CATIE Center

Frequently Asked Questions about the CATIE Center



What is the CATIE Center?
The CATIE Center is housed at St. Catherine University. Our name, CATIE came from our intention to serve as a Collaborative for the Advancement of Teaching Interpreting Excellence. But we prefer to go by CATIE.

We are a member of the National Consortium of Interpreter Education Centers, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA, grant #H160A100003) to significantly increase the number of qualified interpreters available to interpret in vocational rehabilitation and other professional settings. Our region covers the following states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The CATIE Center Staff includes Paula Gajewski-Mickelson, Richard Laurion, Laurie Swabey, Rosa Ramirez, Staci Pierce and Andrea Olson.

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How do I apply for funding?
We no longer have a mini-grant program, as funding under this current grant cycle is already allocated to support specific events that are developed to meet the strict requirements of the federal priorities, and our grant. Programs we support:
  1. Offer expanded scope and sequence of study (beyond a one day workshop)
  2. Model effective practices, and draw on teaching methods that have been demonstrated to be effective
  3. Provide participants with an opportunity to achieve measurable improvement in a skill set or specialty area
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How is the CATIE Center the same as the previous RSA Region V Interpreter Education Project?
It remains our goal to significantly increase the number of qualified interpreters in the field, while providing resources and opportunities that are accessible to interpreters of all backgrounds and experiences.

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How is this different from previous grants?
  1. The regional and national centers are guided by a new model, focusing on:
    • Building a national consortium of partners
    • Creating a network of key local partners that include individual and agency stakeholders
    • Eliminate duplication, redundancy, overlap and waste
    • Expand and enhance education and professional development opportunities
    • Promote programs that are significant in scope and sequence
    • Develop, collect and report on performance quality indicators, demonstrating how the centers are making progress in addressing the priorities identified for this RSA funding cycle.
  2. The previous structure consisted of 10 regional and two national projects. Under the new model, there are five regional centers and one national center. Each center is responsible for a larger geographic region than in the past.
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