Mixteco Alto Linguist

Position

Mixteco Alto Linguist

Multiple locations including Whittier, California and El Paso, Texas

ILR Level 2+ (2+ IRL) in Mixteco

$110,000 – $120,000

Travel support: for non‑local candidates, flight, rental car, and some meals and incidentals will be provided.

We are excited to announce new opportunities supporting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services I in providing critical language services to unaccompanied minors in refugee programs. We are seeking linguists who speak Mixteco at ILR Level 2+ or higher.

The Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) scale is the U.S. government standard for measuring language proficiency. It ranges from Level 0 (No Proficiency) to Level 5 (Native or Bilingual Proficiency).

• ILR Level 2+ (Professional Working Proficiency) indicates that a linguist can speak, understand, read, and write the language with sufficient accuracy and fluency to participate effectively in most conversations on practical, social, and some professional topics.

Linguists will provide accurate, impartial, and confidential interpretation and translation services at ILR Level 2+ proficiency or higher to support communication between Care Staff, unaccompanied children (UC), unaccompanied minors (UAM), and unaccompanied refugee minors (URM). Linguists serve as Communication Liaisons to ensure all parties can fully understand one another in a variety of settings.

• Provide in‑person, onsite interpretation at Office of Refugee Resettlement programs and service locations (preferred).
• Deliver remote interpretation services via telephone, video conference, or other virtual means as needed, with availability for 24/7 requests.
• Facilitate communication of important deadlines, instructions, questions, and other information between Care Staff and UC/UAM/URM in their native or preferred language.
• Assist UC/UAM/URM in expressing concerns, questions, or needs when they are not fluent or comfortable communicating in English or the language spoken by Care Staff.
• Demonstrate a high level of professional judgment to mitigate language barriers and ensure effective communication between Care Staff and a UC, UAM or URM.
• Support the orientation of UC/UAM/URM to available community resources through interpretation and translation.
• Translate documents from English to the preferred language and vice versa, and occasionally from other source languages, as required.
• Help Care Staff build rapport and understand the cultural context of the populations served; while linguists are not substitutes for case managers or clinicians, they play a vital role in establishing a cultural bridge and alleviating stress for the children.

• ILR Level 2+ proficiency in both English (listening and speaking) and Mixteco (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), acquired through a specialized academic degree or a combination of experience/education.
• Successful completion of a Tier 2 background check; no security clearance required.
• Consistent exercise of discretion and judgment and advanced knowledge in the field of linguistics.
• Application of advanced language skills, cultural expertise, and professional judgment to facilitate communication in sensitive and complex situations.
• Autonomy, decision‑making, and a high degree of responsibility in managing language services to meet the needs of ORR programs and the vulnerable populations served.