By Sandra Dejeux and Marco Hanson Houston Sandra Dejeux: For years, I had thought that court interpreter training to prepare for state and federal exams was essential, but not enough. We needed more. Texas was in dire need of a comprehensive course that went beyond the six-hour orientation required by the state to qualify candidates for testing. The goal would be to help … [Read more...]
Vicarious trauma and interpreters
By Cristina Helmerichs The first time I heard of interpreters experiencing vicarious trauma was in 2000. First it was mentioned in relation to the interpreters working during a trial related to the Balkan Wars at the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. But the idea was quickly expanded to include all interpreters working directly with victims of crime and/or … [Read more...]
Conference or court interpretation: Combining specializations
By Esther M. Hermida This article is written from the perspective of a Spanish<>English interpreter, for US court and conference interpreters who, while comfortable in their respective niches, might be curious, or even actively looking into combining the two. There are many interpreters who have successfully done so. There is an undeniable appeal to conferences: the … [Read more...]
Request for pro bono interpreters in NYC
Dear interpreter colleagues, This request was forwarded to the ataTalk mailing list and we thought it could be of interest to anyone willing to volunteer in the NYC metro area. Additionally, with input from several colleagues, we compiled a list of organizations that are looking for pro bono interpreters and/or translators. Please help us make this list as comprehensive and up … [Read more...]
Report: Compensation of Court Interpreters in the State of New York
The knowledge, skills and abilities needed to perform the job of court interpreting are grueling. Staff and freelance interpreters nationwide have been struggling to improve their pay, benefits and working conditions without much success. Therefore, our colleagues Sandro Tomasi, Mary Lou Aranguren, Milena Calderari-Waldron and Robert Joe Lee took a new approach. They wrote a … [Read more...]