Friday, May 15, 2026
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Education and Training Pathway at Memorial
Parent, Family, & Community EngagementCynthia Ramirez De Lopez Lead with Marely Garcia
May 15, 9:40am – 10:50am70 minMaverick (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This presentation showcases how future bilingual educators serve as campeones de lenguaje, la cultura, y la comunidad by completing internships in local elementary schools, where they apply dual language and culturally responsive practices. Research affirms that developing students’ first language strengthens second-language acquisition and overall academic success, and that affirming cultural identity is essential for bilingual learners’ engagement and well‑being . Additionally, field‑based experiences deepen preservice teachers’ understanding of dual language pedagogy and strengthen preparation for bilingual/dual language classrooms . By uplifting language, culture, and community through authentic service, these interns embody the spirit of Still We Rise and demonstrate the trans-formative impact of bilingual educator pathways. -
Instrucción estructurada de la LECTOESCRITURA en español
Sponsored by Werling Nexus (Diamond) Sponsored SessionsAlejandra Benitez Lead
May 15, 9:40am – 10:50am70 minMesquite (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
Descubre cómo enseñar la lectoescritura en español de forma explícita, sistemática y efectiva. A través de una secuencia progresiva de habilidades —conciencia fonológica, fonética, fluidez, vocabulario, comprensión y escritura— aprenderás a apoyar a los estudiantes desde las etapas iniciales de alfabetización hasta estudiantes mayores con retos en lectoescritura. Los participantes aprenderán a usar evaluaciones y datos para guiar la instrucción y brindar intervenciones efectivas en aulas bilingües. Saldrás con herramientas prácticas que impulsarán la biliteracidad, la confianza académica y un ambiente inclusivo y motivador para todos tus estudiantes. -
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Math Talk Matters: Building Content & Language Together Through CBLI
Instructional Practices in ESL ClassroomsEduardo Perez Lead
May 15, 9:40am – 10:50am70 minRiverwalk (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Math Talk Matters: Building Content & Language Together through CBLI explores how intentional math discourse can simultaneously develop conceptual understanding and academic language in bilingual, dual language, and ESL classrooms. Grounded in the CBLI framework, this session highlights explicit instruction, structured discussion routines, visual scaffolds, and sentence rehearsal as tools to bridge content and language without lowering rigor. Participants will analyze classroom examples and teacher moves that position students as active meaning-makers who justify, question, and build on one another’s thinking. Educators will leave with practical, ready-to-implement strategies that elevate student voice and honor linguistic and cultural assets while strengthening mathematical achievement. -
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Advancing Claim-Evidence-Reasoning in Middle School: Bilingual Scaffolds and Structured Collaboration
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsNelia Gamez Lead
May 15, 9:45am – 10:40am55 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This session models how middle school bilingual students use collaborative scaffolds to build Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) responses through structured discussion, reading, and reflection. Participants will learn how group work, academic talk, and guided supports lead students from co-constructed responses and presentations to independent short answers and full essays. The session provides practical strategies that strengthen both language development and critical thinking while promoting equitable participation. -
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Igniting Possibilities for Dyslexia Support in Dual-Language Programs
EBs with Diverse NeedsCeleste Martinez Lead with Karla Mariana Escobar
May 15, 9:45am – 10:40am55 minMaple (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
This presentation draws on the emerging research into multilingual and multimodal means of representation (Cioè‐Peña, 2022; CAST, 2024) for students with dyslexia in Dual Language and Bilingual Education programs (DLBE). Participants will identify specific strategies to implement in their classrooms by engaging with an interactive, composite case study. This composite case study highlights current practices to enable access to the curriculum. Participants will leave with resources on actionable strategies to implement in the classroom. -
Building Bridges Between Contemporary Music and Spanish Literature
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsEllen Flores Chavira Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This presentation models how contemporary Spanish-language music can be used to build meaningful bridges to literary analysis in bilingual classrooms. Through classroom-tested pairings from AP Spanish Literature, participants will explore strategies that connect students’ lived linguistic and cultural experiences to canonical texts while strengthening biliteracy and critical thinking. The session is interactive and provides ready-to-use comparison prompts that position students as active interpreters, cultural experts, and advocates for their voices and identities. -
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Empowering Multilingual Learners with Disabilities Through Universal Design
EBs with Diverse NeedsCarlos Perez Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minMaple (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
Language becomes a tool of empowerment when all students can access rigorous academic content through multiple pathways. This innovative session demonstrates how Universal Design for Learning serves as a powerful framework to integrate evidence-based strategies that unlock academic language for multilingual learners, including English learners with disabilities. Participants will explore the synergy between UDL's three principles and structured instructional approaches: the 7 Steps to Language-Rich Classrooms, QSSSR (Question, Signal/Cue, Sentence Stem, Share, Assess), and Preview-View-Review strategies. Through hands-on practice with a dual language 8th grade US History lesson, educators will experience how sentence stems scaffold academic discourse, how multiple modalities support comprehension for students with reading differences, and how choice in expression honors both linguistic diversity and learning differences. Attendees will leave with a replicable lesson template that transforms any content area into a linguistically and cognitively accessible learning experience. When we design instruction that honors every student's linguistic assets while providing structured and explicit instructional support for academic language development and reading differences, we truly make language a source of power for all learners. -
