Interpreter Training Program

The Need for Qualified Interpreters

The Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing estimates that 8.8 percent of the state population has some kind of hearing loss. Applied to East Texas, this would represent 69,855 people, according to East Texas Deaf and Hearing Association and 1990 U.S. Census data.

The state agency also estimates that 4.3 percent of the Texas population have hearing difficulty which restricts communication and which calls for assistance. Applied to East Texas this would mean 31,752 people. Of the total population, the TCDHH estimates 0.3 percent cannot hear conversation at all. In East Texas, this translates into 2,382 individuals.

Tyler Junior College Aims to Meet the Need

The Tyler Junior College Interpreter Training program is designed to prepare graduates for a career as interpreters to serve in the deaf community. Students receive instruction and practice time in the classroom, and gain "real world" experience through the practicum in their fourth semester.

The Interpreter Training Program is based on American Sign Language, the natural language of the Deaf.

Students successfully completing the program will receive either a TJC certificate of proficiency or an associate in applied science degree and will be qualified to take the certification examination, offered by the Board of Examiners of Interpreters (BEI).

We are the only program between Dallas and Shreveport.

Work Following Completion

Upon completion of their study, some students elect to become interpreters for the local public school systems. Others may choose to become interpreters for places of business which need interpreters to comply with regulations of the Americans with Disablities Act (ADA). Many interpreters work with the East Texas Deaf and Hearing Association. But all interpreters must become state certified.

The field is one predicted to grow in the coming years. The TJC Interpreter Training program is available to assist those who choose it as a career, offering courses of study leading to a certificate of proficiency or an associate in applied science degree.

Silvana Vierkant, advisor
 903-510-2425 or 1-800-687-5680