Career / Experience

Translator/Interpreter in Lao and Thai
I translate Lao and Thai into accurate, standard English. Some of my recent translations include trade treaties, bank inspection reports, tax law revisions, and the Thai Criminal Code for use by the World Bank; police reports and associated court documents relating to a terrorism incident for use by a US federal agency; an internationally notorious rape-murder case investigation for a civil action in the UK; and numerous drug-related case documents for various agencies. I have translated several sets of clinical trials documents and a number of medical questionnaires, as well as employee motivational surveys and assessments. Some end users of my work include Schering-Plough, Fort Dodge Veterinary, Starbucks, McQuarie Bank, and Ford Motor Company. I am a registered court interpreter with the state of Tennessee, and also serve as a medical interpreter. The following paragraphs summarize my earlier language-related experience and qualifications.

Overt Debriefer (Thai and Lao); U.S. Defense Attaché Office, Bangkok, 1988-1990
Sought out Lao refugees and other persons claiming knowledge of U.S. prisoners of war in Southeast Asia and interviewed them in their own languages. Conducted liaison with Thai military, police, and Ministry of the Interior officials to locate and gain access to informants. Worked alone in remote locations for extended periods. Performed field analysis of interview results and wrote reports of findings.

Intelligence Analyst; Udorn, Thailand, 1969-1974
Made field assessment of military and diplomatic documents. Produced translations, gists, and intelligence reports as appropriate. In the final 18 months of this assignment, supervised a team of up to twelve language and analytic specialists in these activities.

Miscellaneous Experience:
Approximately seven years total work and residence in Thailand, mostly in the northeast near the Lao border.

1978 - 1980: Translated Thai and Lao newspaper articles on military and political subjects for U.S. Joint Publications Research Service. Occasionally served as liaison and interpreter for joint Thai-US military exercises.

Education and training:
BA/History and BS/Political Science, Tennessee Technological University, May 2002.
U.S. Defense Language Institute Thai and Lao courses.
U.S. Army Intelligence School Interrogator, Communications Analysis, and Strategic Debriefer courses.

Accreditation:
Rated Advanced in oral proficiency and Advanced-Plus in written proficiency by the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute. Consistent high scores on US Army language proficiency tests.

Registered Court Interpreter with the state of Tennessee.