Where Will Literacy Take You?

Multilingual Learners, Dual Language

Multilingual Learners, Dual Language, Oral Language Development

Comprehension, Foundational Skills, Vocabulary, Writing 

Dr. Valentina Gonzalez is an accomplished teacher educator, author, and speaker with more than 25 years of experience in education. She has served in a variety of roles, including classroom teacher, district facilitator for multilingual learners, professional development specialist for multilingual learners, and educational consultant. Throughout her career, Dr. Gonzalez has remained deeply committed to advancing literacy, honoring culture, and fostering language development. She is widely recognized for her expertise in designing and delivering professional learning that equips educators with the tools to elevate language instruction for multilingual learners. Dr. Gonzalez has contributed to shaping instructional practices and resources that benefit both teachers and students. Her work on language acquisition and learning has been featured in respected outlets, extending her influence to educators worldwide. Through her writing, coaching, and active online presence, Dr. Gonzalez continues to inspire and empower teachers to create equitable, culturally responsive learning environments for multilingual learners.

Writing, Spelling, Handwriting

Dual Language, Multilingual Learners, Oral Language Development

Dr. Olga Grimalt is the founder/CEO of Multilingual Learning Network, a full-service consulting firm supporting dual language immersion programs for TK–8 and ELD programs for K–12. She received her doctorate in educational leadership for social justice from Loyola Marymount University. Dr. Grimalt began her career as an elementary transitional bilingual teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and later joined Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD), where she taught in transitional and dual immersion programs. Her most recent district position was as the multilingual services coordinator in LBUSD, overseeing their dual immersion programs, TK–8, and ELD programs K–12. She is also a founding member of the Association of Two-Way & Dual Language Education (ATDLE) and currently serves on its advisory board.  

Explore thought leadership from Olga Grimalt:

• Building Biliteracy in a Dual Language Immersion Classroom

Writing, Spelling, Handwriting 

Oral Reading Fluency, Foundational Skills, Intervention

Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D., is a leading researcher, educational consultant, and author who works with schools in the U.S. and internationally. Dr. Hasbrouck worked as a reading specialist and coach for 15 years and later became a professor. Her research in reading fluency, academic assessment and interventions, and instructional coaching has been widely published. She is the author and coauthor of several books, curriculum materials, and assessment tools. Dr. Hasbrouck was the 2024 recipient of the Samuel Torrey Orton Award from the International Dyslexia Association. She continues to collaborate with researchers on projects related to reading assessment and intervention and enjoys volunteering at her grandson’s K–8 school in Seattle. 

Explore thought leadership from Dr. Jan Hasbrouck:

• A Guide to Data-Informed Instruction in K–12 
• What Is Reading Fluency? How Should It Be Taught and Assessed?

Multilingual Learners, Dual Language

Dr. Jeannette Mancilla-Martinez is an Associate Professor in the Special Education Department, as well as Associate Dean of Graduate Education for Peabody College. She holds an M.Ed. and Ed.D. in language and literacy from Harvard University, as well as a B.A. in liberal studies with a concentration in English and Spanish from Mount Saint Mary's College. She is a 2013 National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow, a 2013 Hellman Fellow, and a 2017 English Language Learners Policy Fellow. Dr. Mancilla-Martinez’s program of research is focused on advancing students’ language and reading comprehension outcomes, including those of students from linguistically diverse and low-income homes. The studies she is engaged in build on her earlier research in reading development and focus on the central role of supporting students’ language comprehension to mitigate later reading comprehension difficulties. Her most recent work examines the intersection of language and special education status. Dr. Mancilla-Martinez was appointed to the National Assessment of Education Progress Standing Committee on Reading in 2017 and serves on the Early Literacy Advisory Council for the Tennessee Department of Education. 

