Washington State Coalition for Language Access (WASCLA)

05/05/2024

It’s almost time to Give Big to support WASCLA!

Mark your calendar for May 7 and 8 and join us in our fundraising effort. Your contribution supports our work to create a more inclusive and accessible Washington State. Consider a donation today to support language justice for all!

Mission At the Washington State Coalition for Language Access (WASCLA) our mission is clear: to champion the language rights of immigrants, refugees, and Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, and...

01/24/2024

Join us!
The next WASCLA Community Conversation is scheduled for January 26, 2024, and will focus on the issue of a shortage of sign language interpreters in Washington State. We want to hear from you: what do you believe the causes are and what solutions are you or others working on to address the issue?


When:
January 26, 2024
12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Where:
Zoom
Registration is required.
Once registered, you will receive the meeting link in an email.
ASL Interpreters will be provided.

Washington State Coalition for Language Access (WASCLA) is hosting this conversation as a way of introducing its work and coalition more broadly to the Deaf community and as an opportunity to share thoughts and ideas on improving ASL interpreter availability and services in Washington.

Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: WASCLA Community Conversation: ASL Interpreter Shortage in Washington & What Can be Done?. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.

07/22/2023

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/washington/jobs/4052480/li-program-specialist-4-spanish-bilingual

Our Mission: Keep Washington Safe and Working!Our Values: Customer Focus, One L&I, Respect, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Learning and Growth, Reliability*****If hired as bilingual, our top applicant will be required to pass an assessment of your ability to write and speak Spanish fluently. We .....

06/30/2023

A group of interpreting industry thought leaders has announced their proposal to form the "Interpreting SAFE-AI Task Force - Stakeholders Advocating for Fair and Ethical AI in Interpreting" to establish, disseminate, and promote guidelines for the responsible adoption of AI in interpreting! The task force has developed a survey to gather stakeholder input to select an initial structure of the task force and gather names of all those interested in participating. This survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. Your responses will be kept confidential. Please complete the survey by July 15, 2023. Creation of the Interpreting SAFE-AI Task Force https://lnkd.in/gJEtA9jr

A group of interpreting industry thought leaders has announced their proposal to form the "Interpreting SAFE-AI Task Force - Stakeholders Advocating for Fair…

05/03/2023

WASCLA is facing a growing demand for its services. We urgently need to take our work to the next level by raising funds to hire staff, so we are asking you to join us in our major fundraising campaign! To meet this goal, we need your support and investment in our efforts to forward statewide language access. How can you help?
How can you help support WASCLA's advocacy? By donating to WASCLA during this year’s GiveBIG campaign.

https://lnkd.in/g_C46x97

MissionWASCLA works at the systems level to eliminate language barriers. Our vision is to achieve equitable access for the many thousands of immigrants, refugees, and Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, and Deafblind individuals in Washington State who are unable to engage in vital...

05/04/2022

Today is the final day of GiveBig. WASCLA needs your support to continue our important work of advocating for language rights. Donate today....


https://www.wagives.org/organization/washington-state-coaliton-for-language-access/donate

05/02/2022

It’s almost time to . Did you know that WASCLA has helped to shape Language Access in Washington State for over 10 years? Advocating for equitable access to critical governmental services for LEP and Deaf indivi is our mission. Join us and donate today! Link in comments.

04/01/2022

WASCLA had the opportunity to share our I-Speak cards in Ukrainian and Russian for this weekend’s legal aid clinic supporting newly arriving asylum seekers from Ukraine. If you haven’t seen our I-speak cards (avl in almost 30 languages), check them out on our website: https://www.wascla.org/ispeak/

04/01/2022

Sharing news from the network- WASCLA loves to see hiring specific to language equity! Good job KC Metro!

King County is committed to equity and diversity in the workplace. In addition, the county is committed to recruiting and maintaining a quality workforce that shares our guiding principles: collaborative, service-oriented, results-focused, accountable, innovative, professional and fair and just.

03/01/2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJoReZe5msY&list=TLPQMDEwMzIwMjIUHWOrDdHkDg&index=6

Rep. Tina Orwall discusses House Bill 1153, aimed at increasing language access in public schools, with Sen. Claire Wilson and Sen. Yasmin Trudeau.

01/23/2022

Don't miss this opportunity to support Language Access for Washington Schools. This bill will make a difference for many Washington families!
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House Bill 1153 just got a hearing scheduled in the House Appropriations Committee (HAC). It will be held this Monday, January 24 at 3:30 pm.
View Monday’s hearing here:
https://tvw.org/video/house-appropriations-committee-2022011546/?eventID=2022011546
🚨HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HELP🚨
For now, everyone can still do their part by doing one or both of the following actions:

Sign into the Washington Legislature website and submit your position on this bill.

https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/House

Sign into the Washington Legislature website and submit written testimony. An example of this would be: “Why is Language Access in Public Schools so important to your family/or the families you serve?”

https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/House

Share the one-pager on SHB1153.”

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pXNPPAqnmBIabp9JVVQ4ZQKYghz5VgoTyq6ednSkDvc/edit?usp=sharing

let's get the word out!

House Bill 1153: Increasing language access in public schools Sponsors: Orwall, Gregerson, Davis, Hackney, Macri, Callan, Pollet, Ramos, Bergquist, Thai, Johnson, J., Simmons, Valdez Purpose of the bill: Establish effective language access services at public schools to improve meaningful, equi...