Keynote Address: Dr. Ana Hernandez
Monday, June 28, 2021 at 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
Dr. Ana Hernández is Professor and Program Coordinator of Multilingual and Multicultural Education in the School of Education at CA State University San Marcos. She is the Director and Principal Investigator of a 5-yr longitudinal study for Project ACCEPT – Aligning the Common Core for English Learners, Parents and Teachers – a US Department of Education National Professional Development Grant for Dual Language Education. Dr. Hernandez is also coordinator of Project GLOBAL Competence – a Gates Foundation grant to transform the education and preparation of bilingual teachers with district partners. In addition, she is the faculty lead for CSUSM’s Study Abroad Program for Teachers of Spanish and Global Learning Networks. She developed the Online Dual Language Certificate program for the School of Education and co-wrote a new MA in Multilingual and Multicultural Education with a focus on social justice and equity. Her work in bilingual teacher preparation stems from 32-years teaching in California public schools as a bilingual/dual language teacher in grades K-8th.
Dr. Hernández’s research examines dual language instructional practices, bilingual teacher preparation, and cross-cultural equity. Her publications are featured in a variety of peer-reviewed journals and edited books. Dr. Hernandez provides professional development for dual language teachers across the nation. She currently serves on the Association for Two-Way and Dual Language Education (ATDLE) – Advisory Committee and has dedicated her service to the organization since its inception. In her career, she has received various awards, including the CSU Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program, CA Association for Bilingual Education State Teacher of the Year, Distinguished Teacher in Residence at CSUSM, Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District’s Teacher of the Year, and recipient of large and small-scale research grants. She earned a doctorate in Educational Leadership from the Joint Doctoral Program at the University of California in San Diego and CA State University San Marcos.
Keynote Address: Luis Versalles
Monday, June 28, 2021 at 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Luis Versalles is the Executive Director of Education, Courageous Conversations, Pacific Education Group (PEG). He also serves as the Chairperson for Green Card voices, a non-profit dedicated to building inclusive and integrated communities between immigrants and their communities.
A second-generation Afro-Cuban born in the U.S., Versalles was the first principal of a Dual Language program in Minnesota and is now working with school districts to align their strategic plans with PEG’s Systemic Racial Equity Transformation Framework to facilitate greater alignment in achieving racial equity system-wide. In addition, he leads a team of equity transformation specialists in guiding organizations through this work in the domains of Leadership, Culturally Relevant Learning and Teaching, and Family/Community Engagement and Empowerment.
Keynote Address: Dr. Kate Kinsella
Tuesday, June 29, 2021 at 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
Kate Kinsella, Ed.D., provides consultancy to state departments of education throughout the U.S., school districts, and publishers on evidence-based instructional principles and practices to accelerate academic English acquisition for K–12 language minority youths. Her numerous publications and instructional programs focus on career and college readiness for academic English learners, with an emphasis on academic interaction, high-utility vocabulary development, informational text reading, and scholarly writing across subject areas. Dr. Kinsella has been an advocate and a colleague with TWBI/DLI programs for over 15 years.
Keynote Address: Dr. Jeff Zweirs – Sponsored by Benchmark
Tuesday, June 29, 2021 at 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Dr. Jeff Zweirs is a senior researcher at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and the director of professional development for Understanding Language, a research and professional learning project focused on improving instruction and assessment of all students, with an extra emphasis on serving the needs of linguistically and culturally diverse learners. He consults for national and international teacher development projects that promote language, literacy, lesson design, and formative assessment practices. His current research focuses on developing classroom instruction that fosters rich communication and productive academic conversations across disciplines and grade levels.
Keynote Address: Dr. Victor Rios – Sponsored by Scholar System
Wednesday, June 30, 2021 at 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
Dr. Victor Rios is Associate Dean of Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He received his Ph.D. at the University of California Berkeley in 2005.
Professor Rios has worked with local school districts to develop programs and curricula aimed at improving the quality of interactions between authority figures and youths. Using his personal experience of living on the streets, dropping out of school, and being incarcerated as a juvenile–along with his research findings–he has developed interventions for marginalized students aimed at promoting personal transformation and civic engagement. These programs have been implemented in Los Angeles, California (Watts), juvenile detention facilities, and alternative high schools.
He is the author of six books including My Teacher Believes in Me: The Educator’s Guide to At-Promise Students (2019) and many other titles. Dr. Rios has been featured in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Ted Talks, the Oprah Winfrey Network, Primer Impacto, and National Public Radio. He has had the honor of meeting President Obama and advising his administration on gun violence and policing. His Ted Talk “Help for kids the education system ignores” has garnered over 1.4 Million views. He is the subject of the documentary film The Pushouts.
Keynote Address: Rosa G. Molina
Wednesday, June 30, 2021 at 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Rosa G. Molina is the Executive Director of ATDLE, the Association of Two-Way & Dual Language Education (ATDLE) which was founded in March 2012. ATDLE evolved from Two-Way CABE, which Rosa helped to develop in 1991. In her most recent work, as Executive Director, Rosa and her team provide technical assistance and professional development to TWBI Programs in California and the Western region of the United States. ATDLE continues to promote the expansion of TWBI education and the Seal of Biliteracy throughout California and the U.S. before retiring in 2011 to take the lead with ATDLE and Two-Way CABE, Ms. Molina worked as the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction for Ravenswood City School District in East Palo Alto, CA from 2009-2011 after working for San Jose Unified SD for twenty-five years. In SJUSD, Rosa was also the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction where she had supervisory responsibility and direct oversight of the district’s eight-state preschools, 39 elementary schools, seven middle schools, and seven high schools. In addition, she provided oversight of the Special Education, Desegregation, Curriculum and Instruction, Enrollment, Bilingual Education, Elementary and Secondary Education programs for SJUSD. Rosa built her base of expertise by spending years as a bilingual classroom teacher, Title I Resource Teacher, Staff Development District Trainer & Resource Teacher, Manager of Staff Development, Principal, Director of Bilingual Education/Staff Development, and Director of Elementary Education. Her national dissemination work through Project Two-Way, and Academic Excellence Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, helped her found and support the development of more than 30 programs throughout the United States.