Campeones del idioma desde Pre‑K: Conectando hogar, escuela y comunidad
Parent, Family, & Community EngagementDubelsa Lara Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minMaverick (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This presentation will share practical, research‑aligned strategies to position Pre‑K families as active partners in developing children’s bilingual language and cultural identity in dual language and ESL classrooms. Drawing on over 20 years of classroom experience and a recent Top Family Engagement award using ReadyRosie, the session will model how everyday home routines, stories, and traditions can be transformed into rich language and literacy opportunities that honor students’ linguistic and cultural assets. Participants will leave with ready‑to‑use ideas for communication, family activities, and classroom projects that connect home, school, and community, fully reflecting the theme “Still We Rise: Campeones de lenguaje, la cultura, y la comunidad.” -
The Transformative Power of Bilingual and Higher Education
Featured SessionsDr. Jose Luis Zelaya Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 12:05pm70 minMesquite (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
This session provides an interactive and engaging learning experience focused on the transformative power of bilingualism in the lives of newcomer and emergent bilingual students. Participants will explore how bilingualism strengthens cognitive development, academic success, perseverance, and long-term aspirations, while also serving as a foundation for belonging and empowerment in schools. Together, we will examine common challenges educators face when supporting bilingual learners, including limited instructional time, pressures to accelerate English acquisition, and systems that unintentionally devalue students’ home language. Using a strengths-based and research-informed approach, participants will reflect on how to shift classroom practices toward affirming language, culture, and student voice. Educators will leave with practical strategies and tools that can be implemented strategically, including methods to increase academic discourse, elevate multilingual engagement, and create safe learning environments where students’ native language and cultural assets are embraced as essential resources. This session will inspire participants to reimagine English language acquisition as a powerful pathway to leadership, opportunity, and generational success. -
Scaffold Writing Across Mixed Proficiency Levels
Instructional Practices in ESL ClassroomsAbraham Perez Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minRiverwalk (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This interactive session models a scaffold progression from vocabulary development to collaborative paragraph writing in mixed proficiency ESL/ELD classrooms. Teachers will explore how to use a visual stimulus to activate background knowledge and generate student created vocabulary, which is then analyzed and grouped by language features such as cognates, verbs, nouns, and synonyms to build metalinguistic awareness. Participants will engage in randomly grouping strategies where students collaboratively construct sentences based on group size, requiring each member to contribute one word, followed by whole class analysis of sentence structure and language targets. The lesson culminates in a roving paragraph activity that transforms oral rehearsal into written production, demonstrating how structured interaction, movement, and student generated anchor charts support academic writing development across proficiency levels. This progression centered approach shifts writing instruction from teacher centered delivery to scaffold, student driven language production. -
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“¡Juguemos! Let’s Play! Estrategias de vocabulario que incorporan el puente.”
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsMichelle Camacho Lead with Michelle Morales
May 15, 1:35pm – 2:45pm70 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This interactive session will go over the what & why of traditional bridging, and showcase a variety of vocabulary strategies that can be used in any content area. -
Still We Rise: Creating Pathways for Bilingual Students in GT
EBs with Diverse NeedsDr. Apolonio Trejo Lead
May 15, 1:45pm – 2:40pm55 minMaple (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
This session explores the underrepresentation of bilingual students in Gifted and Talented (GT) programs and provides practical strategies for equitable identification, culturally responsive assessment, and inclusive instruction in bilingual, dual language, and ESL classrooms. Drawing on current research (Medina, 2025; Trejo, 2021), it highlights systemic barriers and emphasizes the value of students’ home languages, bilingualism, and translanguaging as assets for learning. Participants will leave with actionable tools to create pathways that honor bilingual learners as campeones de lenguaje, la cultura, y la comunidad. -
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From Parents to Professionals: Fortaleciendo las capacidades en nuestras comunidades
Parent, Family, & Community EngagementDenise Segura Lead
May 15, 1:45pm – 2:40pm55 minMaverick (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This session highlights the transformative journey of a Salado DLI Academy that has moved beyond traditional parent involvement to a robust parent capacity-building model. We will share how our district empowers families by providing ESL and GED classes, as well as specialized pathways for parents to earn their Instructional Assistant and Substitute certifications. By investing in our parents' professional growth, we have cultivated a resilient ecosystem where bilingualism serves as a bridge to career opportunities and school leadership. Attendees will learn how this model has effectively eliminated our LPAC parent shortages and substitute teacher gaps, creating a sustainable cycle of advocacy and support. We will provide a roadmap for participants to replicate these certification pathways, demonstrating how bilingual education empowers families to rise above systemic challenges and become the primary voices for their classrooms and communities. -
Jugando y Aprendiendo: Gamifying SWIRL in HS for Multilingual Success
Instructional Practices in ESL ClassroomsBailee Thompson Lead with Jose Solis, Myra Chavez, Edgar Sifuentes, Shantell Colebrooke
May 15, 1:45pm – 2:40pm55 minRiverwalk (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Jugando y Aprendiendo: Gamifying SWIRL in HS for Multilingual Success
How do we move beyond passive language learning and create classrooms where Emergent Bilingual students actively engage in academic language across all domains? This highly interactive session showcases how the LEE High School ESOL and ELD team leverages gamification to promote SWIRL (Speaking, Writing, Interaction, Reading, and Listening) in culturally and linguistically responsive ways at the secondary level.
