Where in the World is Chris?

I've been a little too busy to blog, so let me update you on what's been going on.

Gallaudet Protest

While I didn't go to Washington D.C. to lend my support to the protest, staying abreast of what was going on took up a lot of my time. I did volunteer my interpreting services to a local action group who was trying to convince Dr. Brenda Brueggeman, president of the Board of Trustees at Gallaudet, to call an emergency meeting with the hope of ending the protest. Hats off to Ricky Taylor of Ridor Live who did an excellent job of keeping everyone updated about the goings on at Gallaudet.

OCRID Conference

The Ohio Chapter of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (OCRID), our state affiliate chapter of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), held its state conference in Columbus, Ohio this year. I was one of the full-time conference interpreters, which is the first time I've interpreted an interpreting conference. It was a great experience, and I worked with some very talented people.

Freelance Work

I work at my full-time job Monday - Thursday, so technically I'm off Friday through Sunday. I have been doing quite a bit of freelancing as of late, which I enjoy because it allows me to get out and meet real Deaf people.

Professional Development

As a certified interpreter, I have to earn a certain number of CEUs to maintain my certification. I'm fortunate to live in an area where there are a lot of opportunities to earn CEUs. Today I attended a workshop on how to give and receive feedback, presented by Sharon Neumann Solow. She is a reknowned interpreter and educator in my field, and the workshop was well worth the time.

National Interpreter Certification (NIC)

My professional organization, RID, has been certifying interpreters since the 1970s. That certification process has undergone changes over time to ensure that RID only certifies those interpreters who meet the minimum standard as set forth by our profession. The first full certificate RID offered was the Comprehensive Skills Certificate (CSC). That tested for an interpreter's ability to interpret (ASL-English and vice versa) and transliterate (English to an English-like signing system and vice versa). The current, though soon-to-be-retired certificates, are the Certificate of Interpretation (CI) and the Certificate of Transliteration (CT). The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) used to certify interpreters as well. Interpreters who are NAD certified were tested for both interpreting and transliterating during their performance assessment and hold a Level III (Generalist), Level IV (Advanced), or a Level V (Master). There used to be a sense of competition between NAD-certified and RID-certified interpreters, but that was mostly alleviated when RID and NAD partnered to develop a new certification that was to become the new standard. That test is called the National Interpreter Certification (NIC). While the CI and CT tests are pass/fail, the NIC is a tiered certification. An interpreter who scores within the standard range for the interview and performance portions of the test are awarded the NIC: Certified level. Interpreters who score withing the standard range on the interview portion and high on the performance portion are awarded the NIC: Advanced level. Interpreters who score high on both the interview and performance portion are awarded the NIC: Master level.

I took the NAD test in 1997 when I worked for an interpreting agency in Cincinnati, Ohio and got a Level V. I didn't choose the NAD test over the RID tests for philosophical reasons; it was simply what the other interpreters had taken. I had planned to take the CI and CT tests, but simply put it off until RID stopped offering the written test for the CI and CT. Then it was too late. So I decided that when the NIC was available, I would take it. I am scheduled to take the NIC on November 17th, so I've been studying the reference materials and going through the practice DVD. I think I'm prepared. I've been interpreting professionally since 1995. There's nothing I can do in two weeks that is going to make me interpret significantly better. I can bone up on our Code of Professional Conduct and go through various ethical scenarios in hopes of boosting my score during the interview portion. So that's another thing that's been taking up some time and energy.

Well...I guess that's it. It's 4:14 AM. I should hit the sack.