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Welcome to the NAJIT Observer

The NAJIT Observer (TNO) was created in 2011 in response to NAJIT’s members need for a tool

to share information, first-hand experiences, and the occasional fun moment with colleagues.

We are delighted with the response TNO has received from our members and subscribers. And

thanks to our dedicated and generous contributors, TNO’s archive features an amazing number

of posts that you can search by category or author.

Do you want to contribute a post?  Send us an email at TNO_editor@najit.org.

Enjoy The NAJIT Observer!

26 Mar

Posted at 13:31h in Advocacy, Business Practices, Court Interpreting, Ethics, Interpreters, Interpreting, Julli Jaramillo, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Hazard, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Remote Interpreting, Technology, The Profession, Tools of the trade, Translation by
1 Like

What’s Going On in Our Field Right Now? By Julli Jaramillo   I’ve been keeping up with what’s been happening in our field, and I think now is a good time to update everyone. There’s a lot shifting right now, and it’s not all happening in one place. You see...

18 Mar

Posted at 22:13h in Advocacy, Athena Matilsky, Business Practices, Community, Equipment, Hilda Zavala-Shymanik, Interpreters, Interpreting, Jiraporn Ann Huynh, Julli Jaramillo, Language, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Professional Hazard, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Reme Bashi, Technology, The Profession, Translation by
1 Like

A Brief History of The Couch Series [caption id="attachment_36172" align="alignright" width="300"] A symbolic representation of interpreters and translators fostering understanding, depicted by a figure on a couch and another actively listening[/caption] Since its debut in 2017, The Couch has been the place to provide our members with the space to discuss...

11 Mar

Posted at 22:11h in Advocacy, Community, Community Interpreting, Continuing Education, Interpreters, Interpreting, Julli Jaramillo, Language, Leadership, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, The Profession by
1 Like

Language Access on the Biggest Stage By: Julli Jaramillo    Last month, millions of viewers tuned in to watch the Super Bowl Halftime show. As always, the spotlight was on the teams, the halftime show, and the commercials that quickly became part of the cultural conversation. But behind the...

05 Mar

Posted at 11:43h in Advocacy, Continuing Education, Language, Mentoring, New Ideas, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Terminology, The Profession, Tools of the trade, Translation by
1 Like

Warts and All  By Ángeles Estrada, M.A., F.C.C.I    The letters written to the judge by Spanish-speaking defendants in U.S. penitentiaries are hard to  read and time consuming to translate.   Because of the literacy level of most defendants, their letters are laden with spelling mistakes  and frequently as cryptic...

26 Feb

Posted at 09:33h in Athena Matilsky, Business Practices, Ethics, Interpreters, Interpreting, New Ideas, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Hazard, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Self care, The Profession, Tools of the trade, Translation by
0 Likes

Self-Care as an Ethical Necessity By: Athena Matilsky Be kinder to yourself. Then let your kindness flood the world. -Pema Chödron Have you ever found yourself skipping lunch, losing sleep and working 12-hour days even though you were your own boss? A few years ago, I had a...

19 Feb

Posted at 00:57h in Advocacy, Business Practices, Community Interpreting, Continuing Education, Court Interpreting, Equipment, Ethics, Hilda Zavala-Shymanik, Interpreters, Interpreting, Jiraporn Ann Huynh, Julli Jaramillo, Language, Leadership, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Hazard, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Reme Bashi, Remote Interpreting, The Profession, Tools of the trade, TRAINING, Translation by
1 Like

Let’s Test Your Ethics: The Digital “Assist” The NAJIT Observer Team   Honoring the Lunar New Year Before we turn to this month’s ethical discussion, we want to pause to recognize the Lunar New Year. For many communities around the world, this celebration marks renewal, reflection, and the beginning...

12 Feb

Posted at 00:46h in Court Interpreting, Interpreters, Jiraporn Ann Huynh, Language, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Professional Development, Recent Posts, Terminology, The Profession, Tools of the trade, TRAINING by
1 Like

Playing The Infinite Game In Your Interpreting Career  By: Jiraporn-Ann H. Huynh With Special Credit To Contributor and Editor: Hilda Shymanik   I was at a dental event for an elite group of dental practitioners who don’t just fix teeth and collect money; they are highly specialized dentists whom...

04 Feb

Posted at 23:09h in Hilda Zavala-Shymanik, Interpreters, Interpreting, Language, Leadership, New Ideas, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, The Profession, Tools of the trade, TRAINING by
2 Likes

Not An Infallible Technique, After All By Hilda Shymanik   Just recently, I was telling some colleagues how, since I started freelancing regularly in some of the best and interpreter-friendly courthouses in the area, I’ve found fewer topics to blog about. The reason? I rarely encounter situations that...

29 Jan

Posted at 00:10h in Interpreters, Interpreting, Language, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Professional Development, Professional Hazard, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, Terminology, Tools of the trade, Translation, Uncategorized, Volunteer by
1 Like

On Verbatim By Ángeles Estrada, M.A., F.C.C.I. Verbatim is a Latin expression that means “word for word,” and it is the golden rule for court-reporters whose charge it is to preserve the record. But, what about court interpreters? An interpreter's oath is different from the court reporter’s oath....

21 Jan

Posted at 23:37h in Advocacy, Continuing Education, Julli Jaramillo, Language, Leadership, Leadership, NAJIT Conference, New Ideas, Odds & Ends, Personal Growth, Professional Development, Professional Practices, Recent Posts, The Profession, Tools of the trade, TRAINING, Translation by
1 Like

Beyond AI, Beyond the Conference Julli Jaramillo   AI is already part of our professional reality. Not as a concept we debate in the abstract during dinner, but as something that shows up in conversations about tools, ethics, training, expectations, and the future of our work. That context is...