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 September Edu-Talk
September 3, 2026
4:00p (PT) | 5:00p (MT) | 6:00p (CT) | 7:00p (ET)

Beyond Language Access: Interpreting for Deaf Immigrant Students and Families in Educational Settings

This Edu-Talk will explore the unique communication and access needs of Deaf immigrant students and their families in educational settings. Participants will examine how immigration experiences, language deprivation, multilingualism, cultural differences, and unfamiliarity with U.S. school systems can affect communication and access. The conversation will encourage interpreters and translators to think beyond simply providing language services and consider what meaningful, equitable access looks like for Deaf immigrant students and families.

Celena Ponce is the Founder and Executive Director of Hands United, a nonprofit working with Deaf and hard of hearing immigrants and immigrant families with Deaf and hard of hearing children across the United States. She is a trilingual ASL–English–Spanish interpreter whose work focuses on the intersections of language access, education, immigration, and Deaf communities.

Through Hands United, Celena works alongside Deaf immigrants and families navigating educational, legal, immigration, and community systems, with particular attention to individuals who experience language deprivation or use multiple spoken and signed languages. Her work also includes training interpreters and other professionals to recognize communication barriers that extend beyond simply providing an interpreter.

Celena brings both interpreting and systems-level perspectives to conversations about meaningful language access, with an emphasis on how professionals can recognize when traditional models of interpreting and translation are not adequately meeting the needs of Deaf immigrant students and families.

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