YLC Language Staff Biographies
Take a moment to meet just a few of the professionals who bring Your Language Connection’s services to you in over 20 languages!
Meet Our Translators: Refka
Refka Zaki was born and raised in Egypt. She finished school, got married, and came to the United States with her husband and two kids in 2001. After arriving in Lancaster, some friends took them in. Refka’s kids went to school and she eventually was able to find a job.
Refka and her family started life in a new culture. Everything seemed difficult for them in the beginning. The first year was hard because they had to learn the language and adjust to being far from family and friends who lived in Egypt. They started to adjust to the culture and began going to church; they also enjoy activities like shopping and going to the beach. Refka has since had another boy and has kids in college. She and her family now lead a comfortable life in the United States.
Meet Our Interpreters: Jalilah
Jalilah was born in Damascus where she studied Arabic, her native language, for 15 years. She has studied English since the third grade, and she completed her education at the United Nations Training Center in Damascus as an Architectural Painter. She has been with YLC since October and has 4 years of experience interpreting. She has also been teaching Arabic to both Arabs and non-Arabs for the past 5 years.
Damascus, Syria is the oldest city in the world. It is known as the “city of jasmine” or “fragrant city,” and people often decorate their homes with this white, sweet-smelling flower. It is also known for its relaxing hammam, or Turkish Baths, which include steam, a scrub down, soap bath, and a massage.
Jalilah has also traveled extensively throughout the Middle East to the United Arab Emirates, Libya, Lebanon, Iraq, and to Austria and Canada.
Meet Our Teachers: Jody
Jody started studying Spanish in the eighth grade and continued throughout her school career, also studying in Spain and Mexico. She studied Latin in High School and switched to French in College. She is certified to teach in both French and Spanish and also has an ESL certification. She has worked with YLC since late 2009 and has nineteen years of experience teaching.
Her favorite part of teaching a language is being able to see someone who can communicate with others in a language other than English. She also believes that being able to understand different languages and cultures is a wonderful skill to acquire. One challenge for her is making certain that she appropriately and successfully meets the needs of her students, and she wants to work with them so that they can be successful.
She stresses that when learning a new language, it is extremely important to be willing to try and use it. You need to be courageous and willing to try something new. It may not be easy, but hard work and perseverance will lead to success.
Jody’s students describe her as helpful, flexible, organized, and dedicated to their success. Although some students may require more time or assistance, Jody believes that all students have the ability to learn a new language.
Meet Our Translators: Gayda
Gayda belongs to one of the indigenous tribes of the Philippines—the Igorots. She grew up in the Philippines and lived there until she was 29 years old (six years ago) and has been living in Lancaster since she came to the States.
She spoke Kankana-ey growing up, which is one of the numerous dialects that the Igorots speak. She also speaks Ilocano, another dialect which is the third most spoken language in the northern part of the Philippines. She learned to speak Ilokano through her playmates. She learned to speak Filipino (which is considered to be the politically correct term for the Filipino language, instead of the more commonly known Tagalog) when she started going to school in kindergarten. English, which is also taught in school, is her fourth language.
Filipinos are very friendly and have close family ties. There is also a lot of respect for older people. The Filipinos are relatively happy despite the corruption and poverty that the country is experiencing.
Meet Our Teachers: Taeko
Taeko was born in Japan, got a degree in Social Work, and taught School-Age Daycare from 1st to 6th grade for 11 years. After more study of English in Japan, England and San Diego, she got a degree in Education Psychology, doing a counseling practicum in elementary school. Taeko has taught Japanese at YLC since 2009 and also privately for 3 years. She came with family from Japan in 2006.
Taeko likes to adapt her examples to the interests of her students. She also gives tips on using the Internet as a resource along with the guided teaching needed to learn Japanese. Taeko enjoys talking with people who have an interest in Japan and Japanese because of anime, friendships, or the like.
It’s challenging to convince students that it’s worthwhile to learn a little each day to see progress. So she would advise that each day you have a short practice session, if you can, so that the language stays fresh. Students find her both encouraging and challenging in helping them stretch to learn a language very different from English.
Meet Our Teachers: Lois
Lois has over 40 years of teaching experience and has been with YLC since 2010. She is fluent in English and Spanish and acquired her second language by taking classes, traveling and living abroad.
Her favorite thing about teaching is seeing the expression on a learner’s face when he/she “cracks the code” to something. She also believes that teaching another language to native speakers of English helps break down barriers about differences and contributes to our being good citizens in a global society.
One thing she believes to be challenging about teaching is convincing a learner that he/she can acquire a language and that because someone else learns more or faster doesn’t matter. It’s the persistence factor that’s important. Her advice for learning a new language? Stick with it.
She would also like to add, “Many of my former students stay in touch with me on Facebook and I am always flattered when I get messages from them because it confirms that they respected me as a teacher and care enough to be friends as our relationship has matured.”
Meet Our Interpreters: Maxime
Maxime, one of our interpreters, is from a multicultural French-Middle Eastern background. He speaks native and Creole French as well as English, all of which he acquired through his parents from birth. He has a BS in Life Science Biomedical Engineering and a MS in both Education and Applied Engineering Mathematics. He is currently a PhD candidate in Health Care and is working on his ESL certification with the Midwest Education Group. He has been with YLC since last December and has over ten years of experience interpreting.
One thing he would like others to know about his culture is that the French care about each other and enjoy life. One myth about his culture is that the French are arrogant; if you show them respect, they will respect you just as in any other culture. Finally, some advice he has for meeting or working with a French person is to be courteous, respectful, and ask questions before making any invalid statements.
