No matter where you look, communities are becoming ever more diverse; a reality that is clearly visible in your local schools. One refreshing component of this diversity is the exposure to other languages and cultures.
As families from other countries adjust to an English-speaking world around them, school systems must ensure that equitable learning outcomes are not only possible but also within the reach of every student.
Interpreters & Translators in Schools
Equity in Education
Transforming the way K-12 schools and substitute teachers connect.
Executive Order
13166
Affirms Title VI’s language access requirement.
Compliance requires all recipients of any direct or indirect federal funding to ensure that their programs and activities normally provided in English are accessible to LEP persons and thus do not discriminate on the basis of national origin in violation of Title VI's prohibition against national origin discrimination.
Title VI of 1964 Civil Rights Act
Language access programs that are Powered by Volatia meet the requirements set forth in Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin.
Other Statutes
Other statutes touching on equal opportunity for children (and their parents) to participate in the educational process include the Equal Educational Opportunity Act, Title III of No Child Left Behind Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
No Child Left Behind
Students whose parents or guardians are limited in their English proficiency are at the mercy of the school to equalize their learning experiences. Research shows that students thrive when their parents understand and participate in the education of their children. To that end, these students deserve to have their LEP parents or guardians notified of school policies, events, programs, and resources in a language that they understand. By empowering LEP families to contribute to the learning outcomes of their children, schools ensure that no child is left behind.
Identify LEP families
Schools are required to develop and implement a clearly defined and measurable program that identifies all limited English proficient (LEP) families, even those whose children are proficient in English. Once identified, a plan to meet the communication needs for each LEPs family’s must then be documented and made available to the staff. Any program, service, or activity that is communicated to English-speaking parents must be also be conveyed to LEP families in their language, even when such languages are among those of lesser diffusion (rare).
Engage Families
Many parents or guardians naturally rely on their children, who often speak English better, to interpret for them or translate notes that are sent home from teachers. As one would expect, a note sent home to advise the parent or guardian about a child’s poor performance is likely not going to be translated faithfully by the same student whose performance is questionable. This conflict of interest happens on a daily basis, perhaps even in your local school system. Thus, by providing professional language interpreters and translating relevant documents, schools help parents and guardians to participate in the education of their children in a meaningful way.
Be compliant
Aside from being the right thing to do, compliance to title VI of the 1964 civil rights act requires that all public schools provide language interpretation and translation services to all parents and guardians who need these services. Every effort must be made to ensure that only qualified interpreters and translators are used to communicate with LEP parents or guardians. Schools should not rely on or ask students, siblings, friends, or untrained school staff to translate or interpret for parents or guardians. To help schools meet compliance in this area, Volatia assesses all internal resources, such as bilingual staff, and includes those who qualify in the deployment of the language access program.
The Business Case
Take our Language Access Program Survey
School systems across the country are facing a rising demand for interpreters and translators, even in languages of lesser diffusion. As a company that supports Language Access Programs for Schools, Volatia conducts surveys like this one, in school systems, as a measure of our continuous improvement efforts.
Please take a moment to share your experience even if it's by answering JUST ONE QUESTION. Thank you!
How It Works
Volatia's strength lies in our leadership approach to everything we do. We refuse to follow standard business trends but instead pave our own path to creatively innovate solutions that exceed client needs and expectations.
Instant Notification
When you request a resource, all qualified personnel are instantly notified by email, text, and mobile app. You receive an email confirmation as soon as the work order is accepted.
End-To-End Support
Our solutions are turn-key. From recruitment to payroll, and everything in between, Volatia handles 100% of the workflows associated with the transaction(s) and personnel management.
Peace Of Mind
We are committed to give you peace of mind by eliminating waste and improving productivity in each solution we provide. That is the Volatia difference.
Every teacher or member of your staff can seamlessly access an interpreter in-person, over the phone, and on video in over 280 languages. Interpreter services can be scheduled in advance or activated on-demand, 24/7/365.
Volatia helps schools turn every written communication they provide or send to English-speaking families into the languages that LEP parents and guardians understand. This includes the school’s website, parent handbooks, student discipline policies, and procedures, requests for parent or guardian permission for student participation in school activities, report cards, and student performance notifications from teachers.
Does your school have bilingual staff or contracted interpreters? If so, use terpX, Volatia’s proprietary interpeter management and scheduling platform. terpX will also anable anable your schools to receive calls from LEP individuals in any language. The caller dials the number given to them by the school and connects to an interpreter in his or her native tung. The interpreter then conferences the school department the caller wishes to reach. These solutions increase school efficiency, improves productivity, and empowers LEP families.
DEI Consulting
A home language survey is the most widely used tool in identifying LEP students and their families. To ensure legal compliance and guarantee that nothing is lost in translation, Volatia helps schools to make this form available in every language that is spoken in surrounding communities, even when such languages are rare. Volatia also helps schools turn every emergency alert sent to English speaking families into the languages that LEP families understand. Just imagine the liability on the school if they failed to notify LEP parents and guardians of a serious threat and one of them died or suffered serious injury.
24 / 7 / 365
Service Availability
99%
Annual Client Satisfaction Rating
300+
Supported Languages
10,000+
Clients
18,000+
Interpreters & Translators
20+
Years in Business
Why Choose
VOLATIA
Experience The Difference
Volatia has an intimate understanding of the communication barriers that English learners and LEP families experience in education. Our founder and CEO, Baraka Kasongo, was an English learner at William Fleming High School, and his family’s English proficiency was limited during his entire high school experience. For this reason, our school language access programs are designed to empower LEP families and support the teachers who work tirelessly to build lasting connections with their children.
Our Service Plans
Customize and manage the cost of your language access program
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