Service and Outreach

Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy:

I was fortunate to become engaged in a process to award course credits for students who obtain written and spoken proficiency in over 100 languages at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Students who obtain the state Seal of Biliteracy can now receive up to 15 credits, equivalent to one semester, for obtaining the Seal prior to entering college. The Seal enables multilingual students, many of whom are the first in their family to attend college, and some of whom come from low-income backgrounds, to leverage their linguistic talents as an advantage. In so doing, this institutional initiative sends the message that multilingualism is an asset and can be used to create equitable opportunities at the state flagship university.

RUBilingual

I am currently the president of RUBilingual, a student organization dedicated to promoting bilingualism and supporting Spanish-speaking communities. We are currently involved in the following projects:

• Translation for partent/teacher conferences in local schools

• Bilingual parent workshops on the importance of immersion education, bilingualism, and biliteracy

• Interactive lessons for children celebrating Hispanic culture and English-Spanish bilingualism

• Podcast episodes on raising bilingual children

Our organization also co-sponsored an antiracist pedagogy workshop in world and bilingual education hosting Drs. Nelson Flores, Yasuko Kanno, and José Magró.

Community-Based Teaching

At the Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund (LALDEF) in Trenton, NJ, I served as a volunteer and Adult Education Coordinator for a 50-student English language program. As coordinator, I implemented a new curriculum for adult English as a new language learners and created materials for five introductory English classes. I also recruited, trained, and mentored volunteer teachers. Most importantly, in this role, I developed a passion for working with individuals with other linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Educational Consulting

I currently work as a Research and Data Analyst with Up the Bar Educational Achievement. My responsibilities in this position require bringing my quantitative analysis and research acumen to the classroom. My responsibilities include:

• Creating metrics and analyzing data concerning teacher growth;

• Mentoring teachers to create learning profiles for each student based upon her/his previous linguistic and educational experiences;

• Providing research-based evidence for best practices in bilingual education.

In addition to being a rewarding way to engage with the bilingual education community, this position allows me to develop as an educational researcher and analyst.

Air Force Diversity Training

I have also worked as a professional role player for the Air Advisory Council at the McGuire Air Force Base. There, I act as an interpreter or as a fictitious Spanish-speaking military general to help teams of pilots, technicians, and flight nurses practice forming partnerships with and providing support to allied militia. One of the key goals of this exercise is to provide troops with practice working with people who have different cultural and linguistic practices. Therefore, this work allows me to utilize my bilingual skills to support the role of the armed forces in forming intercultural relationships and promoting diplomacy and peacekeeping.