My name is Heather Olmstead. I have a degree in American Sign Language Interpreting and have been interpreting in the Nashville area for over 17 years. I'm passionate about education and communication, and started the NSLC as a way to share a valuable language skill with my community.
I became interested in learning sign language in 2004. I was living in Cincinnati, attending the University of Cincinnati, majoring in Business Administration. A woman at the church I was attending decided to teach an 8 week sign language course. I decided to try something new and I fell in love with the language and culture. After the 8 week course I decided to switch my major to sign language interpreting, which also meant transferring to a different college that offered that major. I learned quickly and knew this is what I wanted to do as a career. After I graduated, I moved to Nashville and started interpreting full time. A few years later, I decided to go back to school and get my teaching degree from Lipscomb University. I graduated from Lipscomb in 2013, but decided to continue interpreting instead of teaching. Teaching ASL classes through the Nashville Sign Language Club will allow me to incorporate both of my passions, sign language and teaching. |