What leadership roles and/or volunteer experiences have you had?

I am committed to contributing to the communities I participate in. As a graduate student at the University of Maryland, I volunteered many semesters as an English as a second language (ESL) conversation and speaking partner, and worked with fellow international students and employees of the University to help them improve their English language proficiency. As a graduate assistant and a leader within the graduate student body in the College of Education, I have contributed extensively to the Office of International Initiatives (OII) to the improvement of the lives of international students and scholars in the College, as well as the efforts to internationalize the College itself. Further, as a graduate teaching assistant I have co-designed and instructed undergraduate and graduate courses that advocate for cross-cultural understandings, value diversity, and promote a multicultural environment in the program and the department.

I have also been active in the local and national affiliates of my professional field, serving as the President of the Non-Native English Speaking Teachers (NNESTs) Caucus in Washington-TESOL (Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages) in the past, and currently serving as the editor of the NNEST Interest Section newsletter for the national TESOL body. I began my career as a formal ESL instructor in the U.S. in Summer 2009 when I taught ESL courses at Montgomery College, and am now continuing in that role this semester as well. I have decided to combine my dual roles of teacher and researcher in my practitioner research for my dissertation, and hope that my studies and participation in the academic communities will serve to make me an effective and successful teacher to diverse and minority populations.