Ellen is originally from New York City, where she spent the first 30 years of her life. After living for brief periods of time in St. Louis, MO, and Charlottesville, VA, she moved to Philadelphia, which is now her home. Upon moving to Philadelphia, Ellen was able to be at home while she raised her daughters, Stephanie and Jessica. Stephanie is a chef, and Jessica is about to get her degree in English communications.

Ellen has a B.S. in Education, and taught English as a second language for the NYC public schools in the late sixties. She then received her master's degree in library science from Queens College in New York. When her daughters were in the upper grades, she took a part-time position at the Philadelphia Zoo, where she ran the library, wrote descriptive signs, and edited the zoo's publications. Following budget cutbacks at the zoo, Ellen moved to Wildlife Preservation Trust International, a Philadelphia-based conservation organization, and was responsible for writing and editing the newsletter and writing grant proposals.

Ellen moved to her current position of translation manager at Thomson Scientific nine years ago, when the company was known as Institute for Scientific Information. She has been a member of ATA and TCD for six years.

From Ellen: I joined the ATA after I had worked in the translation field for about two years. I was new to the translation business and felt ill-equipped to provide a superior service to the clients of Thomson Scientific. Upon going to my first meeting, especially the TCD meetings, I realized I had found a place for myself. I have found my association with ATA/TCD to be valuable in both support from my peers and sharing new information, problems, and trends. I was appreciative of the offer to participate in TCD as Assistant Administrator, and especially working with Kim Vitray, because I believe very strongly in TCD's role within ATA. Over the next two years, I hope that Kim and I can encourage the participation of more TCD members. I also believe that future success for all of us depends on encouraging close relationships with the freelance translators within ATA. The freelance translators and companies have a symbiotic relationship, and I would like to see stronger ties developed in the future so that we can all work to our mutual benefit.