ML Chat: Conversations with Multilingual Educators

Drawing on teacher feedback and classroom observations, Dr. Lisa Auslander shares how her team continually refines curriculum and resources for newcomers and SLIFE students. She explains why supporting implementation is just as important as developing materials, using coaching, office hours, and professional learning to meet educators' needs. The goal is simple: give teachers the resources they need so they can focus on teaching.

As CEO of Kids Count and Read Too, Dr. Jobi Lawrence has spent 30 years advocating for English learners and at-risk students. In this ML Chat episode, she shares her journey from launching ESL programs in rural Iowa to shaping national multilingual education policy. She also highlights how collaboration and relationship-building can create a lasting impact for students and educators alike.

With 26 years of experience, Beverly Kerr joins the ML Chat Podcast to share how Title I schools, among others, can create equitable and inclusive ML classrooms. She emphasizes the importance of building relationships and addressing the needs of dually identified and trauma-affected learners. Discover how foundational literacy, structured interventions, and cross-department collaboration create schoolwide systems of support.

How do you serve multilingual learners across a large district using current resources? In this episode of the ML Chat Podcast, Dr. Merica Clinkenbeard, Director of ELD for Springfield Public Schools, Missouri, shares how she leverages collaboration, teacher leadership, and language-rich instruction to drive systemic change. She also reflects on launching a Newcomer Academy to support students and create inclusive schools.

Tune in to the ML Chat Podcast for practical strategies to create literacy-rich classrooms. Heather Benitez, ESL Coordinator and veteran teacher, shares how she fosters academic discourse and builds structured literacy routines across content areas. Serving a Texas district with 26 languages, Heather champions culturally responsive teaching, ongoing support for teachers, and inclusive practices that put students first.

Join our esteemed panel of educators as they reflect on their mission to integrate the science of reading into ESL instruction. Dr. Jennifer Pendergrass-Bennefield, Dr. Tabatha Tierce, Dr. David Chiesa, and Assistant Superintendent John Parker discuss Georgia’s dyslexia law and how ESL, special education, and general education teams can work together to make research-based literacy accessible to all students.

If your goal is to offer multilingual students an inclusive and supportive environment, you won’t want to miss this episode of the ML Chat Podcast. EL Coordinator Graham Litters discusses the value of co-teaching models, sharing strategies to encourage student interaction, language usage, and engagement. With double the support, English Learners thrive when Math, Science, Social Studies, and ELA teachers partner with language teachers in the classroom.