KEYNOTE: Thriving at Work: Connecting, Exploring, and Discovering (.3 PS CEUs)
Friday, 4/12, 6p-9p
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Betty Colonomos
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Presentation language: ASL, no interpretation
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The field of interpreting is rich and rewarding. That’s the reason many of us came into this field, and have stayed. The work of interpreting can also be complicated and challenging. Often we work alone. We enter new situations where we have never been, and meet people we have never met. Many hearing consumers do not understand the work that we do, and what we need to do our work well.
What do we do when work presents challenges? How do we respond? Are we aware of our resources? Do we know how to acquire new resources? We often feel alone. Do we have to be alone?
The Bilingual Mediation Center, its Director, Betty Colonomos, and its affiliates have decades of experience in supporting interpreters to discover their own strengths, and to empower themselves to chart their own paths forward.
What we have discovered and re-discovered is that one of our greatest resources is each other. Whether we work an assignment alone or with others, we can capitalize on our relationships with other interpreters and consumers. When we have a network of like-minded people to talk to, we can unpack our experiences, and discover new options. We can identify resources to help improve our experience at work. We can seek out opportunities to learn and develop new tools. Most importantly, we can start to see that we are not alone.
If we do not have robust relationships with others, how might we start? If we have relationships, how can we strengthen them? What are the next steps for each of us individually that can lead us to thrive? Come join us, and let’s ask these questions together.
Trauma Informed Interpreting with Ethical Discourse- Pt. 2 (.3 PS CEUs)
Saturday, 4/13, 2p-5p
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Presenters: Heidi Rich & Corinne A. Liedtke
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Presentation language: English, interpretation will be provided
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In this part 2 of Trauma Informed Interpreting with Ethical Discourse we will look at the effects of working within the field of trauma and how as interpreters we must be able to identify burnout and to manage it. We will talk about the power you as the interpreter have as you navigate working in the field. Attendees will have the opportunity to assess their own bias that could affect the decisions they make. Ethical scenarios will be proposed and broken down to find the possible red flags we could encounter. Attendance at parts 1 & 2 strongly encouraged.
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Workshop sponsored by DBHDID
Language Deprivation and Language Dysfluency from Deaf Professionals' Perspectives (.3 PS CEUs)
Sunday, 4/14, 9a-12p
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Presenters: Maryann Barth, Katie Moore, Holly Evans, & Anthony Adkins
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Presentation language: ASL, no interpretation
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Today’s Deaf Community is a diverse community reflecting variations in language acquisition, cultural membership and/or mental health and/or behavior challenges. To serve today’s diverse Deaf Community, interpreters, clinicians, educators, agencies, etc., must be aware, learn and ‘practice’ how to serve this unique population. This workshop will present the following:
a. Awareness of the components of language dysfluency, language deprivation and Language Deprivation Syndrome
b. Awareness of how the above mentioned components impact mental health interpreting and services
c. The ‘how’ (practice) or working with clients who have language dysfluent/language deprivation ranging in age from children through ‘senior’ adulthood.
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Workshop sponsored by DBHDID
Youth Mental Health First Aid (.6 PS CEUs)
Friday, 4/12, 830a- 430p
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Presenters: Allison Paul & Shelly Steiner
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Presentation language: English, interpretation will be provided
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Youth Mental First Aid is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent (aged 12-18) who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in crisis. Youth Mental Health First Aid is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people. The course introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders (including ADHD), and eating disorders.
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Workshop sponsored by DBHDID
Ethical Considerations: Before, during, and after the job?
Saturday, 4/13, 9a-12p
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Presentation language: ASL, no interpretation
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What does it mean to be an interpreter who makes ethical considerations? For some, following a set of prescribed rules ensures always doing the right thing, and always being ethical. What happens when the rules do not apply to the current situation? Is it not possible to be ethical? What if being ethical were not about “following the rules,” but about assessing a situation and making the best available decision? Would we be seen as not “following the rules,” even if our decisions were sound?
