Avant adds ASL interpretation to every new Multiliterate Mind episode

Avant Language said new episodes of The Multiliterate Mind will include American Sign Language interpretation starting Sept. 16, 2026, on YouTube. The move is meant to make the language-education podcast more accessible to Deaf and signing audiences and will be supported by Sorenson Communications.

Why it matters: - Avant is adding ASL interpretation to a language-education podcast built around multilingualism, identity and access. - The change gives Deaf and signing viewers a way to engage with new episodes in their primary language. - The move also addresses a long-standing accessibility gap in podcasting and language education media.

What happened: - Avant Language said every new episode of The Multiliterate Mind published on YouTube will include American Sign Language interpretation starting Sept. 16, 2026. - The podcast will show an ASL interpreter in each new episode on Avant’s YouTube channel. - Amira Fahoum, Avant’s chief of staff, originated the initiative after a conversation with a podcast guest. - The podcast is hosted by Dr. Liza Trejo and Marnina Falk Colman. - Listeners can find new interpreted episodes on Avant’s YouTube channel and learn more at the podcast page.

The details: - The Multiliterate Mind covers multilingualism, language proficiency, literacy, assessment and trends shaping language education. - Each episode features educators, researchers and language professionals discussing how language affects learning, identity and access. - Avant is working with Sorenson Communications to provide the ASL interpretation. - The company said the interpreter will be incorporated into each new episode beginning with September releases. - Avant said the format is meant to make ASL access part of how the podcast is produced, not an after-the-fact accommodation. - Fahoum said watching Episode 10 with educator and advocate Robyn Marcak made the accessibility gap in language media more apparent. - Fahoum said signed languages are complete languages with their own grammar, structure and cultural depth. - Avant said podcasts and media about language education have rarely included ASL interpretation. - Avant said the new step reflects a broader commitment to recognizing different ways people use, learn and experience language. - Avant also said ASL interpretation addresses only one signed-language community within a broader global Deaf population. - Signed languages vary by country and region, and Avant characterized accessibility in media and education as an unfinished conversation across those communities. - Avant described the effort as a first step and an ongoing commitment to examining where language content falls short.

Between the lines: - The move puts accessibility in the same frame as the podcast’s core theme: language access. - Avant is signaling that inclusion should be built into production, not layered on later. - The initiative may also pressure other language-education media to address similar gaps for Deaf audiences.

What's next: - New ASL-interpreted episodes will continue appearing on Avant’s YouTube channel. - Avant said it will keep examining where language content and accessibility fall short. - The company is framing the launch as a starting point rather than a finished solution.

The bottom line: - Avant is turning a podcast about language access into one that is more accessible itself.