IKRAM ABDI

Work History

International Rescue Committee

02.2022 - Current

Outperformed the outreach and recruitment of program participants by 30% for ORR.
Utilized my extensive understanding of asylum and immigration systems to grow the microenterprise program enrollments in the ORR sector.
Screened and assessed interested participants for program eligibility and participation.
Assisted entrepreneurs in preparing for business financing by preparing loan applications, grants, business plans, and financial statements.
Underwritten and packaged loan applications, and presented them for review to the IRC's Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), the Center for Economic Opportunity.
Supported mainstream business loan package applications and connected business owners to local, state, and federal small business support.
Proactively facilitated referrals to outside service providers as necessary to meet the diverse needs of program participants.
• Assisted in planning and coordinating training activities and special events for refugees and other target communities.

Pacific Interpreters

10.2016 - 11.2020

Played an integral role in the asylum and immigration program development for interpretation, translation, and localization; primarily focusing on data analysis, research & evaluation, program research, and other data synthesis parameters.
Collaborated with resettlement agencies including IRC and other cross-border agencies by facilitating multi-departmental efforts to bridge knowledge and enhance collaboration efforts in many fronts including asylum and immigration.
Provided training to interpreters and other interpretation professionals on standards for interpreting and translation.
Coordinated the development of interpretation training materials and technical guidance that included diverse training and dissemination practices for immigration and asylum systems in several countries including the United States and the European Union.
Developed several cutting-edge and industry-compliant interpreter test templates for immigration and asylum court interpreters in the United Staes, Canada, and the European Union.
Participated in developing and expanding training material for interpreters and others in the interpretation and translation fields in several partner countries.
Managed and steered the quality assurance department for interpreter standards and protocols in immigration courts, resettlement agencies, and asylum facilities.
Built databases and tables for data analysis in interpretation and translation procedures.

PACIFIC INTERPRETERS/LANGUAGE LINE SOLUTIONS

04.2007 - 08.2020

Collaborated with the language professional team to interpret and translate various materials from English to other languages, mostly in immigration and asylum cases.
Prepared for interpreting tasks by researching and gathering information about immigration policies in many countries in the European Union, the United States, and Canada.
Conducted accurate interpretations between English-speaking providers and Limited English Proficiency (LEP) clients in immigration courts, asylum facilities, hospitals, refugee resettlement agencies, and others.
Utilized knowledge of accepted ethical guidelines to interpret confidential and sensitive information in many fields.
Provided precise interpreting services for non-profit and resettlement agencies in communicating with their clients.
Assessed candidate adherence to interpreter code of ethics, and knowledge of medical terminologies and acronyms.
Promoted client interpreter adherence to professional interpreter standards and interpreter code of ethics.

LANGUAGE LINE SOLUTIONS

05.2014 - 08.2016

Assessed and helped redesign new and existing testing templates for numerous organizations, some in immigration and asylum.
Developed and recorded online testing templates to be used by future immigration court interpreters.
Screened and tested interpreter language proficiencies both in oral as well as written fluency.
Compiled performance and evaluation reports on interpreter candidates, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses for internal use and outside agencies.
Monitored previously recorded interpretation sessions provided by outside agencies for QA and review including immigration courts.
Participated in panel reviews of candidate performances and training standards for certification purposes in asylum and immigration fields.