Liz Essary

Twenty years ago, during the last year of my undergraduate work towards a B.A. in Spanish, I started working as a medical interpreter, and a career was born.

I spent 15 years in healthcare as an interpreter, trainer, and manager of a large language services department. This rich experience sparked a love not only for interpreting and service to others, but also an understanding of the pleasure of helping people understand the power of well-planned interpreter services.

During my time in healthcare, I earned two certifications: Indiana State Supreme Court Interpreter Certification (Spanish), and the Certified Healthcare Interpreter™ credential. In 2015, I left healthcare to finish my graduate work and earned a Masters of Conference Interpreting from Glendon College in Toronto, Ontario (English A, Spanish B). My work as an interpreter has been varied and continues to evolve, and has gone from academic conferences and more technical work, to meetings and workshops for NGOs and artists.

I hold a B.A. in Spanish from Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI), where I was Associate Faculty in the World Languages and Cultures Department from 2016-2020. I currently teach healthcare interpreting online for first year graduate students at the Glendon College of Translation, and in the conference interpreting course for i2B, a Brazilian-based program delivered in the online classroom.

Over the last 20 years, I lived, studied, and worked in Spain, France, Costa Rica, Toronto, and Indianapolis before settling down in Houston in 2020.

In my personal life, I love playing around with language learning, writing, drawing, and hunkering down with my cat Frank and a book. A former line cook and server, I am a lover of all things restaurant culture. I love connecting with interpreters and people who are interested in interpreter services.