The What's-Up Series
Workshop Description:
This series of workshops tackles commonly misunderstood or misused signs in ASL, focusing on the uses of LATE, UP-TO-NOW, NONE and FINISH. In this workshop, we’ll take our time with each concept and watch video examples of native signers using it correctly in context. This workshop will provide explanations and examples of all of the nuances, meanings and inflections of these signs, so that interpreters will be able to incorporate these signs confidently into conversation or interpretation.
Presenter Bio:
I graduated from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with an associates degree in Interpretation for the Deaf in 1991 and immediately moved to Georgia to join a staff of interpreters at a local high school in the metro-Atlanta area. In 1999, I left the educational interpreting environment to expand my career working in the community. As an independent contractor and owner of FingersCrossed, Inc., I have worked in a wide variety of settings, both in Georgia, across the States and abroad. I have taught numerous workshops specifically designed for ASL learners and working interpreters, and have also had the pleasure of teaching in the US and abroad around the subject making large-scale events accessible and welcoming for people with disabilities.
Currently, I work as the Lead Interpreter at the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf in Clarkston, Georgia, interpreting for the staff and faculty, but also working on special interpreted projects related to the education of Deaf children nation-wide. A large part of my work in the field of education centers around interpreting standardized tests, in teaching others to interpret test questions with fidelity, and as a consultant on a national level for test developers. I have served as the Secretary for the Georgia Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, the state chapter of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, as well as the Interpreter Coordinator for StageHands, an interpreting agency specializing in performance work of all kinds.
I believe in the importance of lifelong learning and self-improvement as illustrated through my adult education pursuits, having recently received a bachelor's degree in sociology and as a current student at Saint Catherine University's Masters of Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity (MAISCE). I strive to study a range of foundational courses to increase my general knowledge base, gain experience with a narrowed set of skills, and recognize the value of curiosity within myself and other learners. Professionally, I aspire to be an interpreter educator and receiving a master's degree is the next step toward that goal. But if I never taught again, my educational achievements are still in line with my belief in remaining an inquisitive, lifelong learner with the ability to conduct research and continue independent study pursuits long after the college years.