María-José Rodríguez, MA, HCI is a native of Spain and has been teaching Spanish since 1995. María-José earned a B.A. in linguistics from the University Complutense of Madrid, Spain. She also earned a B.A. in education from the University Autonoma of Madrid, Spain. When she moved to the U.S., she completed a Master’s in Comparative International Development Education at the University of Minnesota. She has taught Spanish at the University of Minnesota, Clark College, Washington State University, and Mount Hood Community College. Before teaching Spanish, she worked with the Latino community in the non-profit sector with Migrant Education and the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs (OCHA).
María-José has taught Healthcare Spanish at Pacific University for the last 11 years. She is a Certified Healthcare Interpreter and is currently doing medical interpretation at the Pacific Interprofessional Clinic. She has also done medical interpretation for the Pacific Dental Hygiene Clinic and Interprofessional Diabetes Clinic.
At the Centro Cultural, she has provided Spanish interpretation to assist Spanish speakers in navigating service agencies and community meetings.
While at Pacific University, she has served as an interpreter for OT clinicians, students, and patients. Her participation in practitioner observations aids students using on-site or remote interpreter services for the Occupational Therapy program.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she provided interpretation and translation services in Spanish at Pacific University to help Spanish speakers access healthcare information, including materials related to vaccinations, and make informed healthcare decisions.
During the summer of 2023, she worked as a medical interpreter for the EyeVan project at the College of Optometry.
When not teaching, María-José enjoys hiking, biking, cooking, drinking tea, and spending quality time with her friends and family.
