'It's inspiring': Students at Wisconsin School for the Deaf share Alaqua Cox's impact

 

DELEVAN, Wis. (CBS 58) – Marvel Studio's newest superhero miniseries premiered earlier this month.

Echo on Disney+ centers around Maya Lopez, a deaf woman with a prosthetic leg, as she connects with her indigenous roots.

The lead actress, 26-year-old Alaqua Cox is from Wisconsin's Menominee Indian Reservation.

She spent her teenage years in Delevan at Wisconsin School for the Deaf.

"She was very outgoing, very expressive, and pretty blunt. She wasn't shy to speak her mind," said teacher, Heather Martens.

Martens was Cox's volleyball coach in 2014 and 2015. She said Cox was a great team player, despite the challenges she faced.

"Before that, I didn't have any experience with anyone that is an amputee, so she taught me a lot, and I was not to treat her any different," Martens said.

Cox's teachers didn't expect her to become an actress, but she fits her role perfectly.

"Being an amputee, deaf and hard of hearing, indigenous; it was amazing that they were able to find somebody who encompassed all of that," Martens said.

"I thought it was amazing," said Jonah Janke, a senior at Wisconsin School for the Deaf.

The students from her former school call Cox a role model.

"Just seeing her has inspired me to improve myself and motivate myself for bigger goals than what I had," said senior, Jonah Meyer.

The students said the show brings more public awareness of the deaf community.

"She was representing that we can do anything, we can communicate, we can do anything that we want, and it's inspiring," said senior, Amber Kahn.

Cox's success serves as proof that people like her can break barriers.

"I'm just proud of her," Martens said.