In the wake of the recent RI flooding, we have seen local small business drown to death.  Literally.  Hundreds of small business owners lost much of their livelihood to historic flooding that shut down business and flooded homes.  It made me stop to think of how fortunate we are as interpreters to make our living off of a set of skills rather than selling merchandise.  We always talk about adding to our interpreter "tool belts", unlike other professions our tools can't rust or get washed away.  Elizabeth Nadolski, an RI RID interpreter recently said, "We may not be getting the best hours, but we are still getting work."  We have an incredible job of bridging communication and communities, a job that we cannot take for granted in times like these.  As the rivers calmed and the Warwick Mall gets a make over, we will still be empty handed showing up for jobs.  Our hands may be empty but our minds holding tight to our tool belts ready to build the bridge that sustains our profession.  


Hayley J.

Since RI doesn't have a state screening, RI interpreters-to-be have some choices to make on how to become a licensed interpreter.  One could be state screened, maybe in Mass.  I took the state screening in Illinois and thought it was time to take it to the next level.  I sat for the performance portion of the NIC in early February.  Like many other interpreters who are new to the field, everyday I wake up and think, "Today's the day I'll get my results, I'll be nationally certified!"  But it's not the day.  I feel like an adolecent anticipating the first day of Summer.  The only difference is that my Summer doesn't have a definitive starting date.  My Summer also isn't sent in an e-mail.  Maybe Summer isn't the best comparision, but in any case, I'm excited to get my results.  Legend has it that wait times for NIC results were up to a year.  Legend also has it that wait times went down to less than a month.  In the mean time, I cross my fingers everytime I get a new e-mail.  It just makes me think about all of the other tests being processed at RID.  Granted, not everyone passes the NIC.  It is encouraging to think about all of the other interpreters who have degrees that are getting nationally certified right now.  With every person that passes the test, the bar for our profession is raised just a little bit.  I can wait a few more days or weeks as our profession grows.  And yes, I'll worry that my work was sent to dozens of raters all around North America. For now, I'll blog.


Hayley J.


Editors note:
A few days after writing my draft of this blog, I received my NIC results.  

Want to get involved with the nomination process for RID's Region I conference?  Below is an e-mail from Jackie Emmart inviting you to do so.  


CALL FOR RID REGION I AWARD NOMINATIONS 





Region I Conference

August 13-15, 2010

Albany , NY

Conference Web sitehttp://www.vtrid.org/region1conf.htm

Conference Co-Chairs

Kelly Decker:kelly.lee.decker@gmail.com

Trudy Gilbert: trugilb@aol.com

RID Region I Web page





Dear Interpreters and Interpreting Students of RID Region I:

Please take this opportunity to recognize interpreters and interpreter educators in Region I who have played a significant role in your communities or affiliate chapters, and/or in your own and others' professional development. The RID Region I Awards Committee is currently soliciting nominations for outstanding practitioners and teachers in the first two categories listed below. It has been eight years since Region I awards were last presented, and much important work has been accomplished in our field in Region I during that time. Don't let this opportunity pass by without extending some well-deserved recognition to our fellow members!

NOTE: The DEADLINE for nominations has been extended to MAY 1, 2010.

2010 Region I Conference
Call for Award Nominees

1- Outstanding Service Award
Awarded to a voting member who, during the course of her or his career, has contributed an outstanding level of service to the field.
Letters of nomination should include a detailed description of contributions to the field of interpreting, to RID/affiliate chapters, and/or to the Deaf community.

2- The Betsy Reifman Interpreter Educator Award
ElizaBeth (Betsy) M. Reifman (March 21,1953 - October 9, 2008) was a well-respected interpreting colleague and a leader who carried tremendous passion for learning, for the art of interpreting and for teaching others. She spent over 25 years of her career perfecting her interpreting and teaching skills. Betsy dedicated much of her time to creating learning opportunities for experienced and novice interpreters, particularly in the study of ethics and legal interpreting, bringing state of the art trainings to the northeast region. She was always a collaborator in all areas of her personal and professional life. No matter what interpreting assignment, project, leadership or teaching opportunity came her way, Betsy was always ready to listen, offer advice and support, as well as brighten any work with her positive personality, humor and grace. Even in the final weeks of her life, she was planning for an introductory legal interpreting workshop. Most of all, Betsy was loved and deeply respected by her family, interpreting colleagues, teachers, Deaf people, and students. Her exuberance for life, for the field of interpreting and for teaching will be missed the most. Yet, the legacy of her work and teaching will live on in the seeds she planted along the way.

