CABE BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2022-2023
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Dr. Bárbara Flores
President
Bárbara's Biography
DR. BÁRBARA FLORES, PRESIDENT
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
California State University, San Bernardino, Professor
Dr. Bárbara Flores is a pioneer Latina scholar activist, teacher educator, children’s literature writer, and international expert in the areas of biliteracy development, teaching/learning based on Vygotsky’s sociocultural theoretical framework, professional staff development, bilingual education, and critical pedagogy. Not only has she published her work in professional journals, books, and chapters, but she is also a sought-after keynote speaker throughout the Americas. She has lectured throughout the United States, Mexico, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Canada, Germany, Portugal, New Zealand, and Australia. She has been a professor for the last 30 years and currently has an academic appointment at California State University, San Bernardino.
Currently, she serves on the CABE Board of Directors as President and the Vice President of the California Latino School Board Association. She was elected to the San Bernardino City School Board in 2008 and has served as both the President, Vice President and now as a Board member after being re-elected in 2013. She is also the past President of the National Association for Bilingual Education and served on a variety of national, regional, and state professional councils, which include the editorial board of the prestigious American Education Research Association Journal, Social and Institutional Analysis Section. She is the founding member of the Journal of Latinos and Education and the editor of a special edition on Theme Cycles, Primary Voices Journal for the National Council of Teachers of English Executive Board. Additionally, Dr. Flores is the nationally elected Chair of the Elementary Section of the National Council of Teachers of English, is on the Executive Board of the National Latino/a Education Research Agenda, and is the past Co-Chair of the Education Task Force for the Inland Latino Coalition under Congressman Baca.
During the last 30 years, she has also engaged in collaborative Action Research and Teaching and 15+ longitudinal action/research/teaching projects. As a result of this work, she has spearheaded the development of curriculum and pedagogy as well as assessment tools to address the development of scientific concepts and academic language across the content areas of science, social studies, and literature in grades PreK- 8. Her most creative work includes the creation and co-authorship of the first authentic Latino Spanish/English beginning literacy and biliteracy collections, Piñata (132 titles, 1994) and Más Piñata (88 titles, 1997) in the United States. Furthermore, she was the first person to lead the editorial and adaptations of 12 English traditional tales into Spanish for Rigby of Australia in 1988. Her most recent children’s book is titled, Mud Tortillas, published by Lee & Low Press of New York.
Dr. Raúl Maldonado
President-Elect
Raul's Biography
DR. RAUL MALDONADO, PRESIDENT-ELECT
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Palmdale School District, Superintendent of Schools
Dr. Raul Maldonado was named Superintendent of Schools for the Palmdale School District in May 2014. Previously, he served as Superintendent of the McFarland Unified School District, Kern County. He is well known throughout California as an innovative and inspirational leader. He is experienced in transforming school and district culture and has a proven record of improving student achievement. He sets high expectations, strategically allocates resources, and provides continuous support and multiple opportunities for collaboration, and he holds high expectations for all stakeholders. He believes all students should receive the best educational opportunities utilizing a rigorous curriculum delivered using effective research-based strategies and 21stcentury skills that will prepare students to be successful and to graduate college and be career ready.
Dr. Raul Maldonado has received many accolades during his illustrious career. He has been the featured speaker and presented in many conferences throughout the state, including Online Assessment Reporting System (OARS), California Association of Bilingual Education (CABE), and California Association of Latino Superintendents and Administrators (CALSA). He has been recognized by several professional organizations for his leadership and for his work on behalf of the students in California. He even collaborated with Disney Productions on the filming of “McFarland”, a movie which features an exceptional teacher who goes to extraordinary efforts on behalf of his students in McFarland.
Dr. Maldonado has been an Antelope Valley resident since 1994. He is very involved in the community and enjoys working with community members, parents and students. He has been married to his beautiful wife, Isabel, for 22 years. Together they have four children, two in college and two attending Highland High School. His four children attended elementary school in the Palmdale School District and completed the Dual Language program at Los Amigos School through eighth grade.
Dr. Maldonado received his Bachelor Degree and Master’s Degree from California State University, Los Angeles. He holds a Multiple Subject Credential and a Clear Administrative Services Credential from the same university.
Elodia Ortega-Lampkin
Vice President
Elodia's Biography
ELODIA ORTEGA-LAMPKIN, VICE PRESIDENT
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Woodland Joint Unified School District.