Participants will not just learn about strategies—they will experience them firsthand. Attendees will actively engage in a variety of classroom-tested games that promote academic language development, collaboration, and student discourse across content areas. Through guided play, participants will see how these strategies increase engagement while providing meaningful opportunities for students to practice language in authentic, low-risk environments.
Grounded in research on translanguaging (García & Wei), comprehensible input (Krashen), and Funds of Knowledge (Moll et al.), this session demonstrates how game-based learning supports both language acquisition and academic success while honoring students’ cultural and linguistic assets.
In addition, participants will take part in a “make-and-take” experience, where they will create and leave with ready-to-use game materials and templates that can be immediately implemented in their classrooms. Whether you are new to working with Emergent Bilinguals or looking to elevate student engagement, this session provides practical tools and strategies to transform instruction and empower multilingual learners. -
EBs, Former EBs, and Non-EBs: Developing Language in Diverse Classrooms
EBs with Diverse NeedsStephen Fleenor Lead
May 15, 2:55pm – 3:50pm55 minMaple (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
The modern general-education classroom is highly heterogeneous, with emergent bilingual (EB) students at different levels of English language proficiency, students with unique socioemotional needs, and students with diverse background knowledge about academic content.
How can we practically meet the language needs of all students in a diverse classroom? This session shows educators practical ways to meet students where they are at, give them a voice, and help to grow their language, self-confidence, and academic performance. Additionally, this session models how to achieve success for all students by making the development of academic language the primary objective of every lesson and challenging all students to engage with thinking and language at the highest levels of Blooms’ taxonomy. In this session, participants will:
• Engage as students in language-rich simulations
• Discuss with peers how second-language acquisition (SLA) strategies and diverse support can help all students realize their potential
• Learn how to give students a voice through open-ended, culturally responsive activities -
When Bilingual Education Programs Meet the Magic of Music
Parent, Family, & Community EngagementDr. Gilberto D Soto Lead
May 15, 2:55pm – 4:05pm70 minMaverick (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
The main objective of this presentation is to provide principles and strategies of how music and movement can be related to the expressive and developmental needs of dual language programs for children from their early childhood stages. These music activities and/or curriculum materials presented are intended to increase the enactive, iconic and symbolic learning experiences when creating lesson plans. Group music experiences and activities for children will also be covered. This presentation is mostly hands-on, so be ready to sing, move and dance! -
Cultivating Bilingual Teacher Leaders in Community
Administrator/ AdvocacyDr. Karina Villa Lead with Dr. Lorena Claeys, Mpa, Ms. Christina King, M.a., Mrs. Renee Tondre-garza, M.a., Lpc Dr. Claudia Garcia-treviño, M.a. Sr. Alejandra Treviño, Fma, M.ed
May 15, 2:55pm – 4:05pm70 minMesquite (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 45)Show details
This session invites participants to rise together as champions of language, culture, and community by exploring the Culturally Efficacious Signature Teacher Residency (CESTR) pathway developed through the Academy for Teacher Excellence Research Center at UT San Antonio. Participants will learn how the pathway creates accessible routes for paraprofessionals, teaching assistants, and community members to become bilingual certified educators through residency-based clinical experiences, mentorship, and culturally sustaining pedagogies.
Presenters will share practical resources and tools that support aspiring bilingual teachers, including TExES preparation strategies, career transition guidance, and mentorship supports that strengthen educator readiness and confidence. The session will also highlight how Grow-Your-Own partnerships between universities, schools, and communities fortify bilingual teacher pipelines while affirming the linguistic and cultural assets emergent bilingual students bring to the classroom.
Attendees will leave with actionable strategies for designing culturally sustaining teacher pathways that empower educators to champion language, culture, and community in their schools. -
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Rising Together: Elevating Language and Content Through Comprehensible Design
Instructional Practices in ESL ClassroomsGabriela Sandoval Lead with Heather Williams, Ariana Garza, Melissa Olivarez
May 15, 2:55pm – 3:50pm55 minRiverwalk (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This interactive session highlights how intentional instructional practices in Content-Based Language Instruction (CBLI) empower educators to support emergent bilingual (EB) students in every classroom. Participants will explore how to design comprehensible learning intentions and align them with purposeful success criteria, using targeted EB supports as actionable “SWIRLing moves” that drive both language and content mastery.
Presenters will model how structured conversations, real classroom scenarios, and reflective planning can shift mindsets—helping all educators see themselves as language teachers. Through discussion, modeling, and collaborative practice, participants will engage in creating their own aligned learning intentions, success criteria, and SWIRLing with supports.