Who We Are

Who we are

SLIS is a women owned small business incorporated in the state of Georgia. Started in 1994 by interpreter Ruth Dubin, MEd, CI/CT and developer Susan Eddy, MS, our mission is two fold: consistently meet the interpreting needs of Deaf, hard of hearing, and Deaf-Blind people by providing quality services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and establish and maintain a high professional standard in the freelance sign language interpreting field.

Our philosophy

We believe there are three vital parts in the equation of an effective interpreting service: the Deaf, hard of hearing, or Deaf-Blind person(s), the interpreter(s), and the hearing person(s). We feel strongly that each of these three must be supported and respected in order for the interaction to be successful.

At SLIS we have a strong commitment to honor the Deaf person's specific needs, such as language preference, technical background, medical interpreting experience, etc. Next, SLIS recognizes and meets freelancers' needs for support and respect, including accurate assignment information, excellent team support, easy billing, and timely payments. Last, but not least, many hearing people in the role of procuring interpreting services for the first time often do not understand the issues involved; once the hearing person is given information they need they are able to take responsibility appropriately.

When these three components are acknowledged and brought together an effective working relationship can flourish, producing higher quality service, increased numbers of qualified freelancers to do the work, and better informed requesters who are able to get their jobs done well.