Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.

Trusted CART & ASL Services in Salt Lake City, UT

American Language Services has been helping businesses and other entities reach the deaf and hard of hearing community for more than 35 years. While in-person interpreting, at one time, was the only option, recent technological advances opened the door to other options. Since we offer full-service Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), this article will be comparing Virtual American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting with Communication Access Real-Time Translation (AKA- Closed Captioning & Real Time Subtitling) known as CART.

 Please note that according to the American Disability Act (ADA) that deaf and hard of hearing community have the legal right to receive full access through the use of ASL and or CART services. The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities and providing ASL interpreters for deaf individuals complies with federal law and promotes equal accessibility.

Some interesting Facts About the City of Salt Lake City

• SLC was listed as Advocate’s “Gayest City in the USA” in 2012. It fell to sixth place in 2013, which is still remarkably (and somewhat surprisingly) high.
• The 2002 Winter Olympics in SLC were considered one of the most successful in Winter Olympics history. It is reported that over two billion viewers tuned in for the events, watching more than 13 billion hours of coverage total.
• The Games were also so financially successful at selling tickets, they beat the projected ticket revenue target by nearly 183 percent.
• Though the invention of the electric traffic light belongs to Cleveland, Lester Wire of Salt Lake City came up with the first design for a traffic light that actually used red and green lights to designate “stop” and go.”
• The city’s Pride Festival began in 1983 and is now one of the biggest events in the city. It draws in over 25,000 attendees including hundreds of members of the LDS community, all showing their support for the gay community.
• Salt Lake City was the first city in Utah to pass nondiscrimination ordinances based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• With an abundance of jobs and a lower cost of living than the national average, CNN crowned Salt Lake City as the #1 least stressed-out city in the United States in 2014.
• Salt Lake City is super proud of the classic film “The Sandlot,” which was shot in Salt Lake City, ensuring that you will forever hear someone from SLC yell out “you play ball like a girl!” at every baseball game.
• Controversial actress-comedian Roseanne Barr was born in SLC in 1952 where she claims she was partially active in the LDS church. When she was six years old, Barr began giving lectures on stage around the community.
• Salt Lake City is still currently the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but less than half of the people in Salt Lake City proper are active members.
• Long live Pong! Founder of Atari and pioneer of the video gaming industry, Nolan Bushnell, is from Salt Lake City where he attended the University of Utah. He is also responsible for beginning Chuck E. Cheese venues.
• Salt Lake City played host to the XIX Olympic Winter Games in 2002 which brought nearly 2,400 athletes to compete from almost 80 nations.
• The arrival of the Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City made Utah the fifth state in the United States to ever host the event. It remains the most recent games to be held in the country.
• The 1990s cult film “SLC Punk” took place in Salt Lake City, where it was also filmed. Director James Merendino has said that he created the film based on his experiences growing up in the city.
• Salt Lake City has an impressive and growing beer scene, with more than a dozen breweries within city limits. The Wasatch Brewery is the most popular, but each one has continued making a name for itself. The 2013 Great American Beer Festival gave four medals to SLC breweries.
• Legendary female rocker Stevie Nicks, known for her solo work along with her time in Fleetwood Mac, spent her early teenage years in Salt Lake City until the end of 10th grade, when her father announced that they were moving.
• Robert “Bobby” McFerrin whose biggest hit is the infectious “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” song, has said that the moment that he realized he was meant to be a singer was while living in Salt Lake City and working as an accompanist in the dance department at the University of Utah.
• You can find some of the oddest folk art at the Gilgal Garden in SLC, including a sphinx that is carved with the face of the Mormon church founder Joseph Smith, weighing two tons.
• The Utah Arts Festival has been running strong since 1977, topping out at over 80,000 attendees to visit over 160 booths and catch shows among eight performance venues.
• Idaho might be known for its potatoes, but now Salt Lake City is, too. In 2006, the United Potato Growers of America announced it was relocating its headquarters to Salt Lake City to be closer to the airport for travel.
• Controversial and highly acclaimed smarty-pants, Ken Jennings is from Salt Lake City. He holds the record for the most consecutive Jeopardy! games played and won more than $2.5 million.
• Salt Lake City is proud to host portions of the annual Sundance Film Festival, bringing thousands from the industry and movie buffs alike to see the largest independent film festival held in the United States. The headquarters is located around Park City.
• The renowned Mormon Tabernacle Choir was founded as far back as 1847.
• American Idol’s season seven runner-up, David Archuleta, is from Salt Lake City.
• George W. Bush’s Deputy Chief to Staff and personal advisor, Karl Rove, is a Salt Lake City boy.
• The Utah Jazz have been to the NBA playoffs 25 times, making them the most successful team in the franchise during that time. However, they have yet to win a championship.
• The Daughters of Utah Pioneer Memorial Museum is home to a ton of crazy exhibits, including a two-headed lamb on display.
• The HBO series that focused on polygamy, Big Love, took place in SLC and was filmed there, as well.
• As the biggest lake west of the Mississippi, the Great Salt Lake covers 2,100 square miles, making it bigger than the state of Rhode Island and Delaware.
• The Great Salt Lake contains somewhere between 4.5 to 4.9 billion tons of salt. And yes, you’ll float in it.
• The Great Salt Lake gets its abnormally high amount of salt as the streams from the mountain ranges carry minerals. And since the lake has no outlet, those minerals have nowhere to go.
• It’s a snowboarder’s paradise. The average yearly snowfall at Salt Lake City resorts is 500 inches.
• The snowiest season ever recorded in the city’s history was 117.3 inches during the winter of 1951-1952, while the snowiest month on record was during January of 1993 which saw 50.3 inches of white stuff to plow through.
• The highest mountaintop visible from SLC is Twin Peaks, stretching all the way to 11,330 feet in the sky.
• If you’ve ever ordered anything from Overstock.com, your order was processed through Salt Lake City where the company is located.
• The Mormon Temple, which is one of SLC’s biggest landmarks, had its foundation built twice, and the whole thing took 40 years to complete.
• You don’t have to look to the sky to find the Big Dipper. The constellation, often used as a map to find the North Star, is etched on the west center tower of the Temple. 

