The Board of Directors of the Texas Association of Healthcare Interpreters and Translators is pleased to announce that the American Translators Association (ATA) has approved TAHIT's 4th Annual Symposium on Language Access as continuing education for ATA-certified translators. Those of you who are certified by ATA can earn up to 10 Continuing Education Points by attending this year's event!

Registration is NOW OPEN and the EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT deadline has been extended until July 15th! Register today and save $20 off of the regular registration. This year, we are also offering 1 day registration as well as group discounts.

To find out more about TAHIT's 4th Annual Symposium on Language Access, download the symposium brochure. 

Contact Graciela Zozaya at acalang@sbcglobal.net if you need additional information about TAHIT's Symposium.

We are looking forward to seeing you in August!

Interested in becoming certified as a Medical Interpreter and/or learn about the proposed requirements? Or, maybe your interests are in Literary Translation and you would like to hear about exciting upcoming events? Interested in translation/interpreting in general and looking for information/workshops to increase your productivity?

Well… just join us on July 10th, from 1-4 pm, for all the latest news in our field while networking with our distinguished members and enjoying delicious snacks and refreshments.

The meeting will be held at AATIA Headquarters, 201 East 2nd Street. Free parking is available at the Convention Center parking garage, which is on the west side of the building that houses our offices. Enter from Brazos Street, inform the attendant that you are attending an AATIA event, and sign a garage parking record sheet. There is no charge.

Look forward to seeing you all there!

Carolina Modesto
Director of Professional Development

The Interpreter’s Special Interest Group will meet on Saturday April 10 from 10 AM to 12 noon at the AATIA headquarters in the International Center of Austin on 2nd street between Brazos and San Jacinto. Joseph Brettell, a Licensed Court Interpreter, will continue his presentation on training materials available to aspiring court interpreters, and the realities and practice of court interpretation. This session will focus on practicing with real texts which are commonly seen in the courts. All interpreters or other interested parties are welcome. See you then!

Online magazine Slate recently outlined how interpretation works at the United Nations.

The brief article by political reporter Christopher Beam explained the difference between interpretation and translation and between simultaneous and consecutive interpretation. It also described the working conditions of the interpreters:

At any given moment, the U.N. Interpretation Service has a dozen interpreters working six booths—one for every official language. The pair of interpreters in the English booth translates into English, the French booth translates into French, and so on. Attendees can then listen to the interpretations on headphones, clicking across channels for different languages. The job is exhausting, so interpreters will usually switch off every 20 minutes or so. They can also take breaks when the speech is in their language, since no translation is necessary.

The article gave a shout-out to AATIA member Stephen Mines, as well as American Translator Association President Jiri Stejskal and Hossam Fahr of the UN Interpretation Service, for their help in the preparation of the article.

Join the Interpreters Special Interest Group on Saturday, August 8, for a live demonstration of an ACC interpreting class.

Participate in exercises for consecutive interpreting and sight translation and talk to current and former students about the course offerings.

When: Saturday, August 8, 1:00 - 4:00 PM
Where: International Center of Austin
201 East 2nd Street
Austin, TX 78701
Parking: Street parking available. (Garage closed for repairs this day.)

Contact: Esther Diaz mediaz@austin.rr.com

AATIA will offer a workshop for court interpreters on September 19th. This 8-hour workshop is aimed at practicing court interpreters and will enable those licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) to fulfill their annual continuing education requirement. Details will be posted in August.

The Translation and Interpreting program at Austin Community College will offer the first course in the series this Summer.

FRNL 1070 - Introduction to Translation and Interpreting is intended for individuals who are fluent in a foreign language and interested in putting their language skills to work. It offers an overview of the translation and interpreting professions and defines the knowledge, skills, and credentials necessary to work successfully as a translator or interpreter. Students also gain an awareness of the general problems involved in translating and interpreting.

This class meets once a week for 10 weeks at ACC’s Highland Business Center. There are two sessions available:
18 97482 Wednesdays, 5:30 - 8:30 PM - June 10 - August 12
18 97483 Saturdays, 1:00 - 4:00 PM - June 13 - August 15

Tuition is $175 for students in the ACC District. You may register in person at ACC Highland Business Center, 4th floor, 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM, M-Th and 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Friday; or by phone at (512) 223-7542.

For further information, contact:
Esther Diaz
Translator and Interpreter Trainer
ATA Certified for Translation from
English to Spanish and Spanish to English
mediaz@austin.rr.com
(512) 731-5266

Vancouver, British Columbia, will host an international conference May 6–8, 2009, that is designed to help interpreters understand the impact of globalization and how they can strengthen their organizations in order to meet their service goals.

Dynamic keynote speakers, exciting multi-disciplinary panels, and interactive breakout sessions will explore international best practices, innovations, and
improved services for our new global community.

The conference will offer an opportunity to learn from industry leaders, network with colleagues, and share perspectives on the changing face of community interpreting. Full details.