When requesting interpreting services, there are many details that help us create the right match—date, time, location, type of appointment, communication needs, and, when available, consumer preferences.
A Deaf, DeafBlind, or Hard of Hearing individual may have a specific interpreter they prefer to work with. They may also have preferences related to gender, cultural background, communication style, or other factors that contribute to effective and comfortable communication.
We want to know those preferences.
And whenever possible, sharing them at the time of the initial request gives us the greatest opportunity to consider them before scheduling commitments are made.
We also understand that sometimes that information simply isn’t available yet. That’s okay, too.
We Ask About Preferences From the Beginning
Our request forms include an opportunity to share consumer preferences at the time of booking, including specific interpreter names, gender preferences, cultural preferences, and other information that may help us make an appropriate match.
If you have that information, please share it with us.
If you don’t have it yet, there is no need to delay requesting services. Send us the information you have, and preferences can always be shared when they become available.
Why Is Early Preference Information Helpful?
For recurring assignments, accepting a request can represent a significant commitment for an interpreter.
Consider a college course that meets every Tuesday and Thursday for an entire semester. When an interpreter accepts that assignment, they aren’t simply reserving the next appointment. They may be committing those days and times for several months.
Once confirmed, the interpreter often plans the rest of their professional and personal schedule around that commitment.
And Sometimes Preferences Come Later
That’s completely understandable.
Sometimes the person submitting the request doesn’t have preference information yet. Sometimes a consumer hasn’t worked with the scheduled interpreter before. Sometimes a preference develops naturally after services have begun.
Communication is personal.
A consumer may discover that they understand one interpreter’s signing style more easily. They may feel more comfortable with someone they have worked with previously. Their needs may evolve, or they may simply realize that another interpreter is a better communication match.
If a preference becomes known after an assignment has been scheduled, we still want to know.
The goal of requesting preferences early is never to prevent a consumer from expressing a preference later.
Why Changes Can Require a Little More Coordination
When a preference is received after a recurring or long-term assignment has already been confirmed, there may simply be more pieces for us to work through.
The consumer’s preference matters.
The interpreter may have already reserved significant time on their calendar.
The customer may be relying on continuity of services.
And our scheduling team needs to ensure that qualified coverage remains in place.
Our role as the agency is to help navigate those pieces thoughtfully while keeping the communication needs of the Deaf, DeafBlind, or Hard of Hearing individual at the center.
Sometimes that means making a change—and that’s okay.
Early information simply gives us more flexibility to make those decisions before everyone’s schedules have settled into place.
We’re All Working Toward the Same Goal
There are people behind every interpreting request.
There is a Deaf, DeafBlind, or Hard of Hearing individual who deserves effective communication access.
There is a customer working to coordinate that access.
There is an interpreter making a professional commitment.
And there is an agency working behind the scenes to bring all of those pieces together.
Whenever you have consumer preference information available, we welcome it.
Sharing it at the time of the request gives us the greatest opportunity to consider it before scheduling commitments are made. If you don’t have that information yet, that’s okay—please share it whenever it becomes available.
Our goal isn’t perfection at the time of booking.
It’s communication, collaboration, and creating the strongest possible experience for the person receiving services.
Because everyone deserves the whole conversation.