Advocacy

I have been heavily involved in advocacy for increased funding and awareness for Multilingual Education throughout the state of Rhode Island.

Social Media Video Campaigns

I have recorded several videos in collaboration with other world language educators and community stakeholders to promote the need for multilingual education. These videos have been shared widely on social media to increase awareness of the importance of learning another language. You can watch an advocacy video here.

Testifying at State House

I have testified in both the Senate (education committee) and the House of Representatives (finance committee) in support of several bills promoting greater opportunities for world language instruction. I have also lobbied legislators on both the Senate and House floor and written letters urging legislators to vote in favor of several bills aimed to increase funding for multilingual educational programs. You can hear my testimony here.

Multilingual Education Advocacy Day

Each April, the Coalition for a Multilingual RI hosts a Multilingual Education Advocacy Day at the Rhode Island State House. It is meant to increase awareness and support for various bills introduced to legislators to promote greater opportunities for language learning in the state. In 2019, I led a choir of students from a variety of schools in a bilingual song on the state house steps. You can hear them sing here. In 2023, we held our 5th annual Advocacy Day with a job fair for multilingual individuals.

RIFLA Advocacy Chair

As the chair of the Advocacy Committee for the Rhode Island Foreign Language Association, it is my role to coordinate efforts for language learning advocacy. I also act as a liaison between the Coalition for a Multilingual RI and RIFLA. I am proud to serve on these committees and I am proud of the work they do to promote multilingual education for all students in the state of Rhode Island. You can see another advocacy video here.