“I've been teaching at this school for years. I thought this was an unknown neighborhood – but there are people out there who care… I'm overwhelmed with gratitude at the number of people here today.”
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Interpreters
Meaningful parent involvement in schools greatly increases the likelihood of success for students both academically and in life. However, for a great many English learning families in San Francisco, language barriers prevent proper access to their children’s education and communication with teachers and school staff. Nearly one in three students in the San Francisco Unified School District is an English language learner. Volunteer interpreters are crucial to these students’ success.
Activities
Volunteers provide interpretation services at parent-teacher conferences, school events like Back-to-School Night, and day-to-day communication between school staff and families. Our volunteer interpretation program focuses on Spanish and Cantonese speakers.
Commitment/Days and Times
We ask our interpreters to take on one interpretation assignment per month. Assignments can range from thirty minutes to three hours depending on the type of appointment.
Training and Clearance Needed
Orientation
Every new volunteer attends a two-hour orientation to learn the roles and responsibilities of volunteering in the San Francisco Unified School District. Volunteers meet with our staff to discuss their interests and skills in order to find a placement that best fits them.
Interpretation specific trainings
Interpretation volunteers attend eighteen hours of free interpretation training. These training sessions are led by Angela Zawadski, a certified judicial interpreter for the State of California and Federal Courts who is fluent in four languages. The training sessions provide a basic introduction to the role of the interpreter, the different modes of interpretation, and a definition of the basic terms associated with school interpretation. In-class exercises will be used to develop memory, acquire relevant terminology, and to discuss ethical issues and protocol.
Application Packet
Volunteers must submit a completed voluneer packet containing the following documents:Fingerprinting
The full cost for background clearance is $73.00 per person, and we ask every School Volunteers applicant to cover this cost through a donation to the San Francisco Education Fund. If you are able to contribute more than $73.00, your contribution will directly support the School Volunteers program, enabling us to extend this program to more students, teachers, schools, and volunteers.
The San Francisco Education Fund is committed to engaging the community in our city’s public schools, and we believe that everyone, regardless of means, should be able to volunteer in schools. As a result, the Education Fund raises funds for scholarships to off-set the cost of volunteer clearance for individuals who can’t afford to pay the full cost. If your current financial situation prevents you from paying the full $73.00, we ask that you contribute as much as you can, and we require all School Volunteers applicants to pay at least a small amount to demonstrate their commitment to volunteering. If you would like to apply for a scholarship, please complete the scholarship form and bring it with you to orientation.