Reference Source: Movoto Real Estate

Salt Lake City ASL & CART Language Interpreters

American Language Services is known for our high-quality, In-person and Virtual interpreters, as well as the outstanding client services we provide. We work in 200+ languages including Legal and Medical Certified and Qualified.  ASL and CART are the fastest growing languages in Salt Lake City today a language interpreter can be a very underestimated professional in the world today. There are over 100 languages spoken in the Salt Lake City Metro area alone. Many of us know one language, and we specialize in one field of study. Our Salt Lake City Interpreters are fluent in English and at least one other language, and they are knowledgeable in a wide range of specialized fields including legal, medical, technical, manufacturing, and engineering.

A brief history of ASL Interpreting in Salt Lake City

Most people know that ASL stands for American Sign Language. But not everyone knows that it is a distinct language—not simply an offshoot of American English. Though its beginnings are murky, many believe that ASL originated from a merger of French Sign Language (SLF) and local U.S. sign languages. While ASL and SLF are distinct languages, there are still some similarities between their signs.

What actually is ASL?   ASL a complete, natural language that has the same linguistic properties as spoken languages with grammar however that differs from English. ASL is expressed by movements of the hands and face.  ASL is a language completely separate and distinct from English. It contains all the fundamental features of language, with its own rules for pronunciation, word formation, and word order.  Because of the physical nature of ASL, a two-person team of ASL interpreters is required for assignments longer than 1 hour in duration.

The National Center for Health Statistics claims that 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, though only between two and eight percent of them are natural ASL speakers.  Helping these select individuals translate the audible into the understandable is the job of an ASL interpreter.  If you have ever been to a play, a concert or watched a government briefing, you have probably seen an ASL interpreter signing just out of view.  An interesting side note is that Statista estimates that there are currently around 60,000 active ASL interpreters in the USA.

The Benefits of ASL Interpreting in Salt Lake City

When it comes to communicating with hard-of-hearing or deaf audiences, there are a few reasons you might want to opt for a Salt Lake City ASL interpreter over CART services. These include:

• A More Personal Connection: A real person has several advantages over a computer screen. First, human interpreters have an easier time conveying emotion. Second, they are better equipped to point out speakers and assist with pronunciation issues. Finally, an interpreter gives a deaf or hard of hearing person a chance to bond with another person.
• Enhanced Speed: Skilled interpreters can hold pace with even the fastest speakers. Lack of delay makes it easier for deaf and hard of hearing individuals to keep up with the conversation.
• Cost Effective:  While costs range by the type of ASL you need (Legal, medical, business, etc.) and when the assignment is scheduled, the cost off ASL, across the board, is less money than CART.

What Is CART?

While the majority of people know what American Sign Language is, the same cannot be said for Communication Access Real-Time Translation. Often referred to as CART, this communication method for the deaf and hard of hearing is best described as subtitling for live discussions. Unlike ASL, which relies on a professional interpreter, CART services are provided by a well-trained stenographer or transcriptionist. They transcribe anything said and then broadcast the resulting text to a phone, computer, or TV screen.

CART is often seen as a cost-effective and efficient way to ensure everybody can follow along. While often used to help deaf students in the classroom, CART captioning benefits anyone that can read.  Much like ASL interpreting, it can be done both onsite with a physical transcriptionist or remotely with an offsite one.

Why You Should Consider CART for the Salt Lake CityMarket

Communication Access Real-Time Translation is growing in popularity due to the following characteristics:

• It Serves a Wider Array of Deaf People: If you do a little math, you will realize that 65 percent of hard-of-hearing people in the USA do not speak ASL fluently. CART makes it so these people can join in on the conversation as well.
• CART Makes It Scalable: While people in the front rows can easily make out what an interpreter is signing, it gets harder as the distance increases. Since captions can be beamed to multiple screens simultaneously, they do not have to factor speaker distance into the equation.
• The Text Provides a Written Record: Having a transcript of everything your professor said would be a godsend come finals. Having a record of a meeting can also provide clarity to all those involved as well. The physical nature of CART recording makes that possible. This ability is one reason so many college students opt for CART over traditional ASL interpreting. 

About American Language Services

Founded in 1985, American Language Services was there to help pioneer the rise in remote ASL interpreting options. Our dedication to quality and client satisfaction in interpreting allowed us to shift from a one-woman agency into one of the most successful language agencies in the world. Our language experts provide ASL & CART interpreting services to people all around the world. Because of our 24/7 availability, you’ll never have to worry about us not being available, on off times, for an assignment.

AML-Global has some of the most impressive linguistic talents in the world. These highly skilled language professionals are recruited, screened, and tested to ensure high-quality work.

Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.