Presenters at the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit

(For a more accessible format, contact the TXCC webmaster)

Jamal Abedi is a Professor in the School of Education at the University of California, Davis, and a research partner at the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST). Dr. Abedi's research interests include studies in the area of psychometrics and test and scale developments. His recent work includes studies on the validity of assessments and accommodations and the opportunity to learn for English language learners (ELLs), as well as work on comparability issues concerning alternate assessments for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Dr. Abedi is the recipient of the American Educational Research Association’s 2003 Professional Service Award, in recognition of his “Outstanding Contribution Relating Research to Practice,” and the California Educational Research Association’s 2008 “Lifetime Achievement Award.” Dr. Abedi’s educational background is in psychometrics and research methodology. He holds both an MA and a PhD in psychometrics from Vanderbilt University.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Language Factors in the Assessment of English Language Learners

Contact Information:
Dr. Jamal Abedi
Professor, School of Education
The University of California at Davis
2935 Academic Surge
Davis, CA 95616
(530) 754-9150
jabedi@ucdavis.edu
http://education.ucdavis.edu/faculty-profile/jamal-abedi

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Laura Ayala has worked in the Student Assessment Division of the Texas Education Agency since 1990. Her current position is Director of English Language Learner Assessments where she oversees development of the state-administered Spanish language content-area assessments, linguistically accommodated content-area assessments, and assessments of English language proficiency. She conducts in-depth analyses of Texas ELL student performance data as an integral part of her work. Over the past two decades she has had ongoing contact with educators, researchers, and policymakers at the state and national levels. Ms. Ayala began her career as a secondary teacher of Spanish, French, and German, and moved to South America where she taught English to Spanish speakers of varying ages. She went from there to Texas and into publishing secondary French and Spanish textbooks before she joined the Texas Education Agency. Ms. Ayala holds a BA in education from Wright State University in Ohio.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: The Language Proficiency Assessment Committee (LPAC) Decision-Making Process for the Texas Assessment Program

Contact Information:
Ms. Laura Ayala
Director, English Language Learner Assessment, Student Assessment Division
Texas Education Agency
1701 N. Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 463-9536
laura.ayala@tea.state.tx.us
www.tea.state.tx.us

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David J. Francis is the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Quantitative Methods, in addition to serving as head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Houston. He is also the director of the Texas Institute for Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics; director of the National Research and Development Center for English Language Learners; and co-director of the Texas Learning and Computation Center. He is a Fellow of Division 5 (Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics) of the American Psychological Association and is currently Chairman of the Executive Board of the Council of Graduate Departments of Psychology. Dr. Francis is a member of the Independent Review Panel for the National Assessment of Title I and the National Research Council’s (NRC) Board on Testing and Assessment. He is a frequent advisor to the U.S. Department of Education on statistical issues, assessment and accountability, and English language learners (ELLs). In 2006 he received the Albert J. Harris Award from the International Reading Association, and he has also received the University of Houston’s Teaching Excellence Award and the Excellence in Research and Scholarship Award. He received the Esther Farfel Award in 2008, recognizing his career accomplishments in research, teaching, and service; it is the highest award given to faculty members at the University of Houston. Dr. Francis’ research has been funded by numerous federal, state, and local agencies, including the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), and the Texas Education Agency. He currently directs the Center for Research on Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners, which is the IES-funded National Research and Development Center for ELLs, as well as the ELL Strand of the Center on Instruction. Dr. Francis obtained his PhD and MA in clinical neuropsychology from the University of Houston with a specialization in quantitative methods. His BA in psychology is from Kalamazoo College in Michigan.

Dr. Francis served as the discussant for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit.

Contact Information:
Dr. David Francis
Director, Texas Institute for Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics
University of Houston
100 TLCC Annex
Houston, TX 77204
(832) 842-7018
dfrancis@uh.edu
www.tlc2.uh.edu/david_francis

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Georgina González has served as the Director of Bilingual Education at the Texas Education Agency (TEA) since 2003. Prior to coming to TEA in 1999, she worked as the bilingual consultant at Region 13 Education Service Center. She has taught at almost every grade level during her service to students in the U.S. and abroad. In addition to teaching English as a Second Language and Spanish as a second language, Ms. Gonzalez has implemented bilingual education programs in schools and districts. She has developed and presented workshops and sessions at the local, state, regional, and national levels. She has been serving students for almost thirty years. She holds both BA and MA degrees.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Curriculum and Assessment Update for English Language Learners

Contact Information:

NOTE: Georgina Gonzalez is now a program associate at the Texas Comprehensive Center. She can be contacted at 512-391-6571 or georgina.gonzalez@sedl.org

http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/curriculum/biling

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Elsa Cardenas–Hagan is the director of the Valley Speech Language and Learning Center in Brownsville, Texas, and works with the Texas Institute for Measurement Evaluation and Statistics at the University of Houston. Her research interests include the development of language and literacy interventions for students who are English language learners (ELLs). She is a Bilingual Speech Language Pathologist and a Certified Academic Language Therapist. As co-principal investigator of a longitudinal study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Institute of Education Sciences, she examined the oracy and literacy development in English and Spanish of Spanish-speaking children. Dr. Cardenas-Hagan was a co-founder of Brownsville READS!, a non-profit organization to promote literacy, and has authored curricular programs, book chapters, and articles related to the development of early language and literacy skills for ELLs. She earned her BS in speech from the University of Texas at Austin and both her MA in communication disorders and EdD in curriculum and instruction from the University of Houston.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Linguistic Accommodations for English Language Learners

