Marla Berkowitz was hired as an American Sign Language interpreter for Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s coronavirus briefings. Berkowitz, a senior lecturer in the ASL program at Ohio State, is the only ASL Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI) in the state of Ohio. Credit: Marla Berkowitz

Many helped lead the spread of information on the COVID-19 pandemic to the world, some of whom many never heard on TV— including Marla Berkowitz who served as an American Sign Language interpreter for Gov. Mike DeWine’s coronavirus briefings. 

Berkowitz, a senior lecturer in the ASL program at Ohio State, is the only ASL Certified Deaf Interpreter in Ohio and interpreted for DeWine for two years, helping make vital information accessible for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community. As Berkowitz signed, striking the right tone through facial expressions, body language and hand movements, she said in an email it was important to make sure the state reaches out to every Ohioan.

“When we talk about the pandemic, we all are deeply concerned about the alarming spread and severity of health-related issues such as COVID,” Berkowitz said. “How do people know about what they need to do to protect themselves? Who will take up the responsibility to use ASL ensuring a marginalized group such as monolingual Deaf people have information concerning their health that is 100% accessible to them?” 

Berkowitz said seeing social injustice, inequity along with her own experiences as a Deaf person have driven her passion for helping others within the Deaf community. In addition to her work with Ohio State’s ASL program and with DeWine, Berkowitz has been active in the Jewish Deaf community, co-founding the Jewish Deaf Resource Center. 

Berkowitz said she is also does ASL translations for the Supreme Court of Ohio’s court forms as well as a committee member of the Coalition of Deaf Access and Equity Group and Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids in Ohio. She also is the project coordinator for the Deaf Literacy Program for Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, the Ohio School for the Deaf and Delaware Area Career Center, she said.

Berkowitz said her aim to help others understand the world around them led her to become an interpreter and educator at Ohio State.

“I have always been in the position to clarify, help when it comes down to facilitating communication so that everyone leaves feeling they are being understood and understand the circumstances surrounding them,” Berkowitz said. “I guess therefore it is what I do today. Even during the ASL program’s staff meetings when everyone uses ASL to communicate, I still find myself being useful as the clarifier.”

There are about 303,000 Deaf or hard-of-hearing people in Ohio, according to the Ohio Department of Health.

With DeWine’s coronavirus briefings, Berkowitz became the first deaf person in Ohio history to interpret critical information directly to the deaf community, and she said she is honored to have been a trailblazer in that regard. 

“Being a trailblazer is an honor I’d never take for granted because it is a sacred work I take very seriously every time I go out and do my job to ensure Deaf and Hard of Hearing people of all walks of life and their hearing counterparts have effective communication,” Berkowitz said. 

Berkowitz said her team of ASL interpreters for the coronavirus briefings consisted of two others: Lena Smith from Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities worked as the team coordinator who collection information and details, handling journalists’ questions as well as  Christy Horne who fed Berkowitz the information from English to ASL. 

Kim Jump, chief of communications for Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, said in an email the interpreting team for DeWine’s COVID-19 briefings helped raise awareness of the importance and value of inclusion, especially of individuals within the Deaf or hard of hearing community.

“The team highlighted the complexity of ASL and the need to ensure that highly qualified interpreters are used, especially in situations like the pandemic, when clear communication with the Deaf community is vital,” Jump said.

The story has been updated to more accurately reflect Berkowitz’s experience and career.