Newcomer Network
Thank you so much for giving your time to support the teachers of Merced County. This workshop is part of an initiative to connect teachers across the county to provide them with the resources and tools they need in order to address the needs of our Newcomer population. This meeting can also be open to other individuals across the Central Valley as we want to provide equitable access to all educators, please feel free to share the information on the Workshop Flyer to enroll using our OMS system.
Wednesday February 4, 2025
Guest Speaker: Dr. Lillian Ardell
Dr. Lillian Ardell is a speaker, author and founder of the consulting firm Language Matters, LLC. With over two decades of experience working with Multilingual Learners and the teachers who serve them, Dr. Ardell inspires bilingual, TESOL and content area teachers to Disrupt the Monolingual Bias one small brave moment at a time.
Get your copy 4 Translanguaging Misfires using the link found below:
Wednesday December 3, 2025
Wednesday October 22, 2025
Guest Speaker: Tina Beene
Tina Beene is an independent educational consultant and author of Teaching Social Studies to ELLs as well as the co-author of Teaching Science to ELs with Dr. Stephen Fleenor and Teaching Math to ELs with Adrian Mendoza, both affiliated with Seidlitz Education. Beene embarked on her journey as an elementary bilingual teacher in North Texas before serving as a multilingual program coordinator and curriculum writer.
Tina completed a BA in international studies with a concentration in Latin American economics at Texas A&M before obtaining a master’s in education with reading specialist certification. After almost a decade with Seidlitz Education as a trainer and consultant, she can now be found at www.tinabeene.org. Her rural upbringing coupled with twenty years of urban work experience allows her to connect with audiences across the country for collaborative coaching sessions, curriculum writing and program evaluations, and professional development centered around best practices for multilingual students.
Thursday May 8, 2025
Guest Speaker: Sam Finn
Sam directs technical assistance for the California Newcomer Education & Wellbeing (CalNEW) Program. He will share information about SLIFE curriculum, legal partnerships, and trends in newcomer policy.
Thursday March 6, 2025
Thursday January 30, 2025
Guest Speaker: Lauren Markham
Lauren Markham is a writer and educator who has spent more than fifteen years working at the intersection of immigration and education. As an administrator at Oakland International High School, a public school serving 100% newly-arrived immigrant students, Lauren directs the school's Learning Lab and was instrumental in building the school's socio-emotional services and non-academic programming in service newcomer students and families. She is the author of the award-winning 2017 book, The Far Away Brothers: Two Young Migrants and the Making of an American Life, and her writing on education and migration has been published in outlets such as The Guardian, The New York Times, The New Republic, Mother Jones, Harper's and The Atlantic.
Thursday December 19, 2024
Guest Speaker: Adam Juarez
Adam Juarez is an Educational Technology & Integrated Studies Consultant for Tulare County Office of Education. He supports teachers through individualized coaching, demo lessons and professional development. Adam is a Google Certified Trainer and Innovator, CUE Board Member, 2022 ISTE Featured Voice and co-author of The Complete EdTech Coach. I will be presenting simple edtech tools to support English learners.
Thursday October 17, 2024
Guest Speaker: Lindsey Bird
As CA Program Director and Education Leadership Coach, Lindsey leads the Emergent Bilingual Equity and Access Initiative, coaching Change Agents and Mobilizers statewide. Founding coach of EBCAN, she’s built a network linking policy, practice, and advocacy to expand opportunities for multilingual learners. A former award-winning teacher, she now drives alumni mobilization and champions equity for newcomer students.
Thursday August 15, 2024
Guest Speaker: Efraín Tovar
Efraín Tovar is a distinguished educator and advocate for plurilingualism. As Chair of the ELD Department in Selma Unified. He is the founder and Executive Director of The California Newcomer Network. A sought-after speaker, Tovar’s innovative work has earned him numerous awards and features on platforms like Edutopia and PBS.