Children’s Literature, Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy

Dr. Michelle H. Martin is the Beverly Cleary Endowed Professor for Children and Youth Services in the Information School at the University of Washington and from 2011–2016, she was the inaugural Augusta Baker Endowed Chair in Childhood Literacy at the University of South Carolina. She published “Brown Gold: Milestones of African-American Children’s Picture Books, 1845–2002” (Routledge, 2004) and “Song of the Land: Celebrating the Works of Mildred D. Taylor” (University Press of Mississippi, 2025). She’s also the co-founder, with Dr. Rachelle D. Washington, of Read-a-Rama, a nonprofit that uses children’s books as the springboard for year-round and summer camp programming. 

Foundational Skills, Oral Language Development

“If we skip phonemic awareness instruction, we risk leaving students without the crucial skills of segmenting and blending sounds… Phonemic awareness instruction needs to be thoughtfully connected to letters as soon as appropriate for emergent readers to facilitate early word reading and spelling.”

Katie Pace Miles, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Advanced Certificates in Reading Science at Brooklyn College, City University of New York (CUNY). Dr. Miles’ research interests include orthographic mapping, high frequency word learning, reading interventions, high-impact tutoring, and literacy instruction that is both developmentally appropriate and grounded in the science of reading. She is the author of "Reading Ready,” "Reading Ready for Whole Phonics,” and "Making Words Stick," and she is the academic advisor for Reading Go. Dr. Miles is the co-founder and principal investigator of CUNY Reading Corps, which improves preservice teacher training and provides free high impact tutoring to over 2,300 historically underserved NYC students per year. Dr. Miles is also the founder of a nonprofit, The Reading Institute, which expands access to structured literacy tutoring.

Explore thought leadership from Dr. Katie Pace Miles:

• Helping Student Build Word Recognition Through Orthographic Mapping

 Foundational Skills, Comprehension, Oral Reading Fluency, Writing

“The development of reading comprehension and the increase of student knowledge both require a focus on high quality text.”

Dr. Timothy Shanahan is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he is Founding Director of the UIC Center for Literacy. He operates a popular website for educators, www.shanahanonliteracy.com, and his blogs are carried regularly on Reading Rockets. He was Director of Reading for Chicago Public Schools and served as Visiting Research Professor at Queens University, Belfast, Northern Ireland. He is the author/editor of more than 300 publications and books. His research emphasizes the connections between learning to read and learning to write, literacy in the disciplines, and improvement of reading achievement. Dr. Shanahan served on the Advisory Board of the National Institute for Literacy and is a Past President of the International Literacy Association. He was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame in 2007.

Dr. John A. Williams III is an Associate Professor of Urban Education at Texas A&M University. Dr. Williams focuses on establishing affirming practices, policies, and procedures to eradicate exclusionary school disciplinary measures. With an impressive track record of over 50 publications, Dr. Williams's work appears in renowned outlets such as the Journal of Urban Education, Teaching and Teacher Education, Journal of Teacher Education, Urban Review, and the Journal of Higher Education. Dr. Williams has been a PI/Co-PI on projects funded by the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and the National Institute of Mental Health. Finally, Dr. Williams is the Director and Founder of the Urban Lab for Transformative Research and Assessment (ULTRA).

Vocabulary, Building Knowledge, Disciplinary Literacy

“There is no single quick fix in reading instruction! If we want kids to become strong readers, we need to support foundational skills, fluency, comprehension skills and strategies, knowledge-building, vocabulary development, and kids need to read a lot of texts—across grade levels and over time. This is a lot of work, but it's critically important work.”  

Dr. Tanya S. Wright is a former kindergarten teacher whose research and teaching focus on curriculum and instruction in early literacy during the early childhood and elementary school years. Her research examines instructional practices that promote oral language, vocabulary, and knowledge development for young children. Wright is co-author of several books for teachers and parents including, "A Teacher's Guide to Vocabulary Development Across the Day: Grades K–3" (Heinemann) and "Literacy Learning for Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers: Key Practices for Educators" (NAEYC). Her work has been published in journals such as American Educator, The Elementary School Journal, The Reading Teacher, Reading and Writing, Reading Research Quarterly, Science and Children, and the Journal of Literacy Research. Wright’s research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Institute of Education Sciences, the Spencer Foundation, and Open SciEd.