This award will be granted to a voting member who has shaped the profession of interpreting by touching the lives of students, or other interpreters, in a significant way in the past four years (2006 - 2010). Letters of nomination should include a detailed description of contributions to students'/interpreters' learning, in any of the following ways: in the classroom, through formal and informal mentoring or teaching workshops, and/or through the administration of programs related to interpreting.

3- Best Web site Award
Awarded to an RID Affiliate Chapter in Region I for their incredible Web site, that represents their chapter in a professional, organized and visually appealing manner. Their Web site should provide effortless navigation and a great resource for interpreters, consumers and the general public via its content and links. The award will be chosen by a panel of judges well-versed in Web site design.

No nominations are necessary. All affiliate chapter's Web sites will be considered.

Deadline for submissions: May 1, 2010


All submissions and any additional questions regarding nominations may be submitted to Lynette Reep at lreep@uvm.edu. These submissions may be in a written or video format.

Please include the following information with your letter:

• Nominee's Name
• Address
• Phone
• E-mail address
• Nominated By:
• Name
• Address
• Phone
• E-mail address
  

Sending my best,

Jackie

Jacqueline A. Emmart, M.S., NIC Advanced 
Region I Representative 
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf 


333 Commerce Street 
Alexandria , VA 22314

617-733-8642 Direct (voice) 
703-838-0030 RID National Office (voice) 
703-838-0454 (fax) 
region1rep@rid.org 
www.rid.org 
  
Excellence    Education    Standards

Interpreters from all over the east coast traveled to Providence for TERPexpo this past weekend.  As a new interpreter, I have a love/hate relationship with workshops.  I love learning new information, I hate realizing I have a a long way to go.  This love roller coaster didn't seem like such a long ride when a few presenters used an arts integrated approach to their topics.  Peter Cook and Crom Saunders applied Acting I and improv lessons to teach interpreters how to better understand Characterization and describe the indescribable.  Not only did we learn how to broaden our ASL skills, but there was a feeling of openness and acceptance amongst the group.  I also noticed that the idea of "Yes, and...." can be useful with teaming.  In improv, everyone needs to contribute ideas and accept ideas equally to keep the story flowing and funny.  So if I was leading my group in one direction for an improv skit and another person took the lead, they would transition by accepting my story so far ("Yes"), then adding their own spin ("...and...").  I worked with Curtiss, another RI interpreter, to become an inanimate object with a personality.  Our creation of an exhausted treadmill needed quite a few "Yes, and..." moments.  We ended up creating a vivid relationship between a treadmill and an enthusiastic runner.  I can see this technique working well with teaming.  After all, it is two cast members sharing the same goal to keep the story flowing.  

I stumbled upon DeafDoc's people at a DeafExpo in Chicago a few years back.  I thought it was a bunch of hearing people awkwardly signing SICK, HOSPITAL, and VOMIT.  Boy, was I wrong.  What they developed was a pretty extensive medical resource for Deaf people, interpreters and hearing health care professionals.  


Here's a sampling from www.deafdoc.org from their page titled, "Health Care Providers: How to Evaluate Interpreters"


Clear and unfettered communication is a vital first step in establishing an effective and safe provider—patient relationship.

How many of you have experienced a situation where you ask a patient a question through an interpreter.  The interpreter and patient seem to go back and forth for quite some time, finally, the interpreter says, “yes (or no).” 

This situation creates a dilemma for the health care provider, AND for the patient!  You, the provider did not understand what just took place, and the patient is not sure if the interpreter accurately represented what you just asked.  You also can not effectively evaluate the interpreter or the communication process......

This site touches upon various areas in medical interpreting including, turn taking, jargon, and payment. DeafDoc.org paired with our standard practice papers could be a winning pair if you find yourself at a loss for words in an interpreting situation.  



Hayley J.

RI RID needed a face lift, so what did we do? 

Added board members....check!
Colorful newsletter....check!
Updated website....check!
Trendy blog...um check?

Our new blog is way to connect people to RI RID's real membership.  Sure we post information about conferences and workshops, but do we go?  We post about things happening in RI, but what do we think? 


Our first blog will give a kind nod to a fellow interpreter showcasing his work on YouTube.  Eric Witteborg, or Ewitteborg as he's known on YouTube is getting lots of hits, and rightfully so.  Ewitteborg shows some of his interpretations of songs in English and Spanish, and stories about being a CODA.  I've laughed, I've cried, I've tried to make my face move like his.  I'd like to share one of his recent posts showing how dynamic ASL really is.  He uses a few handshapes in this interpretation basically to show how awesome ASL.  His more articulate reasons are posted below his video at http://www.youtube.com/user/ewitteborg#p/u/3/t3JIL_IW7Rg 

Enjoy and tune in soon to see what else is going on with RI RID!

Thanks!
Hayley J.