Ahmed A.
Interpreter of the Month

The Bridge is pleased to introduce Ahmed A. as our “Interpreter of the Month”, August 2005.

Languages: Native Somali, Near Native English, Conversational Swahili, Understands/Reads Arabic
Years as professional linguist: 5 years

Ahmed has a firm philosophy when it comes to interpreting, “Never accept a job that you don’t have time for.” That’s one reason Ahmed is so appreciated by The Bridge’s interpreter coordinator - he’s easy to work with and doesn’t overbook himself. Ahmed is also highly regarded by patients and staff alike for his strict adherence to ethical and confidentiality guidelines.

Ahmed learned English while growing up in Somali. In 1989, he graduated from Lafole Technical Institute, an English speaking high school located on the outskirts of Mogadishu. After graduation, he continued his English studies at Floppy College in Nairobi, Kenya for two years. While in Kenya, his family established a retail shop. English is typically the language spoken in the business district of Mombassa, Kenya, so naturally he worked at the family shop, honing his English skills daily.

Ahmed’s family immigrated to Minnesota in November 2000. He started working almost immediately as a part-time ESL assistant and interpreter in the Marshall School District and for Marshall Area Cultural Diversity Office. In 2001, he began working full-time as a Translation & Interpretation Specialist for the tri-counties of Lincoln, Lyon and Murray. He was approved as a legal interpreter by the MN Court Interpreter Program in November 2002. That same year, he also received a Certificate of Academic Excellence in English coursework from the Office of Cultural Diversity at Southwest University in Marshall.

Currently, Ahmed interprets and translates for medical, community and legal appointments for The Bridge, School District 742, and the State Court System. He is also a student at St. Cloud Technical College. He is interested in pursuing a career in medicine and has studied Health Ethics and Medical Terminology courses at the Technical College. In his spare time, Ahmed enjoys honing his Arabic language skills and learning conversational Spanish. He also collects educational books and dictionaries and enjoys reading.