Wednesday, March 10, 2010.

• Cultural Assessments
• Access Point Linguistic Assessments
• Community Needs Assessments
• Cultural Competence Plan
• Outreach Marketing
• Cultural Competence Training
• Medical Interpreter Training
• Working with interpreters in Health Care
• Translations and Interpretations
• Bilingual Skill Validation
• Bilingual Call Center

• Healthcare
• Financial
• Insurance
• Government

CulturaLink was founded as the result of an undeniable cultural reality. When Yolanda Robles was a small child, she left her home -the Dominican Republic and followed her family to the U.S. There, she learned in no time how to blend into her new environment, and quickly became her family's interpreter. That small girl grew up and discovered herself as a curious, determined individual, and a fully educated member of society. That, and her passion for integrating members of the fast growing Hispanic/Latino community, led her to become an expert in education and training.

When she found herself thinking of the foundations of what would become CulturaLink, she remembered one of her favorite stories growing up: the history of the Tainos, a strong, determined group of natives that were established on what we know today as Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and other Central American countries; and whose name meant "good and noble", but were also natural leaders among the other groups of natives who lived in those areas. Ms. Robles loved the way they helped their communities develop -in arts, crafts and means of living, and decided she would use their imagery as an inspiration of what she wanted to do next.

Along the way, she met her partner Richard Gordon. Through his own work and personal experiences in recruiting and staffing, Mr. Gordon was quickly interested in the challenges faced by many businesses when cultural integration became an undeniable reality across the country.

They teamed up to embody what the real spirit of CulturaLink is: a bridge for companies -and members of the community- to cross the cultural and language barriers that lead to disparities. Its corporate image also resonates that spirit: both sides -organizations and communities- working together on well-oiled machinery that provides a more culturally integrated and culturally proficient business… and individuals, just as Yolanda envisioned.