• BPS Parent Language Access Services include offering language support to the families of the district by translating and/or interpreting from English (Source Language) to the Target Language (such as Arabic, Cabo Verdiano, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Somali, Spanish, Vietnamese, etc.) of the parent/guardian in question.
• Interpretation requests should be submitted a minimum of 2 weeks prior to the date of service.
• Interpretation services are available for both General Education and Special Education events, including but not limited to: parent-teacher meetings, student conferences, screenings, Individualized Education Plan (IEP) & 504 meetings, school enrollment, dissemination of information specific to school activities and programs, etc.  
• ASL  interpretation requests should be submitted as early as possible (3 to 4 weeks prior) for the best chances of securing services.
• In emergency instances (e.g., medical emergencies, criminal activities, etc.) ASL interpretation services can be requested via MCDHH with less than 24 to 48-hour notice, but the fulfillment of said request is not guaranteed.
• Special Education meetings (i.e., IEP & evaluations) should be requested at the earliest in order to secure services.
• To eliminate the number of interpretation cancellations or no-shows, we ask you to do the following:
  • Confirm parent attendance two days before the scheduled event.
  • If a parent is not attending,  promptly inform the agency and the Translation and Interpretation Unit (interpretations@bostonpublicschools.org) of the cancelation.  Cancelation confirmations need to be confirmed 24 hours before the date/time of service in order not to be charged.

For additional guidance, please see    

• The Guidelines: Securing ASL Interpreters
• Guidelines: ASL Accessible Remote Meetings
• Guidelines: ASL Accessible Meetings

If, after securing an interpreter, you need to cancel the service, please email the agency/vendor in question as soon as possible, CCing interpretations@bostonpublicschools.org. When canceling, please provide the below-listed information:

• Request Submittal Number
• Requester Name
• Requester Telephone Number
• School or Department
• Date and time of interpretation appointment
• Language(s) requested

If you have your confirmation, you can also send that with a request to cancel to the appropriate agency.

LINK TO FULL POLICY LINK >>>>>>>>  TRANSLATION & INTERPRETATION SERVICES POLICY MEMORANDUM

Important: The Office of Language Access Services is phasing out the rental of interpretation equipment. For more details, please read the full memo here. Our team is available to support you during this transition. Thank you for your understanding.

Click here to Submit an Interpretation Request