Elodia Ortega-Lampkin is currently the Interim Superintendent of Woodland Joint Unified School District. A former migrant worker and migrant student, she began her career in education as a California Mini-Corps Tutor. Her career includes more than 20 years of experience in California public schools serving as a Tutor, Bilingual Teacher, Adult Education Teacher, Resource Teacher, Mini-Corp Summer Program Coordinator, Middle School Vice-Principal, Elementary Principal, Director of English Learner Services, and Director of Elementary Education.
She has been recognized by ACSA Region III as “Administrator of the Year for Curriculum & Instruction” 2013, Yolo County Family Resource Center “Champion for Children Award” 2012, and the recipient of the Yolo County Mexican-American Concilio “Pilar Andrade Award” 2011.
Her career passion has been to create cultures that embrace and promote inclusiveness, biliteracy, multicultural awareness and rigorous instructional programs with high expectations for all students, particularly English Learners.
Mary Helen Ybarra
Director of State / Legislative Affairs
Mary Helen's Biography
MARY HELEN YBARRA, DIRECTOR OF STATE/LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Corona-Norco Unified School District
Mary Helen is the President of the CNUSD School Board. Being the first Latina to be elected on this board she continues to be a true advocate for the students of her school district.
Mary has continued going to Sacramento to Advocate for different CABE issues for English Learners. She is also the Vice President of the California Latino School Board Association and a Delegate on California School Board Association.
Mary has been working hard with her chapters in Riverside, Coachella, San Bernardino and San Diego.
Keeping in touch through Zoom or phone calls to presidents and boards. Mary Helen understands all too well the struggles that English learners go through, as she was one. She is very Proud to be part of the CABE familia and as a Regional Representative.
Marissa Lazo-Necco
Director of Community Affairs
Marissa's Biography
MARISSA LAZO-NECCO, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
SBCSS, Family & Community Engagement Content Manager
Marissa Lazo-Necco is the Family & Community Engagement Content Manager at San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, where she advocates for English Learners and multilingual access for ALL by embodying integrity, equity, and leadership through strong statewide, national, and international partnershps that support the children we share across our borders and all students.
She was born in El Salvador to a mother who was a professor and a father who was an accountant. Being the youngest of three siblings, life in a country that was going through civil war was filtered through the care and love of her parents and brother and sister. In 1988, Marissa and her family came to this country where she navigated the education system as an English Learner Student who struggled to merge into the language and culture of this country. Her experience with family engagement was first lived as a teenager who stayed focused on education through the inspiration and support of her own parents.
After serving children as a pre-school teacher for 2 years, Marissa transitioned to gain experience in a High School District where her passion for family engagement met her passion for high expectation for all students through the coordination of district-wide family engagement and coordination of English Learner student placement and re-classification. Her family engagement journey has taken her through a growing process as a Coordinator for a Parent Center for the Ontario-Montclair School District, where she applied, at ground level, different family engagement promising practices to engage the wider community.
Rosa Armstrong
Director of Paraprofessional Affairs
Rosa's Biography
ROSA ARMSTRONG, DIRECTOR OF PARA-PROFESSIONAL AFFAIRS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Palmdale School District, Assistant in EL Department
Rosa Armstrong attended UCLA as an undergraduate student. She graduated from California State University of Los Angeles with a Bachelor’s Degree. She has been a member and an elected official of CABE for the past fourteen years. Rosa has been an employee of the Palmdale School District since 1994. She started her career as a Bilingual Instructional Assistant. Since then she has filled many positions in the bilingual sector of the district. She was the District Translator/Interpreter for ten years, taught ESL classes and parenting classes in her community; and is a facilitator for DELAC, ELAC and Migrant Education programs. Currently she works as the Assistant to the Director of Special Education. She assisted in creating many of the bilingual education programs for the Palmdale School District. She considers herself as exceptional individual who is highly respected by district administrators, educators, and parents.
Her Leadership Experience includes: Alfalit-Literacy Program-Head Facilitator in Lima-Peru, PTA President (two years at school level), South Antelope Valley Council PTA President, Palmdale School District Lead Translator/Interpeter, CABE Chapter 58-President, Vice President, Treasurer 2000-2014, CABE Director of Paraprofessional Affairs 2006 – 2012, CABE Annual Conference Planning Committee 2011- 2013, CABE Director of Paraprofessional Affairs 2016-2018, CABE Director of Parent Affairs 2018-2020.
