April 17, 2014

To Whom It May Concern: This letter is to highly recommend Nicki Mosbeck. I have known Nicki since she began taking her upper division major coursework in Interpreting. As a professor in the ASL-Interpreting Department, I have had the pleasure of having her as a student in two of my courses and also working with her closely as a TA for one of my courses. Her motivation and commitment to excellence are two outstanding characteristics that have been evident in all my interactions with her. Nickis work in my courses was consistently of high quality and well-prepared. She has an excellent ability to articulate her thoughts, as well as to listen carefully to others. These attributes made her a valued member of small groups. Based on Nickis attitude, motivation, skills and knowledge, I asked her to apply with me for the Assistantship Mentoring Program (AMP) at St. Catherine University. Faculty and student pairs apply to this program together with a specific project in mind. Students may work as teaching assistants (TAs), research assistants (RAs) or program assistants (PAs). The faculty member and the student work closely together, developing a learning agreement and meeting on a regular basis to achieve the stated goals they have developed. In the fall of 2013, Nicki and I applied and were accepted for the AMP program. As a TA for my ASL-English Text Analysis course, a 4-credit course that is required for all Interpreting majors, Nicki worked with me to plan and lead small group work. One of the excellent contributions she made to the course was her project of video recording several work samples of a text we were working on in class. She asked a certified Deaf interpreter (CDI), a certified hearing interpreter and a senior student to interpret the text for the purpose of student learning. Nicki presented her idea, obtained permission, videotaped the interpretations and shared them with students in the course as part of a learning activity she prepared. She also videotaped her own interpretation of the text, which she also shared, reflecting on her strengths and weaknesses. The fact that Nicki was able to honestly and thoughtfully describe her interpreting process and production was very motivating to students. In all she did, Nicki was a positive role model, supporting students inside and outside of the classroom. I am also familiar with Nickis involvement with sports on campus. In addition to being a hockey player and hockey captain, she served as the Senior Co-President of the Wildcat Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has been instrumental in organizing the Wildcat Cup. She was also a representative on the MIAC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, representing St. Kates at the conference level. Again, her ability to communicate, see the best in every individual, act from a strong self-concept and take risks make her an ideal leader in this sport and will serve her very well as an interpreter. Finally, I have observed Nicki in action as she works at the Information Desk, often as one of the first contacts that people have when visiting campus. Again, her positive attitude, strong selfconcept and willingness to respectfully help each individual shines through in her work. Over and over again I am impressed with Nickis work. I can attest to her excellent judgment and decision-making skills, her ability to work well with people and her ability to reflect on her own work in a productive manner. In addition, I have been impressed with her ability to keep things in

perspective, her flexibility and her ability to work effectively with a wide range of people. With every opportunity, Nicki has demonstrated a multitude of positive attributes that will serve her well in her career as an interpreter. Nicki would be an excellent addition to your program because she has a positive attitude, is highly motivated and follows through on her commitments. Because she has always been steadfast in her commitment to becoming a certified interpreter and because of her passion for learning, I strongly believe that Nicki will be ready to pass the NIC performance exam and contribute to the interpreting profession soon after she completes her BA degree. Nicki is truly committed to both the field and the importance of life-long learning for interpreters. Again, it is with complete confidence that I highly recommend her for your program. Sincerely,

Laurie Swabey, PhD Professor, Interpreting Director, CATIE Center laswabey@stkate.edu 651-690-6797 (V) 651-212-7408 (VP)