She served as the principal of Oyster-Adams Bilingual School in DC Public Schools from 2014-2021 where she was an equity-driven school leader, ultimately leading the school to be awarded a 2020 National Blue Ribbon in the Exemplary High Performing Schools category. In 2020, she was also recognized by the US Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon principal, being awarded the coveted Terrel H. Bell Award for outstanding school leadership. Mayra has deep practitioner experience as a former teacher, instructional coach, and assistant principal in dual language schools. In 2012, she was awarded the Excellence in Teaching Award by DC Public Schools.

Mayra was trained for school leadership through New Leaders and was a graduate of cohort 13 of the National Aspiring Principals program. She has also served as a teaching faculty member for the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers at the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, a Teaching for Results seminar leader for The New Teacher Project, and a curriculum and instruction fellow for the DCPS Teachers Central to Leadership program. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master’s degree in elementary education from Boston College. Educational equity work resonates deeply with Mayra, as a daughter of formerly undocumented immigrants, a first-generation college graduate, a former "English language learner", and a product of bilingual school programming. Mayra is a native Spanish speaker and a balanced, bi-literate bilingual. She grew up in Hayward, California, and lives in Washington DC with her husband and sweet pup, Tank. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, working out on her Peloton, training for races, and watching documentaries.

The Dual Language Educator Conference will be held at HJ Patterson Hall at the University of Maryland, College Park. The campus is accessible by driving or public transportation.

Parking

Free parking is available in Lot 1 on weekends and does not require a permit to park. Lot 1 is adjacent to Tawes Hall at the following address:

   7721–7727 Alumni Dr

   College Park, MD 20742

Construction and Road Closures

Campus Drive will be closed from Regents Drive to the Benjamin Building due to construction.

Union Lane and Library Lane will remain open to two-way traffic. Heavy construction is ongoing in preparation for the DC Metro's Purple Line train rail.

Metro Train

You must have a physical or digital Metro card ($2.00 activation fee) to access the train. Physical Metro cards are available for purchase at stations (where you can also add funds to your card) and digitally via Apple Pay or Google Pay. Weekend fare, regardless of distance, is an additional $2.00 per trip.

To reach the College Park station, board a Green Line train towards Greenbelt.

Note: Yellow Line trains no longer travel to the College Park station.

Metro Bus:

The campus is accessible from the College Park train station using multiple potential bus routes. We recommend using the Transit app or WMATA trip planner to determine what route is best for you. 

Potential Routes:

C8 Bus: Board the C8 Bus towards North Bethesda Station at Bus Bay B. Stop at “Stadium Drive and Regents Drive”

Bus 86: Board the 86 Bus towards Rhode Island Avenue at Bus Bay G. Stop at “Baltimore Avenue and Rossborough Lane”

Bus 17: Board the 17 Bus towards the University of Maryland at Platform F. Stop at “Baltimore Avenue and Rossborough Lane”

Public Transportation Resources

The "Transit" app (download here) and the WMATA Trip Planner allow you to plan your route based on departure and arrival times.

Additional Information:

Public transportation arrival times may vary due to delays and construction. We recommend planning your route in advance and arriving early!

UMD's campus shuttle, Shuttle-UM, will not be operating on the day of the conference.