Contact Information:
Dr. Elsa Cardenas-Hagan
Director, Valley Speech, Language, and Learning Center
535 Stovall Road
Brownsville, TX 78520
(956) 504-2200
Elsa.Hagan@times.uh.edu
www.valleyspeech.org

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Elena Izquierdo is the former chair of the Teacher Education Department and an associate professor in the College of Education at the University of the Texas at El Paso. In addition, she is a member of the Hispanic Leadership Council that serves to support Hispanic students and educators at both the state and federal levels, as well as with and through various education and industry associations. During her tenure as president of the Texas Association for Bilingual Education she advocated for and represented English language learners (ELLs) on issues pertaining to educational equity. She has served as Vice President of the Executive Board of the National Association of Bilingual Educators (NABE) and as Publications and Professional Development Chair of that organization. Dr. Izquierdo was a public school administrator for 13 years in Washington, DC public schools. She was principal of the district’s nationally recognized J.F. Oyster Two Way Dual Language School and Director of Language Minority Affairs, leading the district to federal compliance in services to language minority communities. Dr. Izquierdo’s research and professional specializations focus on two-way dual language education; biliteracy; the education of ELLs; and support for districts in rethinking and reforming schooling practices in their efforts to close achievement gaps for bilingual/ELL students. She holds a PhD in applied linguistics and bilingual education from Georgetown University.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: The State of ELL Affairs

Contact Information:
Dr. Elena Izquierdo
Associate Professor, College of Education/Teacher Education
The University of Texas at El Paso
El Paso, TX 79968
(915) 747-7595
ielena@utep.edu
www.elenaizquierdo.com

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Leticia Martinez is the project director for the Center for Research and Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners (CREATE), part of the Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk at the University of Texas at Austin. She teaches Content Literacy Instruction with Multilingual Learners in the Master of Arts in Teaching program at St. Edward's University in Austin. Her professional experience includes elementary and secondary teaching in reading, language arts, and English as a second language. Her research interests include adolescent English language learners, content literacy, and qualitative research of Latina youth in schools. She earned her BA in English from the University of Texas at Austin and her MEd and PhD in curriculum and instruction in the Language and Literacy Studies program in the College of Education, University of Texas at Austin.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Enhancing English Language Learners’ Knowledge Acquisition and Vocabulary/Concept Learning: A Content Area Intervention

Contact Information:
Dr. Leticia Martinez
Coordinator, CREATE Project, Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk
The University of Texas at Austin
College of Education SZB 218A
1 University Station D4900
Austin, TX 78712-0365
(512) 232-9476
lettyrmartinez@mail.utexas.edu
www.cal.org/create

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Edynn Sato is the director of Research and English Language Learner Assessment in the Assessment and Standards Development Services program, as well as the director of Special Populations for the Assessment and Accountability Comprehensive Center at WestEd. Her areas of focus include large-scale, high-stakes test development for general education and English language learners (ELLs), as well as students with disabilities; alignment and linkage studies; and research and consultation to states and other organizations related to the assessment and accountability of ELLs and students with disabilities. Prior to joining WestEd, she worked in various academic, nonprofit, small for-profit, Fortune 500, and Internet-based organizations, including the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST), CTB/McGraw-Hill, San Jose State University, eSCORE!, and LeapFrog Schoolhouse. Dr. Sato received her BA in multidisciplinary studies in elementary education from Santa Clara University, and her MA and PhD in educational psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Linguistic Accommodations on Assessments: Linguistic Modification

Contact Information:
Dr. Edynn Sato
Director, Research and English Language Learner Assessment, Assessment and Standards Development
WestED
and
Director, Special Populations, Assessment and Accountability Comprehensive Center
WestEd
730 Harrison Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
415-615-3226
esato@wested.org
www.wested.org/cs/we/view/u/656

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Eliza Simental is director of the Bilingual/English as a Second Language program in San Elizario ISD. In this position she works to help the district address the needs of students identified as limited English proficient and to ensure equal educational opportunity that will enable all students to succeed. She has also served as a board member for the Texas Association of Bilingual Educators. Ms. Simental has made presentations at the local, state, and national levels regarding best practices for meeting the needs of English language learners. She holds a BS in education from the University of Texas at El Paso and an MA in education from Stephen F. Austin University.

Title of presentation for the ELL Linguistic Accommodations Research Summit: Linguistic Accommodations for Instruction

Contact Information:
Ms. Eliza Simental
Director, Billingual/ESL
San Elizario Independent School District
P. O. Box 920
San Elizario, TX 79849
(915) 872-3939 ext. 3595
esimental@seisd.net