Many of the resources offered at UMass often go unnoticed, since they are so rarely discussed. It wasn’t until my junior year that I learned about the Career Center, the student run businesses, Disability services, and the UMass Genzler Translation Center. Perhaps these are the kinds of services that you only know about if you need them, but I do think that UMass should broadcast these resources more than they do.

My junior year I became very interested in translation and interpreting services. I had taken all the classes I could in both the Spanish and Comparative Literature departments. One of my favorite classes I took was Spanish 514: Practicing Literary Translation: Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan with Dr. Regina Galasso, the director of the Genzler Translation Center. In her class, we worked on our own translations, moving through the process of revision after revision, assisted by our peers, and eventually left with a final product, while also learning about translation theory. We had the opportunity to meet leaders in the field such as Daniel Hahn and Mary Ann Newman and discuss our projects with them as well. It was one of my favorite classes I’ve taken at UMass and it made me feel like a career in either translation or interpreting was possible for me. I think there should be more classes that offer this type of hands-on experience and interaction with professionals. 

I enjoyed working with Dr. Galasso and at the end of the semester, I asked her if I could have a job working for the Translation Center (TC) over the summer. She told me that she would consider it and she would consult her team. I later had an interview with the project managers and I was hired! I was so ecstatic. I had practically acquired my dream job by the end of my junior year of college. During the summer, I worked with the project managers by assisting in Spanish and English translation, document formatting, and project management. It was a wonderful work environment and everyone on the team was so kind and helpful. My questions were always welcomed and I learned so much during that summer. Unfortunately, I could not continue my role as project manager assistant during the school year, since the TC already had two wonderful student employees that work during the school year. However, I transitioned to working with Dr. Galasso on different projects and working with Dr. Lara Matta (the assistant director) on TC workshops. 

One of the projects I have been working on with Dr. Galasso is a pilot highschool course at Revere Public Schools called The Foundations of Translation, Interpreting, and Language access. The course is an introduction to translation, interpreting, related language services, and the language industry. It explores language access as access to opportunity and raises awareness of career options in the field and the benefits of knowledge of this work for careers in other fields. The curriculum includes readings, viewings, quizzes, practice, case studies, presentations, community projects, and interactions with professionals. Working with Dr. Galasso on this course has been a wonderful opportunity and experience and I really hope it’s a course that catches on to other public schools in Massachusetts. When I was in high school, I would have loved to take a course like this and I think it would have helped me discover my passion for translation and interpreting much sooner. 

The Translation Center also works with school districts and towns to provide workshops for educators and public workers on translation and interpreting skills and theories of best practice. The workshop that I’m currently helping to facilitate is called the “Core Principles of Language Access Workshop Series” with Dr. Jennifer Love as our workshop leader. This workshop series introduces participants to the foundations of language access and to the basic skills needed to provide core language access services. Participants learn how to use core terminology, work with a culturally diverse population, provide interpreting and document translation services, as well as the ethical implications of their work. As a course facilitator on this project, I designed the Canvas Course Catalog for the course and continue to upload content and interact with participants through the site. Working on this project has been a wonderful opportunity and I’ve learned so much from the experience. One of my favorite parts of helping facilitate these workshops is that I get to be a participant too! Which means I’m constantly learning new things and getting to ask questions. I have taken countless courses on interpreting and translation through many different media and theories, and yet I learn something new every workshop. I also get to interact with Dr. Love, an incredible professional in the field. 

My work with the UMass Genzler Translation Center has not only provided me with wonderful work experience and opportunities, but it’s allowed me to explore and thrive in my passion for translation and interpreting services. I have had the opportunity to interact with professionals, learn new skills, and be challenged. I am very grateful for the Translation Center Team and all they have taught me and I’m excited to continue our work together.