We make decisions in every aspect of our work. We can explore our application of ethical decision-making right from the beginning: with the ways we consider accepting - or not accepting - assignments. What factors into our choices? Are we considering our own needs, and the needs of others? Are we considering how we will be perceived upon making decisions? Delving into this topic will help us shine a light on our thinking, and our values, and the factors that influence our choices. By better understanding ourselves and each other, we can feel more confident about our decisions, and, hopefully, more compassionate towards our colleagues and consumers. Come join us as we explore this topic together.
Understanding Our Interpreting Process and Refining Our Work
Sunday, 4/14, 9a-12p​
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Presentation language: ASL, no interpretation
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The work of interpreting is ever-evolving, because the people that we work with and the world we live in are always changing. As we gain new experiences, we learn more, and we have new tools and knowledge available to us. This process of growing makes us richer, and gives us greater options in the future.
While we continue to learn and discover every day, we do not always recognize this growth. We just think we are going to work. For some people, the idea that we might have to learn something new might even be scary or intimidating, as if what we know or what we have been doing is not enough.
What if we started giving ourselves recognition? What if we acknowledged all the discoveries that we have made since we were children; or since we were in our 20s; or in the last year? Would we be able to frame - or reframe - discovery and learning as a positive experience, and something that we might seek out? What would it feel like to be not nervous, or fearful, or bored about our work, but instead to feel curious?
The more that we become familiar with our work - how we assess situations, and make choices, and ask for help, and seek out new resources - the more equipped we are to feel successful, and satisfy our consumers’ needs, and to support our colleagues in developing their own tools for success in this field.
It does not matter our age, or years of experience, or our personal backgrounds. The more we learn, the more we discover there is to learn: about our world, about ourselves, and about our work. Come join us, and let’s learn together.
Trauma Informed Interpreting with Ethical Discourse-Pt. 1 (.3 PS CEUs)
Saturday, 4/13, 9a-12p
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Presenters: Heidi Rich & Corinne A. Liedtke
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Presentation language: English, interpretation will be provided
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Mental Health Interpreting andTrauma Interpreting are similar and yet different. In this part 1 of Trauma Informed Interpreting with Ethical Discourse, we will look at what trauma is and why it is different. We will look at intimate partner violence and the prevalence of domestic and sexual assault within the community. Attendees should be able to recognize signs of trauma and understand the language we use in these situations after attending this workshop. Attendees will have the opportunity to assess real life situations discourse on how they would resolve the scenario represented. Attendance at parts 1 & 2 strongly encouraged.
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Workshop sponsored by DBHDID
How Affect Shapes Meaning: It’s not what you say, but how you say it (.3 PS CEUs)
Saturday, 4/13, 2p-5p
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Presentation language: ASL, no interpretation
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In everyday communication, people use not only words and signs to communicate their intent, but also their body language, facial expressions, and tone. We might call these other features of communication “affect.” Sometimes the words and signs that are used align with the affect; but sometimes they conflict. “Thank you for all your help,” might mean “thank you” to someone who put a lot of effort into helping a friend clean out their garage. “Thank you for all your help,” could also mean, “You didn’t even show up like you promised, and so I had to clean the garage myself.” In everyday communication, we typically understand exactly what was intended, so we know to respond with “You’re welcome,” after helping cleaning the garage, or with “I’m really sorry, I forgot,” if we did not show up.
For many interpreters - like other people - we navigate (complicated and complex) communication with other people every day without much difficulty. For those of us who were trained as interpreters, many of us were taught to focus more on the words and signs that people use. Other elements that affect communication receive less focus - how does the environment impact communication; how do the speakers’ backgrounds impact communication; how do our own beliefs and assumptions impact communication; how do mood, tone, facial expression and body language impact communication?
In this session, we will revisit the idea of affect. How does affect impact meaning, and how do we as interpreters incorporate affect to ensure effective communication? Does attending to affect - in addition to the words and signs that people use - produce any challenges? Any benefits?
As affect can impact the meaning of a message so drastically - “You made this task much easier for me,” or “Next time I will ask someone else instead,” - we believe it bears investigating. Come join us as we investigate affect together.