August 13, 2024
How can someone who enjoys comedy, music and government meetings combine all those disparate interests into one career?
Becoming certified in American Sign Language (ASL) is a great option.
Justine Bryant, assistant professor of sign language at Grand Rapids Community College says there is a huge need for people who are proficient in ASL. Nationwide, the demand for ASL interpreters is expected to grow 19% annually through 2028.
“Any place that a person who is deaf might go needs ASL interpreters,” Bryant said. “Ever since the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed, the need for ASL interpreters has grown. Think about it. The doctor, the dentist, a cruise ship, school, theater, a concert — in order to be accessible, all these places need to have people who can communicate using ASL.”
Bryant’s interest in ASL started in high school.
“I was volunteering at a craft show, running the check-in table,” Bryant said. “A deaf person who was exhibiting at the show came to my table. She was signing to me but I had no idea what she was communicating. I felt like I should have been able to respond, so I took a class just in case I needed it again. That one class became more than a ‘just in case.’ It fueled a lifelong passion and career.”
How has American Sign Language evolved?
American Sign Language is a language, but it does not originate from English.
“French Sign Language is one of the parent languages of ASL,” Bryant said. “That linguistic heritage shows up in the way we structure sentences. For example, if I said in English, ‘I’m going to the store this afternoon,’ the sentence order is subject, verb and then object. That same idea would be communicated in ASL as ‘Now afternoon food store I go.’ We convey ideas as object, subject, verb.”
As you might imagine, it takes some practice to learn this language.
“Unless you are a native user of ASL, it takes about three years to become conversational and about seven years to become fluent,” Bryant said. “I have been certified for 10 years and I still learn new signs every day. Our society also continues to evolve with new concepts, such as ‘COVID’ and ‘artificial intelligence.’ As these concepts arise, the Deaf community starts playing with sign ideas. When one sticks, it spreads and we add it to the language.”
GRCC has responded to the urgent need for ASL interpreters through its own course offerings as well as partnerships. Students can take the first year’s worth of ASL interpreter classes at GRCC. Then through a partnership with Lansing Community College, students can transfer those credits and finish the remaining two years of the program.
In order to work as an interpreter, students must also achieve certification. There are three levels of certification, with the most advanced allowing an interpreter to work anywhere in the nation.
What can you do with a certification in ASL?
“Some companies have enough interactions with deaf people that they hire full-time interpreters,” Bryant said. “Amazon, schools and video phone companies are great examples of places that are always advertising full-time positions. But most companies hire contractors as needed. I encourage students to earn a bachelor’s degree in a field that interests them, along with completing the courses for ASL interpretation.”
Bryant chose to start her own company after earning her master’s degree in business administration and her national ASL certification. That gives her a lot of freedom in a field where demand has outpaced supply.
“ASL interpretation has been growing as a field for a long time,” Bryant said. “Older interpreters are retiring and we are not getting enough new people in the field. There’s also more demand as our society continues to acknowledge the importance of equal access for the Deaf community. A 2021 study in Minnesota showed that nearly 40% of its interpreters plan to leave the profession within five years. While we don’t have that specific study for Michigan, I know that our pool of interpreters has declined at a similar rate.”
Bryant notes that freedom, lifelong learning and service opportunities are all wonderful reasons to learn ASL.
“If you love lifelong learning, ASL interpretation could be a wonderful career choice,” Bryant said. “There are annual certification requirements, and the language is always evolving. There’s a lot to keep on, but the reward is worth the effort.”
You can learn more about GRCC’s ASL program online.
This story was reported by Julie Hordyk.