Interpreter Training

Training: Blue Ridge Area Health Education Center offers two interpreter training programs. These training programs help ensure that all community residents have access to clear and accurate communication with health and human service providers.



Offered several times a year, Bridging the Gap curriculum trains qualified bilingual persons to become specialized professional interpreters in medical and other healthcare settings.



Offered only occasionally, the Introduction to Community Interpreting trains bilingual persons to effectively interpret in public settings such as school systems, social services, and government agencies.

Both programs require that participants pass a written and oral language proficiency examination. Fees for testing: $60.  Fees for 40-hour training: $500. 

Service: Blue Ridge AHEC provides highly qualified interpreters for medical, school, social service and behavioral health offices in the Shenandoah Valley.  All requests for interpreters must come from the service provider, with no charge to the client/patient.

Languages Spoken by Interpreters: 

• Arabic
• Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian
• English
• Farsi
• French
• Kurdish
• Russian/Ukranian
• Spanish