Confirmed Speakers

JIM CUMMINS (Opening Keynote) (Closing Keynote)

IDENTITY INVESTMENT & LITERACY ENGAGEMENT

CLOSING THE CIRCLE: IDENTITY, INNOVATION, & INSPIRATION

Jim Cummins is a Professor Emeritus at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. His research focuses on literacy development in educational contexts characterized by linguistic and socioeconomic diversity. In numerous articles and books, he has explored the nature of language proficiency and its relationship to literacy development, with particular emphasis on the intersections of societal power relations, teacher-student identity negotiation, and literacy attainment. His most recent book Rethinking the Education of Multilingual Learners: A Critical Analysis of Theoretical Concepts (Multilingual Matters) was published in fall 2021. He is the recipient of the International Reading Association's 1979 Albert J. Harris award and has received honorary doctorates from five universities in North America and Europe in recognition of his contributions to issues of educational equity and multilingual education.

ROSA MOLINA (Session Presenter)

ORGANIZING TWO-WAY IMMERSION PROGRAMS TO FULLY BENEFIT EMERGENT MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS

Rosa G. Molina is the past Executive Director of ATDLE, the Association of Two-Way & Dual Language Education, 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. Before retiring in 2011 to take the lead with ATDLE and TwoWay 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, and Elementary and Secondary Education programs for SJUSD. Rosa built her base of expertise by spending years Transforming Achievement as a bilingual classroom teacher, Title I Resource Teacher, Staff Development District Trainer and 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, an Academic Excellence Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, helped her find and support the development of more than 30 programs throughout the United States.

FRANCISCA SÁNCHEZ (Convener) (Closing Remarks)

Francisca Sánchez, president of META, is a poet, “word weaver,” long-time educator, and former Emergent Multilingual Learner. After a long career in education, Francisca has returned to her passion, poetry and the arts. She has been writing poetry for five decades, but only within the last decade has she begun to take her poetry public. In 2013, she published When I Dream/Cuando Sueño, the adaptation of one of her poems into a bilingual children’s book, illustrated by her son, Nicolás Sánchez, a visual artist. When I Dream/Cuando Sueño was selected by the New York City Public Schools as book of the month. Currently, she is working on two new books, both adaptations of her poetry, We Were There When and We Dance, We Dance, We Dance, as well as two poetry collections.

Francisca is also CEO of Provocative Practice™, an educational consultant organization. She retired several years ago as Associate Superintendent for Educational Services with Hayward Unified School District. She has served in a variety of leadership, administrative, and teaching positions at the district, county office, regional, and state levels, including as Chief Academic Officer for San Francisco Unified School District and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction with the San Bernardino County Office of Education. She also served two terms as president of the California Association for Bilingual.

Francisca graduated magna cum laude from Mount Holyoke College, earned her M.A. at San José State University, and completed her doctoral studies (ABD) in Sociolinguistics at Stanford University.