ASL Interpreting in the Courtroom

Lydia has been a freelance ASL/English interpreter in the Portland area for 13 years. She graduated with her BA in American Sign Language from the University of Rochester in 2007, and received her MA in ASL/English Interpretation from Gallaudet University in 2009. Lydia has worked in various settings (medical, government, post-secondary, business, etc.) throughout her career and has worked in legal settings for the past six years. In 2019, she became a part-time instructor at Portland Community College in the ASL/English Interpretation Department. 

Lydia feels fortunate to work in the dynamic field of interpreting where she has opportunities to learn from consumers, colleagues, and students every day.

Melanie is the ASL Interpreter and Transcription Coordinator at Portland Community College. Prior to coming to PCC in 2019 she held several roles with the Oregon Judicial Department, Court Language Access Services including Certification and Training Coordinator, and was the Staff ASL Interpreter for many years. She was appointed by Governor Kitzhaber to the Oregon Health Care Interpreter Council (2013) where she served for 6 years. Her passion is advocating for meaningful communication access for the Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard-of-Hearing communities.