Jamestown HS Students Earn First Step Toward Sign Language Interpretation Certification

American Sign Language students from Jamestown High School recently traveled to The Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Richmond, where students were tested on the written portion of the Virginia Quality Assurance Screening, also known as the VQAS.  This interpreter exam is generally given in two parts: written and performance.  The written portion is a series of ethical questions relating to the field of Sign Language Interpreting.  Students who pass the written portion will have three years to take the performance portion of the exam in order to complete their certification.  The performance portion tests their transliterating and interpreting abilities. Once both sections are completed, students are given a rating and could work in the field of sign language interpreting in the state of Virginia. 

Out of the 12 students that took the test, eight passed with a 90 percent or higher.  The following students earned a passing score:  Kareem Christian, Krista Hunter, Nycole Taliaferro, Giovanna Messina, Chase Terry, Renee Carroll, Erin Bruce, and Melinda Araguz.

Photo Sign: From left: Melinda Araguz, Giovanna Messina, Erin Bruce and Chase Terry.