Dallas ISD translation team handled 8,000 language requests in 2025-26

Dallas ISD’s Translation Services department handled 8,000 language requests during the 2025-2026 school year, up from 7,000 requests in 2024-2025, as it works to help families and students communicate in their preferred languages.

The department, described as the largest translation and interpretation team in Texas, has served Dallas ISD for almost 20 years. Its 26 team members support 10 languages through daily hotline calls and direct campus support, including club meetings, parent-teacher conferences and board meetings. Staff fulfilled roughly 6,000 of the 2025-2026 requests through in-person meeting coverage.

“We’re bridging a communication gap by helping parents participate in their child's education,” said Alejandra Granell, coordinator for Translation Services. “The minute an interpreter gets a call, they take care of it right away. Many times, we can nip an issue in the bud and serve as the connection between school and home.”

The department also supports Family and Community Engagement, Board Services, Counseling Services, P-TECH programs and Truancy. Last year, it provided interpretation services to more than 20,000 parents and translated more than one million words.

Spanish remains the most requested language, reflecting about 68,000 students whose families primarily speak Spanish at home. Other frequently spoken languages include Pashto, American Sign Language, Rohingya and Swahili.

The team’s languages are ASL, Burmese, Dari, French, Italian, Kirundi, Pashto, Rohingya, Spanish and Swahili. Families seeking interpretation services can contact their campus directly to request language support.