Multilingual Services
Somerville Public Schools’ Multilingual Services is committed to ensuring meaningful and equitable language access for all students and families.
The department supports schools and district staff in communicating effectively with families whose preferred language is not English, ensuring that language is never a barrier to a student’s education or a family’s participation in the school community.
Our Team
he SFLC Multilingual Services Office is a team of four dedicated professionals:
- Micaela Yang – Multilingual Services Coordinator
- Viviana O’Toole – Spanish Interpreter/Translator
- Vanuza Teixeira – Portuguese Interpreter/Translator
- Angie Surpris – Haitian Creole Interpreter/Translator
All members of the Multilingual Services Office team are trained instructors with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Our Multilingual Services Coordinator is a nationally certified educational and medical interpreter and brings extensive experience in language access, interpreter training, and educational settings.
The Multilingual Services Office provides and coordinates language access services throughout Somerville Public Schools, including:
- Interpretation: Supporting communication between families and schools for meetings, conferences, evaluations, school events, and other educational needs.
- Translation: Supporting the translation of important school and district communications and materials.
- Interpreter Training: Providing professional development and training to help school staff and interpreters develop the knowledge and skills needed for effective educational interpreting.
- Language Access Support: Helping schools determine the most appropriate language access solution for their students and families.
In addition to our in-house interpreters, Somerville Public Schools maintains a pool of interpreters and works with professional interpreting agencies to meet the language needs of our community.
Families can request interpretation or translation services through their school. If you need language support, please contact your child’s Family Liaison (listed on the school’s homepage) or another member of your school team. The school will work with the Multilingual Services Office to arrange the appropriate language access services.
Somerville Public Schools is proud to serve as a DESE training vendor, providing Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education-approved training for interpreters working in educational settings. For more information, contact Micaela Yang at myang@k12.somerville.ma.us.