News

Nataly Kelly from Common Sense Advisory posted a great write-up of the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting. The post on the Global Watchtower includes some significant findings from the report on the North American interpreting marketplace as well as quotes from other presentations made at the Summit. Be sure to check it out.

Today, Wednesday, June 16, is the last day you can register on-line for the Summit. Registration will close today at 5:00 p.m. EST.

If you are interested in the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting but cannot attend this year you can still stay informed. InterpretAmerica will be tweeting live from the Summit all day. Just follow us (@InterpAmerica) on Twitter.

The Monterey Institute of International Studies, one of two Summit Founding Sponsors, has issued a web news story highlighting the Summit and the groundbreaking interpreting market research conducted by Common Sense Advisory.

The American Translators Association has joined the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting as an Institution Sponsor! As the largest professional association in North America for translators and interpreters, we welcome their presence and their support. Check out their website at www.atanet.org to learn about their extensive resources and activities.

Good news! We have been able to obtain additional space for the 1^st North American Summit on Interpreting. We now have a limited number of additional seats available. On-line registration will remain open until 5pm (EST) on June 16^th. If we still have space, on-site registration will be possible on the day of the Summit for $350.00.

Market data, interpreter pay rates, and other results to be revealed at the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting.

Be sure to take a look at the press release issued today by Common Sense Advisory. It contains some of the findings from the comprehensive interpreting market study conducted earlier this year in which 1,135 interpreters from the United States, Canada, and Mexico participated. The full report from the study will be presented at the Summit on June 17, 2010. 

Northwestern College, a Christian college of more than 1,200 students in Orange City, Iowa, has become a Gold Sponsor of the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting. Northwestern offers a bachelor’s degree in Spanish translation and interpretation for fully bilingual students, the first at a Christian college. Northwestern College is the third institution of higher learning to sponsor the Summit, joining the Monterey Institute of International Studies and the National Center for Interpretation at the University of Arizona. 

Design Specialists Interpretation, one of the world’s premier providers of simultaneous interpretation services, has become the latest sponsor of the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting. Founded in 1972, Design Specialists Interpretation provides interpretation services for international conferences around the world and is a pioneer in the development of equipment and technology.  With 38 years of expertise, Design Specialists Interpretation’s client list includes  Fortune 500 firms, governments, think-tanks, and a wide variety of associations throughout the world. Visit their website at: www.ds-interpretation.com.  

Great news for any member of the American Translators Association (ATA) planning on attending the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting. ATA will grant five continuing education points for attendance at the Summit. 

For all those attending the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting, please note that we have moved the start time up by 30 minutes to 8:00am. The Summit schedule now runs from 8:00am to 5:30, with breakfast from 7:00 to 8:00am and a closing reception from 5:30 to 6:30pm.

Due to the tremendous response we have had to the event, and the extraordinary expertise that will be represented, we are expanding our break times to 30 minutes to promote the greatest degree of introductions and networking possible. The extended breaks will give us all more chances to meet each other and to connect with our very generous sponsors, each of which is a key player in its own right in our profession.

So mark your calendars and rest assured that we will be serving a full breakfast buffet to fuel our energies for the start of Summit!

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to fill out the first comprehensive survey on the North American interpreting market. The response has been excellent! If you haven’t had a chance to fill out the survey, be sure do so soon. The survey has been extended until midnight on Monday, May 17.

Here are the links:

Interpreters: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/9XS9DTP
Suppliers: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/9XTL62M
Buyers: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/9XQ35RC

If you haven’t already filled out the Interpreting Marketplace Survey that Common Sense Advisory is conducting as part of the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting, be sure to do so now! The Survey closes on FRIDAY, MAY 14TH. This ground-breaking survey will be presented at the Summit and provide first-of-its-kind data about our profession. A sneak peak at early data is showing very interesting results about where interpreters are working, what they are earning, and how they are pursuing education. If you work as an interpreter, are an organization that uses or purchases interpreting services, or if you are a vendor of interpreting services, please click on the following links:

Interpreters
Suppliers
Buyers

The National Language Service Corps is a national organization composed of service-oriented individuals who have expertise in English and at least one other language. These volunteers make themselves available to assist government agencies when there are sudden, short-term needs for language skills. Domestic and overseas assignments include supporting first-responders during natural or other emergencies, participating in preparedness and training exercises, and translating materials to and from English. Those sent on assignment are compensated and reimbursed for expenses. For more information and to apply, visit www.nlscorps.org.

TAALS, the American Association of Language Specialists, has become our newest Institution Sponsor. TAALS is one of the oldest and most prominent professional associations representing language specialists (interpreters and translators) working at the international level. With members throughout the Western Hemisphere, TAALs works to maintain the highest professional standards and working environment its members. Be sure to check out their website at www.taals.net.

InterpretAmerica welcomes Certified Languages International to our growing list of sponsors! They have generously stepped in at the Platinum level. This Oregon-based company offers telephonic interpreting and document translation services across the country to a large variety of clients. CLI is an industry leader, with many innovative tools and practices that they bring to the field. Be sure to check out their website and visit their table at the conference.

Be sure to register for the 1st North American Summit on Interpreting by this Friday, May 1st! Early bird registration is ending and the event is filling up! When you have finished registering, be sure to fill out the Common Sense Advisory Interpreting Marketplace Survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/9XS9DTP.

Common Sense Advisory, in association with InterpretAmerica,  is conducting a first-of-its kind, in-depth analysis of the North American interpreting market, including interpreting services for spoken and signed languages, delivered remotely or in person, and across all settings — legal, conference, military, educational, social services, and health care — just to name a few. 

The results of the survey will be presented at the Summit, and participants will receive be the first to receive a full copy of the results. The study will help answer essential questions we all ask ourselves but for which we have had no concrete answers.

If you buy, sell, or provide interpreting services in North America, take a few minutes to participate in the first-ever major study on the topic. Don’t miss this chance to make your voice and experience be heard. We’ll send you a complimentary summary of the survey results as thanks for your participation.

To participate in the study, use the following links:

Interpreters, click here.

Suppliers of interpreting services, click here.

Organizations that use and/or purchase interpreting services, click here.

Fill out the survey and then sign up for the Summit, where the complete results of all three surveys — and the other research we are conducting for this initiative — will be presented!

The 1st North American Summit on Interpreting welcomes Language Service Associates as our first Platinum level sponsor. They have generously agreed to pay for the conference bag and lanyard, ensuring that participants will receive a high quality product for attending this event. LSA offers a full suite of premium language-based solutions, including Interpreting by Telephone (IBT), Face-to-Face Interpreting, Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), Translation and Localization, American Sign Language (ASL) and Intercultural Consulting and is one of the fastest growing companies in the industry. We thank them for their support and vision in sponsoring the Summit. To learn more about LSA, visit their website at www.lsaweb.com. Thank you LSA!

Get ready to make your voice heard! The 1st North American Summit on Interpreting has commissioned Common Sense Advisory to create a first-ever comprehensive study of the U.S. Interpreting Market. All Summit attendees will receive a full copy of the report, which will cover all major sectors and areas of interpreting, and provide concrete data on where and how interpreters work across the field. Look for the survey announcement and be sure to contribute to this groundbreaking report!