Seattle Public Schools

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Translation and Interpretation

Translation and Interpretation services available

Seattle Public Schools honors and values the participation of parents/ guardians who are speakers of diverse languages in the education of their child. Therefore, we are committed to supporting families with translation and interpretation services. In October 2022 Seattle School Board revised Policy No. 4218 Language Access to ensure the rights of parents/guardians to access information about the education of their child in a language that they can understand.

Parents’ Rights Information Sheet: Interpretation and Translation Services
This information sheet outlines parents’ rights to meaningful communication about their child’s education. (OSPI website, translations available.)

Seattle Public Schools provides translation and interpretation services to all families, free of charge, in our top languages: Amharic, Chinese, Spanish, Somali, and Vietnamese. For other languages, the district contracts with Linguistica & Lionbridge to provide “over the phone” interpretation.

Families should contact their student’s school for interpretation supports.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences are held in all Seattle Public Schools elementary and K-8 schools the week of Thanksgiving in November. The parent-teacher conference is an important meeting between you and your child’s teacher. This is an opportunity for collaboration with your child’s teacher to support your child’s success.

Guidance for Preparing for your Parent-Teacher Conference

It is natural to feel nervous about meeting your child’s teacher, particularly when language and cultural differences are involved. You may have questions about what to expect and what will be expected of you during this meeting. To ensure a successful and productive parent-teacher conference, the Multilingual Department has created guidance to help you prepare. This guidance is available in the top five languages spoken in SPS. Please click the link in the language you wish to view.