About BAII
Bay Area Independent Interpreters was established to fill gaps in interpreter service provision in the Bay Area. While access to communication is mandated for nearly all entities under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, many small organizations find procuring interpreters difficult and confusing. This can leave those with sporadic or one-time interpreting needs scrambling between the sticker shock of paying agency rates and casting about for under-qualified volunteers. BAII seeks to provide an intermediate option by providing easy, direct access to a network of qualified interpreters at rates that are more affordable for smaller requestors. In doing so, we strive to connect more organizations with more interpreters, thereby increasing access and outreach in and around the Bay Area.
Meet the Founders of BAII
Roberto Santiago
Roberto Santiago is a proud third generation Bay Area native. He first got involved with the Deaf community as a high school junior volunteering as a white water rafting guide for Inspiring Connections Outdoors. Inspired by those connections, Roberto earned an Associate of Arts in Deaf Studies at Berkeley City College, a Bachelor of Arts in Deaf Studies at California State University Northridge and a Master of Arts in Interpretation from Gallaudet University. Roberto is currently a PhD candidate in Sign Language Interpreting Pedagogy & Research at Gallaudet. Over the course of his career, Roberto has worked in the community as a freelancer and as a staff interpreter. He has extensive experience in video relay, having worked for four of the major VRS providers. Roberto has been a manager at an agency, an instructor and administrator in colleges and universities and has worked in all levels of government. He has long been a champion for increasing access by finding cost effective solutions for organizations seeking to hire interpreters. Bay Area Independent Interpreters is another step in advancing that goal.
Matt Salerno
Matt has been proudly serving as an ASL/English interpreter since 2015. What started as a deep dive into the world of linguistics during a high school ASL 1 class quickly transformed into the pursuit of a career as an interpreter. Inspired by the transcription work developed by William Stokoe, Matt soon found himself taking any opportunity to become involved with the ASL community in his hometown on Long Island. He moved upstate to Rochester, New York in 2013 to work toward a B.S. in ASL/English Interpreting from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf on the campus of the Rochester Institute of Technology. Starting his career while still a student there, he began interpreting in community college classes and at local political demonstrations. During his practicum mentorships, Matt worked under the tutelage of a designated interpreter as well as a veteran relay interpreter for a major VRS provider. These experiences inspired him to pursue such careers and was hired as a designated interpreter to a grant program supporting Deaf graduate students at a research center on campus at RIT/NTID immediately after graduation. In 2017, Matt moved out west to the Bay Area where he accepted a position in management for a major VRS provider. As of 2020 he has dedicated the focus of his practice to working as a community interpreter and small business owner. He has been providing interpreting services locally, on location, and virtually. Matt is committed to empowering himself and his colleagues when it comes to the business of interpreting and relishes in dialogue with clients and team interpreters.