Professor Alexandra Place and Assistance with Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Interpreting for Immigrants and Translating Legal Documentation
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When refugees or asylum seekers arrive in a new country, they often need assistance from a number of individuals including language translators and interpreters. Translators work with conveying the written word from one language to another. Interpreters work with spoken word. Both translators and interpreters provide an invaluable set of skills in communicating between the cultural and social norms of immigrants and those who work in immigration services, the legal system, and area governments. In Early 2013, Alexandra Place, a French Lecturer in the Modern Language Department, was contracted by the International Institute of Connecticut to work as a translator of legal documents and as an interpreter for refugees and asylum Seekers from French speaking countries, mainly Haiti, The Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. The interpreting job for refugees and Asylum seekers usually differs from typical interpreting assignments. The clients she works with have been diagnosed with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and are Survivors of Torture. |
Prof. Place with LPN clinician supervisor Hope Taylor.
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Due to the sensitivity of situations, such as war trauma or sexual violence, that the clients went through before applying for Asylum, her job as an interpreter requires a different set of skills in addition to the combination of sociolinguistic and localization expected in interpreting. Namely, strong interpersonal , communicative and soft people skills. She travels to Bridgeport, CT and works alongside immigration attorneys, psychologists/psychiatrists, medical doctors and specialists to Interpret for the SOT clients seeking Asylum in the United States.
Hope Taylor, LPN clinician supervisor behavioral therapist at LifeBridge community Services in Bridgeport, CT for PTSD Congolese clients, states,"when working with PTSD patients, it is very critical to work with interpreters who are not only linguistically gifted and smart but also have very strong interpersonal,communicative skills and understand human behaviors. it is crucial to understand that the establishment of a triangular dynamic between the clinician, interpreter and client is key to a successful treatment plan".
Learn more about the types of skills needed to translate for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
Hope Taylor, LPN clinician supervisor behavioral therapist at LifeBridge community Services in Bridgeport, CT for PTSD Congolese clients, states,"when working with PTSD patients, it is very critical to work with interpreters who are not only linguistically gifted and smart but also have very strong interpersonal,communicative skills and understand human behaviors. it is crucial to understand that the establishment of a triangular dynamic between the clinician, interpreter and client is key to a successful treatment plan".
Learn more about the types of skills needed to translate for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
Distinction between Asylum Seekers and Refugees
The following is excerpted from the USCIS website.
Refugee status or asylum may be granted to people who have been persecuted or fear they will be persecuted on account of race, religion, nationality, and/or membership in a particular social group or political opinion.
Refugee status is a form of protection that may be granted to people who meet the definition of refugee and who are of special humanitarian concern to the United States. Refugees are generally people outside of their country who are unable or unwilling to return home because they fear serious harm.
You may seek a referral for refugee status only from outside of the United States. For more information about refugees, see the “Refugees” section.
Asylum status is a form of protection available to people who:
Refugee status or asylum may be granted to people who have been persecuted or fear they will be persecuted on account of race, religion, nationality, and/or membership in a particular social group or political opinion.
Refugee status is a form of protection that may be granted to people who meet the definition of refugee and who are of special humanitarian concern to the United States. Refugees are generally people outside of their country who are unable or unwilling to return home because they fear serious harm.
You may seek a referral for refugee status only from outside of the United States. For more information about refugees, see the “Refugees” section.
Asylum status is a form of protection available to people who:
- Meet the definition of refugee
- Are already in the United States
- Are seeking admission at a port of entry
Professor Alexandra Place
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Alexandra Place is a French Lecturer in the Modern Language Department. She started at Bryant University in the Fall 2013. Her native language is French but she is fluent in Spanish and English. She has been teaching French in the United States since 1999 and has been working as a translator and Interpreter for over ten years. She received formal translating education in the paired languages French-English/ English-French as part of her undergraduate degree at the University of Paris VII in France. She has translated various documents from, international conference rapports dealing with genetically modified organisms, complete negotiations for sales on international Real Estate Chateaux to entire adoption dossiers for US families adopting orphans children from Haiti after the devastating 2009 Earthquake. Most recently she has partnered up with an attorney office in Fontainebleau, France to translate legal documents for Foreign born clients. She also passed the passed the National Court Interpreting exam in April of 2014.
“Ms. Place is tremendously professional, and establishes clear boundaries and reasonable expectations for the clients with whom she works. At the same time, Ms. Place never hesitates to go above and beyond for our clients, attending court hearings to ensure that court interpreters are interpreting accurately, and spending entire days at our office working with multiple clients who need her assistance. Ms. Place has become a vital piece of the International Institute’s Language Services Department.” Ellen Messali, Esq. International Institute of Connecticut. |
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