Deaf with a capital D and proud of it!

It is with this attitude that Trevolin Pillay will walk over the stage this week to be capped with a BSc Honours degree in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at Stellenbosch University’s (SU) December graduation ceremonies.

Born profoundly deaf, Trevolin belongs to the Deaf community in South Africa – a group with a unique culture, primary language (South African Sign Language or SASL), and identity. 

While he describes himself as “just a simple Deaf person from Chatsworth, KwaZulu-Natal”, he is also determined to break the barriers of communication between the deaf and hearing in this world.

View his message to the Deaf (and hearing) community here.

In this quest, he has his loving parents – Sagren and Sureshnee – and elder brother Veolin to thank for their support, as well as a solid education at Fulton School for the Deaf in Gillits in KwaZulu-Natal: “I was top learner in all the grades and received many awards, including the DUX award,” he writes in an email.

After school he made history as one of the first group of six Deaf students to have completed a bachelor’s degree in IT at Belgium Campus iTversity – and the first Deaf student to achieve it magna cum laude: “There were good resources and materials for the deaf students, as well as good SASL interpreters to support us to achieve our goals and graduate,” he explains.

Arriving at SU at the start of 2025, however, Trevolin found himself to be the only Deaf person around: “My schooling and undergraduate studies were always with other Deaf students. I had to learn to adapt to this new environment. Slowly I started enjoying being independent and roaming around the place.”

Welcoming Trevolin during those first days were Rahkeenah Peterson, administrative assistant at the Centre for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Only four months earlier she had completed a beginner’s course in SASL: “The day Trevolin walked into my office, I was able to greet him, sign my name, and ask him how he was doing. I also asked for his sign name. Throughout the year, he came to my office with various enquiries, and in most cases, I was able to understand him. I also learned from him – whenever I signed something incorrectly, he kindly corrected me.”

For his supervisor, Dr Lenine Liebenberg from the Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation (CERI), working with Trevolin has been “one of the most humbling and rewarding experiences” of her academic career”.

She explains: “As a team, we made a conscious effort to create an inclusive environment —encouraging the use of SASL apps, speech-to-text tools, and WhatsApp messaging for real-time communication, and promoting SASL training. We were also fortunate to be supported by SU’s sign language interpreters, Trudie Theunnissen and Marsanne Neethling, who joined our meetings and worked closely with Trevy as he prepared for academic presentations.” 

What stood out most for her, however, was Trevolin’s determination: “He entered a space that was mostly new to him—both biologically and computationally—and engaged it with courage and grace. By the end of the year, not only had he developed strong bioinformatics skills, but he had also gained a deep understanding of human papillomavirus, its role in cervical cancer, and a practical understanding of the tools used to study viral dynamics.

“Personally, this year taught me important lessons in patience, awareness, and the lived realities of the Deaf community. I am acutely aware of the power of intentional inclusion—not only for the student, but for everyone in the room.”

For SASL interpreter, Trudie Theunissen, it is important that Deaf students know that they can and should expect proper academic access from the beginning of their studies: “Many Deaf students aren’t always aware that they have the right to professional SASL interpreting, accessible learning materials, and equal participation in academic spaces. 

“It’s also important to know that working with interpreters is a partnership. When the university, lecturers, and interpreters communicate openly, the process becomes much smoother. Simple things—like sharing slides in advance —make a huge difference,” she adds.

Finally, every Deaf student should know that needing an interpreter doesn’t put them at a disadvantage academically. With proper access, Deaf students can thrive in any field, even highly specialised areas.

Trevolin’s advice for Deaf students is to “Never Give Up”, even when you lose motivation for your studies: “I was very close to quitting during the first two weeks of my studies after seeing and reading the cell biology materials. I struggled to understand the biology, especially the long and difficult words. Today I am glad that I overcame these odds and never gave up, thanks to my mentor, supervisor and co-supervisors.”

He is also forever thankful towards his mentor, Dr TJ Sanko, an experienced bioinformatician and a postdoctoral fellow at CERI: “He played a crucial role in mentoring me to improve my bioinformatics knowledge and skills, especially some new tricky skills when it comes to coding and running the command line on the High Performance cluster”.

Trevolin encourages Deaf students to create more opportunities for deaf people in the hearing world.

“I’m just a simple Deaf person from Chatsworth, KwaZulu-Natal, who has set his eyes on accomplishing goals – this is who I am.”