Dr. José Hugo Moreno
Director of Parent Relations
Hugo's Biography
DR. HUGO MORENO, DIRECTOR OF PARENT RELATIONS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Payne Elementary, Mountain View SD, Principal
Over the past 26 years, Dr. Moreno has played a key role in the decision-making process and implementation of effective school programs at various schools in California. He has accomplished this through work on the leadership team, school site council, staff development, curriculum development, district-sponsored functions and through the allocation and monitoring of school budgets. His education at Claremont Graduate University, and California State University, Los Angeles, prepared him to successfully execute his responsibilities as a counselor intern, teacher, and site administrator.
His career includes two years as a counselor intern for the Talent Search program housed at California State University Los Angeles, thirteen years as classroom teacher and eighteen years as assistant principal and 5 years as principal in the Mountain View School District.
Dr. Moreno grew up in Hollywood, East Los Angeles, and the San Gabriel Valley He has a special connection with students and parents from immigrant communities because they reflect the communities that he grew up in. He is bilingual, Spanish and English, bicultural and a positive role model for the community he serves.
His experience includes decisions dealing with personnel selection, budgeting, student welfare, and curriculum development, working with staff on developing and maintaining programs to improve student academic performance and parent engagement. He was one of the collaborators in developing his district’s parent engagement program. Some of his roles have been presenter, facilitator, community activist, to being a mentor.
In 2020 he presented at the 24th Annual Parent Involvement Academy in City of Industry on the topic of the Impostor Syndrome. He was Honored by the Los Angeles County Bilingual Director’s Annual Recognition on April 29th 2017 for his commitment to EL education and the students of the Mountain View School District. Dr. Moreno was a mentor to 5 youth towards attaining a college bound direction for the Partnership Scholars Program, Mentor 2010 – 2016. In 2015, HSF College Camp 2015 @ CSULA Co-presenter giving 9th-10th grade students logistical information in regards to college requirements A-G, ACT, SAT, and scholarship opportunities at the Hispanic Scholarship Fund California State University College Camp. On February 7, 2015, he was honored to be Counselor for the Chicano Youth Leadership Conference (Sal Castro’s) College retreat October 31-November 2, 2014.
He was an ADELANTE District Conferences Presenter (1998-2005) topics included Parental involvement in children’s education, understanding of the SAT 9, CAT 6 assessments, strategies to use at home to support learning in ELA & Math, Financial Aid and the FAFSA application process. He was a Cal Poly Pomona’s Teacher’s Asian Summer Studies Institute (TASSI) Fellow, 1997. Guest lecturer at various campuses throughout southern California that include East Los Angeles College, Cypress College, Santa Ana College, & California State University Los Angeles. Topics ranging from education to contemporary and historical issues that impact and influence the Latino community.
Dr. Lettie Ramírez
Director of Secondary & IHE Affairs
Lettie's Biography
DR. LETTIE RAMÍREZ, DIRECTOR OF SECONDARY AND INSTITUTES OF HIGHER EDUCATION AFFAIRS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Program Director, Cal State East Bay, Retired Professor
Dr. Lettie Ramirez, born in El Paso, Texas worked her way through elementary school in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, middle and high school in El Paso, Texas and finally worked her way through a doctoral degree at University of Texas at Austin. She was hired at CSU East Bay in 1994 to teach future teachers in the Teacher Education Department and Special Education classes in the Educational Psychology Department.
In 2005, she became a full professor. Throughout her tenure at CSU East Bay, she has received numerous awards such as Professor of the Year (2001), Advisor of the Year (2007), Si Se Puede! Excellence Award (2013), Outstanding Contributor to Community Engagement (2013) and Latino Heritage Recognition by Senator Wieckowski in (2015). Her strong focus in writing and obtained grants has helped her obtain over 35 million to support numerous students. Dr. Ramirez has presented and taught classes at the local, state, national and international level in several countries such as Greece, Mexico, Philippines, and Spain.
Dr. Ramirez has been the editor of four books. First two books were for teachers Portraits of Teachers in Multicultural Settings: A Critical Literacy Approach and Multicultural Education in Practice: Transforming One Community at a Time. The other two books have been working with parents You are Not Alone: Recipes for Success by Parents for Parents and in Spanish No Estas Solo: Recetas para Obtener Exito de Padres Para Padres.
With the goal of helping all students obtain a quality education, she has founded several programs at CSU East Bay. She was the co-founder of GANAS: Gaining Access aNd Academic Success a program to support students who transfer and now Director of STEP: Sophomore Transition Enrichment Program to increase academic support and retention of sophomores.
Dr. Karling Aguilera-Fort
Director of Financial Affairs
Karlings Biography
DR. KARLING AGUILERA-FORT, DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL AFFAIRS
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Oxnard School District, Superintendent
Dr. Karling Aguilera-Fort came to the Oxnard School District as Superintendent on July 1, 2019. Prior to joining OSD, Dr. Aguilera-Fort served as the Superintendent of the El Rancho Unified School District.
