Lissett Samaniego for Secretary-IGA
I am running for Secretary of IGA, a unit of the Communications Workers of America, and I would greatly appreciate your vote.
As independent interpreters, we take pride in our own solid professional skills, our strong work ethic, creativity, ingenuity and network to secure a steady, reliable stream of job assignments to helps us earn a living year after year. But many of us struggle, especially as newcomers when contracting our services out to private agencies, corporate legal and medical groups, to secure the kind of wages that allow us to continue to do the work we are passionate about.
But we don’t have to struggle alone any more. IGA’s mission is to empower independent interpreters with the knowledge, organizational expertise and network support so that we can work together to command equitable wages and secure sustainable and safe working conditions, whether we work for individual clients, corporations or for government agencies. As a Secretary of IGA, I pledge to put my written and oral language expertise to work diligently to help make IGA’s mission a reality.
Why should you vote for me?
I have worked as an independent Spanish interpreter in the Medical, Med-legal, Immigration and Education sectors for small and large corporate clients, interpreting and translation agencies and government entities for over 7 years. I understand full well the long-term challenges and pressures we face on the field, yet I am new enough to the profession to be sensitized to the difficulties and needs of new interpreters. I believe the strength and growth of our profession as a whole depends on the empowerment of newcomers to our profession and IGA has a lot of value to offer newcomers in particular. The truth is that newcomers need IGA, but IGA also needs newcomers, just as the profession does. If you elect me as your Secretary, I pledge to focus on reaching out to both our current membership to raise awareness of the value they have in IGA and also to potential new members so that we grow in numbers and penetration.
What unique skill-set do I bring to this position?
I have solid written and oral skills. I have a B.A. Degree in English from UC Berkeley (1993) and a Master’s Degree in Spanish Translation and Interpretation from the Monterey Institute of International Studies (2010). I am certified as a Healthcare Interpreter by the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters (CCHI) and by the American Translator’s Association (ATA).
I am deeply committed to raising awareness on the importance of safeguarding high professional standards and currently work as a Subject Matter Expert for CCHI, where I serve as an exam Rater and consultant on Interpreting Testing and interpreting performance Evaluation.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about me and my hopes for IGA. I humbly ask that you give me this opportunity to serve as your Unit Secretary for IGA.