Colin Denny (Center) at the 2016 American Indian Higher Education Consortium’s Student Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Diné College alumnus Colin Denny performed at Super Bowl 57
16 Feb 2023
TSAILE, AZ — Colin Denny, a Dine College alumni performed “America the Beautiful” in a mix of American Sign Language and North American Indian Sign Language during Super Bowl 57 on Sunday. It’s a sign language interpretation of the song “America the Beautiful” during the Super Bowl pregame show on Sunday. “The performance is an opportunity to show millions of people that North American Indian Sign Language, despite being centuries old, is still here” said Denny.
Colin was born in Shiprock, New Mexico, but grew up in Pinon, Arizona. He was able to hear when he was very young, but his parents, who both teach the Navajo language in public schools, noticed Denny’s hearing loss beginning when he was 5.
Colin attended Diné College in 2014 to 2016 where he studied fine arts with an emphasis in photography. While a student at Diné College, he was selected to represent the Navajo Nation among 35 other Diné College students to compete in the American Indian Higher Education Consortium’s 2016 Student Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Colin performed alongside 8 other students within the Once Act play titled “When the Warriors Were Called Home,” winning First Place among all other 36 Tribal Colleges and Universities across the United States. Regardless of his deafness, it never stopped Colin from engaging and socializing with students in pursuit of his education. He then graduated with his associate degree in 2016 from Diné College and went onto pursing his Bachelor’s in Art and Media Design with two concentrations in Photography and Graphic Design at Gallaudet University. Colin will be receiving his master’s degree in May of 2023 in American Sign Language Education at Gallaudet University. Gallaudet University is designed for deaf and hard of hearing students as the only private deaf and hard of hearing university at Washington D.C.
As a postsecondary educational institution, Diné College awards Associate degrees, Bachelor’s degrees, and Certificates in areas important to the economic and social development of the Navajo Nation. To comply with the College mission, personalized instruction is guaranteed to each student because of the low student-faculty ratio. All are welcome to apply.
