OVERVIEW

Historical Perspective

The Situation
In New Jersey prior to January 2004, there were no regulations that specified the qualifications required for interpreters who work in school settings. Consequently, it was common practice for each school district to determine the qualifications for educational interpreters working in that district. While some districts may have required that an educational interpreter possess a degree from an Interpreter Training Program, other districts had no such requirement. This resulted in the hiring of educational interpreters with varying degrees of interpreting skills competency.

In 1992, the New Jersey Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf formed a task force to address issues specific to interpreting in educational settings in New Jersey. The task force, which included members of the New Jersey Association of the Deaf, Parents for Deaf Awareness, the New Jersey Department of Education, and the Office of Special Education Programs, developed the Guidelines for Educational Interpreting to offer guidance to local educational agencies regarding educational interpreting as a related service for students who are deaf and hard of hearing.

In 1994 and 1997, the Office of Special Education Programs published a technical assistance document entitled Guidelines for Educational Interpreting (available from the New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs). This document highlighted the need for the professional development of educational interpreters that included participation in workshops, professional meetings, and additional coursework in communication systems. However, educational interpreters in New Jersey had very few in-state resources available for their professional growth.

The Need
There is a statewide need to provide personnel in the field of educational interpreting with increased professional development opportunities to improve their interpreting skills. This need is supported by the 1999 final report of the Educational Interpreting Task force established by the New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. The Task Force provided recommendations for improving the qualifications of educational interpreters. The recommendations included: (a) implementation of an assessment instrument, knows as the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA), to evaluate the sign language interpreting skills of individuals and to provide diagnostic information for the improvement of performance skills; (b) collaboration with national agencies to evaluate cued speech and oral interpreting skills; and (c) collaboration between the Department of Education and higher education to establish training programs to provide professional development activities for the purpose of improving the skill level and fluency of educational interpreting skills.

The Objective
In order to provide the least restrictive environment for students who are deaf/hard of hearing, the New Jersey Department of Education recognized a need for qualified educational interpreters. To meet this need it has provided an opportunity for Camden Community College to expand its interpreter training program by establishing the Educational Interpreter Professional Development Center.