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IRIS Project Programs

Content of this page is presented by Shana Gibbs in American Sign Language.

The IRIS Project, Improving Rural Interpreter Skills, will positively impact the interpreting and Deaf Communities living in rural America by increasing the quantity and quality of interpreters working and living in rural settings by cultivating educational opportunities and sustainable connections that support professional growth. The IRIS Project is a $2.1M, five-year interpreter training grant (#H160D210006) awarded by the U.S. Department of Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration. 

During the years 2021-2026, IRIS Project will develop and deliver multiple educational and professional growth opportunities. Summaries, content guidance, and the materials of these programs will be compiled and added to their respective program pages (below) as they become available. 

The following five core values are the foundational underpinnings of the IRIS CORE Initiative, Induction, and RIPPLE programs:

  1. Centering diverse deaf perspectives;
  2. Recognition of systemic barriers inherent in interpreting work; 
  3. Learning via intentional collegial dialogue; 
  4. Cultivation of introspection and reflection; and
  5. Examination of one's own interpreting work apart from the person via an Integrated Model of Interpreting framework.