Press Release: CIT News, April 2008
Disco Interpreting - It's All the Rage!
By CM Hall
No, this is not a new dance craze or interpretive dance, or even about Marlee Matlin on Dancing With the Stars, but this is how the National Consortium of Interpreter Education Centers affectionately abbreviates a most exciting initiative intended to address the more serious interpreter shortage we will face in coming years, also known as: Discover Interpreting!

At the recent RID 2007 conference held in San Francisco, Betsy Winston and Dennis Cokely presented findings on a survey conducted to assess the present and future field of working interpreters.  Of the nearly 4,000 respondents, information was gleaned, analyzed, and projected to address future trends in our profession. 

Among those respondents, 5% (133) of working interpreters plan to retire in 1-5 years. 17% (446) of working interpreters plan to retire in 6-10 years, and 22% (579) of working interpreters plan to retire in the next 10 years. 

While this is a subset of the larger RID population, should the trend extend across the entire RID membership, the number would closer approximate to 1,760 interpreters retiring in the next 10 years.

Among survey respondents, twenty 4-year interpreting programs projected annual graduating classes of 8 students (20 x 8 = 160 graduates annually).  Protracting future graduation trends accordingly, results in 1,600 new interpreters within 10 years, a number that does not even keep pace with losses due to retirement. Based on these trends, the gap between the number of working interpreters and the needs of Deaf consumers will not effectively be reduced.  Instead, the gap could increase substantially within the next 10 years as more interpreters retire. 

There are challenges in accurately identifying these estimations however, because while IEP graduates may become working interpreters, others go on to pursue Masters programs in teaching or pursue entirely different career tracks using the diverse competencies and skills gained during their interpreter education program. Thus the number of graduates from IEPs represents the “best case” scenario that would exist if each graduate pursued a career as an interpreter. But even the “best case” scenario results in a widening supply and demand gap.

In its efforts to reach out and recruit, the National Consortium has launched a vibrant and energetic website, DiscoverInterpreting.com and developed a program-neutral recruitment brochure available in English and Spanish. Like last year, quantities of the Discover Interpreting brochure were recently mailed to interpreting education programs and targeted high school programs for their use. To date over 35,000 brochures have been distributed. Program administrators and faculty can support Consortium efforts by notifying us at <info@discoverinterpreting.com> of the addresses of high school programs in their areas that house programs for Deaf students or offer ASL instruction.  Further, any IEP that has not yet received the recent shipment of brochures or needs more brochures may order at www.discoverinterpreting.com/order.htm.

Soon the website will undergo a major renovation including the addition of video testimonials from interpreters and consumers alike, sharing their perspectives on qualities interpreters should exemplify and when interpreting has made a difference.  We are also planning to create a viral social networking component via MySpace or Facebook to attract younger prospective interpreting students.  The main target populations for this marketing initiative include admissions counselors, high school and college ASL programs, career counselor organizations, VR counselors, and individuals seeking a career change.

Our next phase in recruitment is to train a national corps of recruiters who can disseminate our brochure and drive traffic to our website. This will allow us to track visitors and those inquiring about next steps in their potential interpreting career pursuits.  These trainings will be conducted throughout the US at regional RID conferences, CIT, and NAOBI this year and will broaden in future years, building a volunteer base of trainers who will return to their local communities and recruit from within constituencies they know best.  We will work to track how trainers are utilizing the materials in their local communities and its impact on admissions into interpreter education programs.  The trainings are intended to answer practical questions such as what an interpreter does, to what settings interpreters can work in, and the perks of our unique profession, as well as addressing our growing need and the advantages to choosing a profession in high demand with great flexibility and autonomy.

For more information about the NCIEC and their goals, please visit the website at www.asl.neu.edu/nciec/. 

To learn more about the Winston/Cokely Needs Assessment report, please visit www.asl.neu.edu/nciec/resource/docs.html.

To refer others to our website or to give your feedback, please visit www.DiscoverInterpreting.com

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