Schawn Hardesty
Director
IRIS Project
Dept. of ASL & Interpreting Studies in the College of Education & Behavioral Sciences
Education
- Ph.D. in Higher Education Leadership in progress, Colorado State University, Fort
Collins, CO (expected 2028)
- M.A. in Teaching, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO
- Certificate in ASL, Northeastern University, Boston, MA
- B.A. in Sociology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Professional/Academic Experience
- Director of Operations, UNC-Project CLIMB, 2019-2021
- Committee and volunteer service on several local and statewide professional development
and conference steering committees
- Nationally certified ASL-English Interpreter through the Registry of Interpreters
for the Deaf (CI, CT, NIC Advanced, & SC:Legal)
- Contributor, RID White Paper on Legal Interpreting work group
- Co-founder, Spokane Interpreter Mentorship Program
- Two-term Board Director, Washington State Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf Board
of Directors
- Interpreter Coordinator, Eastern Washington Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
in Spokane, WA
- Administrative Support Manager, D.E.A.F., Inc in Allston, Massachusetts
Other Experience
Selected Conference Presentations and Publications
- Decker, K.L., Hardesty, S., et al. “A Journey Through Innovative RSA Grant Resources
for Interpreter Education.” Conference of Interpreter Trainers. In-person national
conference. Berkeley, CA. 14 November 2024.
- Decker, K.L & Hardesty, S. (2024) "The Current Rural Sign Language Interpreter Landscape:
Examining the Fields’ Collective Accountability," International Journal of Interpreter
Education, Vol. 15: Iss. 1, Article 11. Available at: https://open.clemson.edu/ijie/vol15/iss1/1
- Hardesty, S. & Decker, K. “Improving Rural Interpreter Skill (IRIS) Project: Blooming
in Rural America.” Conference of Interpreter Trainers. In-person national conference.
King of Prussia, PA. 20 September 2022.
- Decker, K., Hardesty, S., West Oyedele, E. & Williamson, A. “Reflecting on Project
CLIMB: Lessons Learned.” Conference of Interpreter Trainers. In-person national conference.
King of Prussia, PA. 20 September 2022.
- Hardesty, S. & Decker, K. (2022). Improving Rural Interpreter Skill (IRIS) Project.
New from NCRTM, 67. https://us13.campaign-archive.com/?u=83a76dceb96b8a6237e50deeb&id=6f1421f9d1#ImprovingRuralInterpreter.
- Decker, K. & Hardesty, S., West Oyedele, E. & Williamson, A. (2021). Project CLIMB
curriculum and facilitator guide. PDF handbook. National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials. https://ncrtm.ed.gov/library/detail/project-climb-cultivating-legal-interpreters-minority-backgrounds-project-summary.
- Prusac, J., Wohlmuth, A. & Hardesty, S. "Deaf/Coda/hearing Teams in Legal Settings."
Online Webinar. 20 September, 2021.
- Tester, C., Greenfield, J., & Hardesty, S. "Remote Teaming and Preparation for Legal Settings." Online Webinar. 17 September,
2021.
- Decker, K. & Hardesty, S. "Project CLIMB Shareshop: Keeping the Momentum Going." Project
CLIMB Legal Interpreter Training, Online Webinar. 17 November 2021.
- Hardesty, S., West Oyedele, E. & Williamson, A. "The Future of Legal/Court Credentialing."
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf National Conference, Online Webinar. 10 July
2021.
- Decker, K., Hardesty, S., & West Oyedele, E. "Reaching New Heights in Interpreter
Education with Project CLIMB." Sorenson Communications, Online Workshop. 23 February
2021.
- Decker, K., Hardesty, S., West Oyedele, E. & Williamson, A. “Spotlight: Project CLIMB.”
Online webinar. January-February, 2021
- Decker, K. & Hardesty, S. "What are the avenues of entry into the legal system for Deaf, DeafDisabled, DeafBlind
and Hard of Hearing individuals and how does it impact my VR work?" Online webinar. https://www.unco.edu/project-climb/resources/webinars/project-climb.aspx. 5 January 2021.
- Detore, A. & Hardesty, S. “Universal Design in a Veterinary Medicine Context: Case
Studies and an ASL Lesson.” 2020 Western Regional Iverson Bell Summit, Pullman, WA.
17-10 April 2020. In-person conference canceled due to COVID-19.
- Williams, R. & Hardesty, S. "Collusion or Collision: Where Mental Health and Legal
Interpreting Intersect." Online webinar. https://www.unco.edu/project-climb/resources/webinars/project-climb.aspx. 20 January, 2020.
- Detore, A. & Hardesty, S. “Faculty/Staff, Navigating the World of Academia with a
Disability.” Washington State University Disability Awareness Summit. In-person conference.
Pullman, WA. 29 March 2018.
- Hardesty, S. and Seramur, S. “Creating a Deaf Friendly Culture in a Veterinary Practice.”
WSU Vet-Med Club Lunch Lecture. 12 April 2017.
Research/Areas of Interest
- Essential foundations of ASL interpreter education and collaboration with educators
from heritage signing backgrounds
- Lifelong learning
- Social equity
- Language access as a human right and social justice issue
- Microcredentials