Dr. Aguilera-Fort has served as the Assistant Superintendent in charge of supervising sixteen PK-8 schools in the Bernal-Noe and Mission District in the San Francisco Unified School District. His work has focused on ensuring high quality and equitable education for students who historically have not been served appropriately. Dr. Aguilera-Fort is a firm believer in developing the whole child. He states, “We must support the development of the whole educator in order to provide the tools and mindset to address the needs of the students we receive every day in our classrooms.”
Dr. Aguilera-Fort possesses site, district, regional, and PK-Grade 12 experience, and has supervised, coached, and mentored school leaders at all levels. He has served previously as Assistant Superintendent of Learning Support & Equity for the Academics and Professional Development Division in the SFUSD with a budget of more than 160 million dollars. He has been responsible for overseeing a number of programs which were created to serve populations of students that historically have not been supported to the fullest extent. These programs include: English Learner Services, Special Education Services, and Standard English Learner Services. In the past, Dr. Aguilera-Fort was assigned the added responsibility of Acting Chief of Early Childhood where he was able to support the alignment and continuum of services and to organize professional development and data conferences adapted to the early childhood setting.
Dr. Aguilera-Fort has served as Principal of Fairmont Elementary School (SFUSD) as well as co-principal of Garfield Middle School in Redwood City School District. He has also served as an Assistant Principal at Buena Vista Elementary School (SFUSD). He credits his experience as a special education teacher as significantly influencing his career’s work. It includes Early Education Intervention and Prevention teacher, Elementary and Middle School Special Education teacher, and General Education teacher. In other related experience, Dr. Aguilera-Fort has been a lecturer in the Principal Leadership Institute at the Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley.
Originally from Venezuela where he worked at different levels in the educational system within Special Education, Dr. Karling Aguilera-Fort was invited to teach in the Spanish Bilingual Special Education setting in SFUSD. Since the beginning of his career, he has been involved with the issues of equity and social justice on behalf of the most marginalized students. He presently is the Immediate Past President of the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE), a role that he also performed from 2007-2010, and also serves as a member of the Mission Education Development Agency Governing Board. He attended the Graduate School of Education at UC Berkeley where he obtained his Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership, and has completed his doctoral degree in International Educational Leadership.
Dr. Aguilera-Fort is proud of having been involved with education nationally and internationally for over 25 years, and looks forward to working with the Oxnard School District Board of Trustees, staff and community at large to take the district to the next level, that is, Second to None.
Gloria Ulloa Rodríguez
Region I Representative
Gloria's Biography
GLORIA ULLOA RODRÍGUEZ, REGION 1 REPRESENTATIVE
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Woodland Joint Unified School District, Retired Educator
Ms. Rodríguez started teaching in the mid 1970s when there was a lack of curriculum, textbooks or books in Spanish for teaching in a bilingual class. Ms. Rodríguez taught in the Santa Barbara, Goleta Union and Woodland Joint Unified School District. She held positions as a bilingual elementary classroom teacher, an English Language Development teacher, a bilingual resource teacher, a Title VII Grant Coordinator, a Child Development Program administrator and elementary school Principal.
Ms. Rodríguez coordinated a dual immersion program at Lee Junior High in the Woodland Joint Unified School District which also focused on cooperative education and technology.
Gloria helped coordinate classroom and family educational programs that focused on the English Language Learners and their families, primarily from Mexico and Southeast Asia.
Ms. Rodríguez, WJUSD Child Development Program Coordinator for State Preschool Program, Teen Parenting Program and the Infant Childcare Program brought in the UC Davis Mind Institute to provide staff development in the early literacy research.
Gloria has been a board member of the CABE Yolo/Woodland Chapter 76 for many years. After retiring in 2010, Ms. Rodríguez continued to be involved in CABE Yolo/Woodland Chapter 76.
Gloria has served on the Woodland Public Library Board of Trustees and provided better access for all in order to bridge the digital divide, and provide resources and programs to meet the needs of Woodland’s diverse community.
Dr. Zenaida
Aguirre-Muñoz
Region II Representative
Zenaida's Biography
DR. ZENAIDA AGUIRRE-MUÑOZ, REGION II REPRESENTATIVE
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
University of California-Merced, Professor of Cognitive Science
Dr. Zenaida Aguirre-Muñoz is a Professor of Cognitive Science at UCM. Dr. Aguirre-Muñoz completed two bachelor’s degrees from UC Santa Barbara in Psychology and Spanish. Aguirre-Muñoz received her Ph.D. in Psychological Studies in Education from the UC, Los Angeles. She began her professional career as a research scientist at the UCLA Center for Research, Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST).
