President: Michelle Land

Vice President/President-Elect: Maria Cecilia Vila Chave

Past-President: Margaret Churchill

Secretary: Kathryn Tepedino

Treasurer: TBA

Liaison: Abdul-Qawwee Shabazz

Representative-at-large: Mary Mansfield

Socio-political Representative: Sonya Bertini

Graduate Student Representative: Julia Coronel

Parent/Family Representative: TBA

Membership Chair: Joan Pujol

Social Media Coordinator: kiina dordoni

Historian: TBA

Executive Director: Kathleen Fernandez

Business Administrator: Gwen Franks

Technology Coordinator: Marilyn Pongracz

Conference Coordinator: Caia Schlessinger

Exhibitor Liaison: Tina Kern

Technology Assistant: Dale Egan

Special Interest Group Representatives

Bilingual/ESL Early Childhood / Pre-K – K: Veronica Murillo

Bilingual Elementary 1-5: Mary Callirgos

ESL Elementary 1-5: Jenna Maneri

Bilingual/ESL Middle School 6-8: Amber Ingram

Bilingual Secondary: Jessica Duran

ESL Secondary: Liz Farro

Higher Education: Leah Carmona

Teacher Education: Alex Guzman

Adult Education: Kimberly Sharkey

Special Education: Aphrodite Dellaporta

Supervisors: Keith Perkins

Family/Community Action: Nurka Nieves

Committees

Advocacy Sub-Committee Chair: Sonya Bertini

Professional Development Committee: Chair: Kathryn Tepedino

Countering Anti-Black Racism Committee Chair: kiina dordoni

Parent Expo Chair: Kathleen Fernandez

Announcements

Share with parents and families of multilingual students: join us for our 6th FREE virtual Padres con Poder/Parent Power, NJTESOL/NJBE workshop on Saturday, January 24, from 9:30-12:30! Participants will have access to live presentations and an online library of resources. Topics will focus on the importance of raising a bilingual child. There will be presentations by educators, parents, and young adults who have been raised bilingual, including recent graduates with the Seal of Biliteracy. Recordings of the presentations will be available in our resources.
There will be a raffle for two $25 Target gift cards. Attendance certificates will also be offered to parents so that teachers can offer extra credit to students whose parents participate!
Register on Eventbrite.

The Advocacy Committee will NOT meet in December; our next meeting will be January 15th at 5:00.

Register for the 2026 Spring Conference
Theme – Unlock Your Potential: BE Multilingual – Celebrating 50 Years of NJBE
You can attend in person at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, May 19, 20, & 21 (Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday) OR view the Virtual Library Conference: May 27 through August 20
Register early, by Jan. 30, 2026, for the discounted rate. Regular registration is open through April 24, 2026 or until capacity is reached.
See more information here.