SLIPPERY ROCK — Melissa Arner is fascinated with foreign languages, studying French and Spanish at the same time as a senior at Slippery Rock High School.

It's her interest in a third language that will motivate her college and career choices, however. Arner plans to become a sign language interpreter.

Though many people don't see sign language as a foreign language, there are many differences between signing and English, according to Arner.

"There's a whole different grammar and syntax" with signing, she said.

Arner was introduced to sign language when she joined a performance group in eighth grade called World of Children. She spent two years as a student in the group, then two years as a leader teaching younger children how to sign. The group traveled to malls, nursing homes and churches singing and signing songs that promoted a message of peace.

She plans to attend Flagler College of St. Augustine, Fla., to major in deaf elementary education.

Though teaching appeals to Arner, interpreting is interesting to her as well. And lucrative, if she gets the right jobs in the future.

She's discussed the job with an interpreter that works at her church. The woman taught Arner a lot about the job as well as some of the fine points of signing.

There are etiquette points in sign language interpretation, for example, Arner said, and she's learned these points from the interpreter. When you're beginning to interpret for someone who is deaf, it is polite to inform them that you aren't deaf, for example, she said.

There are also dialects to notice when people are signing, said Arner.

"It's kind of like English, some say 'yinz,' and some say 'y'all" she said.

There's also the obvious mistakes to avoid, Arner added.

"Some signs are good but some signs that are close to them can be bad," she said, demonstrating how a finger placement can change the whole meaning of a sign.

Andrew Cohen, a deaf student at Slippery Rock University, said mistakes in interpreting are common and usually not a big deal.

"It happens to all of us all the time," he said.

Once Cohen signed "You would see her leg shaking a little bit," but his interpreter said "You would see her shaving her leg a little bit," to the person he was talking to. Since he can read lips, he caught the mistake and everyone laughed about it, he said.

Cohen uses an interpreter in his college classes and the acoustics often cause difficulty for his interpreter to sign what the teacher is saying. As someone who has used interpreters his whole life, Cohen has plenty of experience dealing with the issues that arise.

His biggest advice for someone interested in interpreting is to spend time socializing with deaf people. It's the best way to become an interpreter or deaf educator, he said.

"Anyone can learn how to speak or write Spanish, but that's only one part of the Spanish culture," he said. "They should go to Spain and learn about their culture as well. Culture is very important."

Since arriving at SRU, Cohen contacts the Center for Hearing and Deaf Services in Pittsburgh when he needs an interpreter.

Most interpreters at the center have a standard national certification to interpret, something that requires some difficult testing to obtain, according to Tom Bellucci, chief executive officer of the center. An interpreter working there will usually make around $40 to $45 per hour.

The center receives between 45 and 60 requests for interpreters daily, with the exception of weekends when the number drops to around 15 per day, said Bellucci. Most interpreters on call are part-time workers, with only four working full time for the center, he said.

It serves clients all over Western Pennsylvania, from Erie down to Clarksburg, W.Va. Several requests come from Albion Correctional Facility in Albion, said Bellucci.

The types of events that interpreters are called to vary greatly, he said.

"Police call us for any level of legal work with deaf clients involved as victims or perpetrators," he said. "We respond within a half hour."

Interpreters are also used for medical procedures, routine employment, local presidential events or educational reasons.

Confidentiality applies to interpretation of delicate matters of the law, but Bellucci said his workers usually don't retain what they interpret anyway.

"If they're witnesses to a confession, they're not consciously paying attention," he said. "An interpreter almost never remembers what is said."