Northeastern University’s American Sign Language Program was awarded a U.S. Department of Education Rehabilitation Services Administration grant for $2 million to establish the Center for Atypical Language Interpreting (CALI). The project will address the growing demand for interpreters with specialized skills to serve Deaf and DeafBlind persons with atypical language.
The five-year project officially launched on January 3, 2017. One of the initial endeavors is to record samples of atypical ASL. A language analysis team comprised of MJ Bienvenu, Dennis Cokely, Christopher Kaftan, Daniel Langholtz, and Anna Witter-Merithew will then analyze the samples and create a matrix of indicants and descriptors of atypical language.
Building on this foundation and other effective practices research, a program of study will be created and offered including online learning modules, face-to-face instruction, practical experience placements, as well as supervised induction, communities of practice, and webinars.
The team includes Dennis Cokely, Principal Investigator; Diana Doucette, Director; Madeleine Eames, Project Coordinator; individual consultants; and a partner network of agencies and programs serving interpreters and individuals who are Deaf and DeafBlind.
For more information, visit www.northeastern.edu/cali.
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