About 30 American Sign Language students learned how to sign “The Star-Spangled Banner” and performed at the men’s basketball game Wednesday.

“I told (the students), ‘No matter what, just sign confidently,’” said Belsky, who is deaf and used e-mail to communicate. “Even if they make a mistake, no one will know as long as they just keep signing.”

Creative writing senior Tim Cerullo said he wasn’t nervous about performing in front of thousands of people after continually practicing his signs.

“When (Belsky) first announced it, I was nervous because we had only gone over the national anthem once or twice before Christmas break,” Cerullo said. “Most of us are pretty confident now.”

While none of the 30 students who signed the national anthem are hard of hearing, Roy Del Valle, a specialist in MSU’s Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities, or RCPD, said MSU’s deaf community is expected to increase after a new university program was announced in January.

“We are expecting numbers to continue to grow with the new living/learning experience in Snyder-Phillips in fall 2008,” Del Valle said.

There are 22 students on campus who consider themselves deaf or hard of hearing, Del Valle said. Two of the students utilize MSU and RCPD interpreters.

Del Valle said other students prefer different resources to interpreters, including real-time captioning, FM systems and preferential seating in the classroom.

Depending on how much the deaf community increases in the coming years, the center will have to expand the services and technology offered to students who are hard of hearing, Del Valle said.