Download the Immigrant/Refugee and Advocacy presentation slides

Nancy got interested in second language acquisition when studying German at UC Irvine, which included a year in Göttingen and two summers on a pig farm. After working in international student exchange programs and in law offices, she returned to school for an ESL teaching certificate from UC Berkeley and a masters in counseling. For several years, she taught ESL at Bakersfield Adult School and at CSU Bakersfield before escaping with her family to Oregon. She embarked on her teaching career at PCC eleven years ago. Throughout this COVID year, she’s received invaluable support and inspiration from her PCC colleagues and friends.

Linda quickly overhauled BLC's offerings in the wake of the pandemic, taking them online with little to no interruption for our community of students. She's also worked hard to teach fellow teachers and volunteers best practices for Zoom and other platforms, operating within a non-profit, rather than with the resources of a community college or university. She has helped open classes to ELLs throughout the Portland metro and beyond during the pandemic.

Linda Bonder started teaching English in 2014 after 20 years in marketing, communications, and administration. She is currently a teacher and the board president for Beaverton Literacy Council, a community-based ESOL program. Her teaching is informed by years of language learning with French, Spanish, Portuguese, and now Russian. Linda has an MA TESOL from Portland State University.

Jennifer Lebedev - Morning Plenary Speaker

Presentation Title: Topic: Learning to Teach Outside My Comfort Zone: How I Transitioned to Online Teaching and Why I Chose to Stay There

Teaching has been an important part of my life for over twenty years. I have taught English as a foreign and second language since 1996. I began teaching English in Russia, and I presently live the U.S. I have been working online as an instructor and content creator since 2007. I also like to create materials to share with other teachers. My Pearson-sponsored blog won the 2010 EDDIE Award in the category of ESL Website Blog. Students likely know me best as JenniferESL on YouTube. I am tremendously happy to have over half a million subscribers worldwide. In 2011, my channel was recognized in YouTube's "On the Rise" contest. 

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Dr Ayanna Cooper EdD - Afternoon Plenary Speaker

Presentation Title: Assuring Civil Rights for ELs; Reflect and Reset

Dr. Ayanna Cooper, EdD, is a consultant, author, keynote speaker, and advocate for culturally and linguistically diverse learners. As owner of ACooper Consulting, she provides technical assistance to state departments of education and other clients with the goal of improving outcomes for students. She emphasizes the importance of building capacity to develop and sustain English language programs, use English language proficiency data, and improve instructional practices. She is the author of And Justice for ELs; A Leader's Guide to Creating and Sustaining Equitable Schools and Language Magazine's Pass the Mic series editor. She is currently serving on the TESOL Board of Directors.

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