The National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF), the charitable arm of the National Court Reporters Association, the country’s leading organization representing stenographic court reporters, broadcast and CART captioners, and legal videographers, today announced that efforts by members of the Association have raised the number of transcribed oral histories of American war veterans submitted to the Library of Congress to 3,515. The number of transmitted histories exceeds the goal of reaching 3,500 by Veterans Day set in March by the Foundation.
The oral histories are submitted to the Library of Congress on behalf it its Veterans History Project more than 10 years ago to collect the stories of American war veterans by recording and transcribing interviews with them. The final transcripts are archived by the Library are available for the public to read. Members of NCRA from around the country have actively participated in this program since its start under NCRF’s Oral Histories Program.
“NCRA members are passionate about the VHP program as witnessed by the overwhelming response to meet and exceed the challenged of 3,500 interviews transcribed by Veterans Day. The Foundation is grateful to all who participated to make this happen including state associations, schools, individual members, state bar associations, and veterans groups,” said Irene Cahill, director of research and NCRF programs.
“These interviews are a vital part of our nation’s history and the VHP is a powerful and priceless way court reporters can help preserve them for future generations. The Foundation looks forward to NCRA members to continue to reach out to our nation’s veterans,” she added.
Across the nation Veterans Day was marked by Veterans History Project events. Groups that reported hosting events include: the Oregon Court Reporters Association, which partnered with the Oregon State Bar’s Military and Veterans Law Section to hold events in three locations; the Iowa Court Reporters Association which partnered with the Des Moines Area Community College School of Court Reporting; the Hawaii Court Reporters and Captioners Association; the Michigan Association of Professional Court Reporters Association which partnered with the Ingham County Department of Veterans Affairs and the Ingham County Circuit Court; and the Pennsylvania Court Reporters Association which partnered with the Orleans Technical Institute in Philadelphia. Other VHP events that helped collect transcribed interviews include: official court reporters from York County, Pa.; volunteers from the Illinois State Library; the Illinois Court Reporters Association which teamed up with the 19th Judicial Circuit Court in Lake County; students from Anoka Technical College, Anoka, Minn.; and court reporters from Paradigm Reporting, Minneapolis, Minn.
“NCRA members recognize the importance of celebrating the nation’s military members and their families and are honored to be able to help preserve their stories through the Library of Congress’ VHP program,” said Cahill.
“We encourage all NCRA members to help with this important effort especially by interviewing any veterans they know, especially those who served in World War II and Korea. Veterans Day serves as a fitting time to honor our country’s veterans by helping to preserve their histories,” she added.
NCRF has partnered with the Library of Congress for more than 10 years to help generate transcripts of interviews with American war veterans for the Oral Histories Program. Professional court reporters can earn 0.25 Professional Development Credits for each transcript they complete, and can earn up to a maximum of 1.0 PDC during each three-year certification period. Court reporting students can also earn a complimentary 2015 student membership in NCRA by transcribing two interviews through the Foundation’s Student Initiatives Program.