She was a faculty member at Texas Tech University and the University of Houston prior to joining the UC, Merced faculty. Her research integrates cognitive science, language, learning sciences, and assessment applied to the following research interests: (a) STEM education; (b) model-based assessment and instruction of dual language learners; (c) the impact of opportunity to learn on learning and achievement; and (d) content-area literacy development for dual language learners. Her research projects have been funded by organizations such as NSF, NIH, Department of Energy, and the US Department of Education.
Dr. Reyna García Ramos
Region III Representative
Reyna's Biography
DR. REYNA GARCIA RAMOS, REGION III REPRESENTATIVE
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Pepperdine University, Professor of Education & Director, Teacher Preparation Program
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles
Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara
Dr. García Ramos is a professor of education and Director of the Teacher Education Program at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology at Pepperdine University, where she also directs the MAT Program. She is the daughter of Mexicano immigrant parents from Guerrero, México and the first in her family to attend college and obtain an advanced degree. She teaches courses that help preservice teachers understand theory and pedagogy for the effective instruction of bilingual and multilingual learners in TK-12 classrooms.
Dr. García Ramos’ work addresses the academic gap among multilingual learners in California’s public school system. She established university-school partnerships that allow preservice teachers extensive learning experiences with multilingual learners. Dr. García Ramos teaches language and second language development courses, educational psychology, and qualitative research methods. She previously worked in bilingual classrooms in the Los Angeles and Goleta Unified School Districts. Before completing her graduate studies, she was a community educator and organizer that designed culturally relevant curricula for immigrants in the Inland Empire. Dr. García Ramos was the Director of Legislative Affairs for the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) from 2006 to 2008 and the secretary of the Bilingual Education Research SIG12 of the American Educational Research Association from 2007-2009 and again from 2016-2018. She is the mother of two young men that graduated with the Seal of Biliteracy from California public high schools. Her favorite work is being the faculty liaison for the CABE Pepperdine Chapter. She is the recipient of the Distinguished Teacher Educator from the California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE) and the Howard A. White Award for Teaching Excellence from Pepperdine University.
Angélica Hurtado
Region IV Representative
Angélica's Biography
Angelica Hurtado, REGION 4 REPRESENTATIVE
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Program Manager, San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools
Angelica Hurtado currently serves as Program Manager of Multilingual Education for San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools. She has been in bilingual education for over 25 years and has taught in bilingual classrooms K-6. In addition, Angelica has served as a bilingual Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) Support Provider, English Learner Programs District Coordinator, Elementary School Principal, and Director of State and Federal Programs. She proudly serves 33 districts in San Bernardino County and supports the implementation and development of their multilingual programs. Angelica has been a California Association of Bilingual Education (CABE) member throughout her education career. She helped establish the local CABE Chapter in San Bernardino where she is currently vice president. Angelica is a champion and advocate for English learners and multilingual students in hopes of helping them achieve success in a global economy. She’s a servant leader that enjoys uplifting others and networking with colleagues.
Dr. MariaElena Esquer
Region V Representative
MariaElena's Biography
MariaElena Esquer, REGION 5 REPRESENTATIVE
California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE)
Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, Palmdale School District
Since attending her first CABE conference in Downtown Los Angeles in 1988, MariaElena Esquer says she has been both in awe and inspired by the professional learning provided, and also by the organization and its leadership. She continues to see CABE as that visionary service organization transforming education for our English Learners. CABE’s commitment compels her actions and is the focus of the vow she made to her community in Palmdale, as the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, to implement the Palmdale PROMISE, their strategic plan. Her dedication to English Learners, celebrating multiculturalism and multilingualism is the catalyst that drives her work.
Since 1997, MariaElena Esquer has served the Palmdale community as a bilingual teacher, site administrator, and district office leader. In 2017, ACSA Region XV awarded her the Central Office Leader of the Year Award. As a teacher and administrator, she worked tirelessly with the district’s most “at-promise” schools, to ensure students felt valued for their language, had access to equitable programs and developed a love of learning. As the Principal of Los Amigos Dual Language School, the dedication to biliteracy and bilingualism was the purpose and gift to her community. During her principalship, Los Amigos was selected by CABE as a Seal of Excellence School in 2012. All of these experiences has helped her to grow as a leader, as a servant and advocate for students, and as a human being who loves her profession and the children it serves.
