structured as a discussion that you NEED to take detailed notes during or else you'll struggle when studying. Don't be fooled into thinking you don't need to read bc it's a discussion. I found the reading to be a lot throughout the semester as a premedical student with other classes I prioritized more. You are assigned maybe 2-4 readings per class that can range between 9 and 30 pages. There are quizzes that are rather easy if you do your reading and note-taking but Krentz is very strict when it comes to wording. Might take off points for something he didn't phrase as your answer exactly in class. There are also papers you need to write, be very careful not to write them the night before or you will score poorly. There is one 20-minute presentation that is a piece of cake if you do it right. It is SUPER hard to get a good score in this class needless to say...

This class changed my perspective of what a community was. It also made me realize that just as important as society treats minority groups is how minority groups view themselves. Classes are discussions based on the reading assignments of that week. It's not too challenging. One midterm, one group project, one 7 page paper on a topic of your choosing in deaf history, and a final (with a similar format to the midterm). Even though it is a history class, dates and specific tiny facts are not emphasized. This course is fairly big-picture. Some of the readings are very interesting and some were dull. Professor Krentz is very nice and really wants to get to know each student on a personal level and cares that the class has good comradery. It was also fun to watch the sign-language interpreter translate our words into sign for him. Krentz speaks very well and can lip-read pretty well yet takes great pride in his deafness. And this class will show you why.
I took this first semester of my first year at UVA just to get the history requirement our of the way, and my expectations were surpassed.