Immersing himself in languages, senior Travis Mendonca sets his phone to Spanish and is the president of the American Sign Language Club. He is currently taking Spanish 5 and ASL 3 and he hopes to teach others that language shouldn’t be a barrier, but instead a way to connect with others.

Mendonca became interested in ASL when he was in elementary school, and promised himself he would take ASL in high school. Not only did he take the class, but joined former student Cebrina Malone to create the first ASL club at Cedar Park.

Mendonca said that he thought other students should have access to learning the language through this club.

“ASL is a very visual language allowing you to be able to deeply explain a thought,” Mendonca said. “While at times it is harder to convey your message correctly, as you learn the language further, you can truly explain the depth of a thought or message and display it in front of you so the person you’re conversing with can understand the complexity of your message and it isn’t as dry and vague as english is sometimes.”

Initially, Mendonca wished to be a veterinarian, but after his first experience with ASL, he decided he would like to be an interpreter. He plans to go to ACC first to get his hours to become an ASL interpreter and Spanish interpreter, and then transfer to Lamar University. Mendonca said that he is thinking of majoring in linguistics, so it will cover both ASL and Spanish.

“I don’t really know why I got into learning different languages,” Mendonca said. “I think different cultures are intriguing and I think we need to get out of our comfort zones a little bit sometimes and see the world from someone else’s point of view.”

Mendonca said that he wants not only to connect with people of different backgrounds, but also show people that a lack of fluency in English should not be a barrier.

“[We need to] stop ostracizing and alienating people because of something as trivial as where they were born or if they don’t speak the same language as you,” Mendonca said. “Maybe, America, you should start learning someone else’s language instead of forcing [others] to learn english and ridiculing them when they don’t speak with 100 percent fluidity.”

This summer Mendonca is going on a two week long trip to Spain with a few CP Spanish students and a Leander student.

“I’m excited to learn their different ways of life and food and culture [that] they have going on over there,” Mendonca said. “I’m also trying to learn Portuguese so I can communicate with a larger group of people, and see the differences Portuguese and Brazilian people have compared to each other and other Spanish speaking countries. And by learning Portuguese, I’d be able to speak to the entirety of Central and South America, how cool is that?”

Eventually, Mendonca plans on going back to his roots and visiting India once more.

“My dad is from India so I have been to India about three or four times, not as much as I would like, but being connected with family all around the world has led me to understand that people from all different backgrounds are beautiful, and the ways they are living are just as ‘correct’ as our own,” Mendonca said. “Because of this, I really strive to understand other cultures and I like to try new things because this American casserole filled lifestyle isn’t the only one out there.”