The Language Justice Lab
Help equip advanced heritage and native-speaking students with specialized translation training to ensure equitable access to essential community care.
Project Leads
Carey Kasten, Professor, Department of Languages and Cultures
Emerson Argueta, Associate Director, Feerick Center for Social Justice
Audrey Evrard, Associate Professor of French
Carl Fischer, Professor of Spanish
Dora Galacatos, Senior Advisor, Feerick Center for Social Justice
Lisa Landau, Executive Director, Feerick Center for Social Justice
Andrew Rasmussen, Professor of Psychology
Vicente Rubio, Advanced Lecturer of Spanish
Project Description
The Language Justice Lab is a transdisciplinary initiative designed to bridge the “competency gap” in legal and clinical services where professional expertise often fails to reach non-English speaking communities. Grounded in the principle that language justice--the right everyone has to communicate in the language in which they feel most comfortable--is a fundamental human right, this pilot addresses the acute shortage of qualified translation and interpretation services within campus-based initiatives and local community partnerships.
By merging the linguistic and cultural competencies of the Languages and Cultures faculty with professional domains across the university and its surrounding communities, the Language Justice Lab creates a rigorous framework where advanced heritage and native-speaking students integrate their language skills with academic knowledge and specialized professional training.
Key components of the pilot include:
- Specialized Certification: Students undergo rigorous field-specific translation/interpretation training.
- Experiential Internships: Students will work 5–10 hours/month, providing critical linguistic support at sites such as
- Fordham’s Community Mental Health Clinic, The Feerick Center for Social Justice, St. Nicholas of Tolentine and other campus clinics.
- Reflective Pedagogy: A 2-credit course combines field work with theory and reflection.
Starting with Spanish to meet immediate local needs, this model establishes a scalable infrastructure for future expansion into languages such as French, Mandarin, Russian, and Arabic. Ultimately, the Language Justice Lab fulfills the university’s Jesuit mission by equipping students to address communication barriers and promote equity across our local and global communities.