Registration is now open for the Qualified Community Interpreter Certification Program offered through Kellogg Community College’s Lifelong Learning Department.
Classes will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays from Sept. 15 through Nov. 3 in Room 107 of KCC’s Davidson Visual and Performing Arts Center, located on the college’s Battle Creek campus at 450 North Ave.
Community interpreting is a growing profession that targets the sectors of health care, education and human and social services. The Community Interpreter is a nationally recognized 48-hour certificate program designed to take new or practicing interpreters of any spoken language and ground them in ethics, standards and professional skills.
The Qualified Community Interpreter Certification Program offers an interactive format that engages participants. Each training day centers on role plays, skills building and small group activities that ground interpreters in the profession. The program also includes video vignettes and case studies.
Mary Green, director of Lifelong Learning at Kellogg Community College, said this is the third time the college has offered the program.
“There are more than 30 certified community interpreters in our community as a result of this program,” she said.
Participants will need to pass the ALTA Language Services Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) at level nine or higher to participate in the program, and must be assessed in two languages (English and the second language they will be interpreting). This test will be a phone interview scheduled at the time of registration.
The Qualified Community Interpreter Certification Program will be taught by Sarah Varricchio, a licensed trainer of the Community Interpreter Program and adjunct professor at Kellogg Community College. The program costs $499, which includes all testing fees, materials and a textbook. Registration ends on Aug. 31.
For more information or to register for the program, call 269-965-4134 or visit the Customer Service Center at Kellogg Community College’s Regional Manufacturing Technology Center at 405 Hill-Brady Road in Battle Creek.
Visit www.kellogg.edu/lifelong for information on other class offerings from the Lifelong Learning Department.