Mid-Year Professional Learning: Refresh at WinterFest 2023
ICTFL promotes and facilitates the teaching and learning of languages and cultures in our schools and communities in order to foster communication in our interconnected world.
CHOICE of 2 Compelling Topics, 2 Dates, 2 In-Person Locations, and 2 Satellite Locations
Saturday, February 11, 2023 9 AM - 12:30 PM (Sign-in and coffee begin at 8:30am)
In-Person at Mahomet-Seymour HS (302 W. State St., Mahomet, IL 61853)
Virtual Viewing at SIU Carbondale and SIU Edwardsville via Zoom
In the unfortunate event of inclement weather or enhanced COVID restrictions, this workshop will be held one day only, Saturday, February 25, via ZOOM
Saturday, February 25, 2023 9 AM - 12:30 PM (Sign-in and coffee begin at 8:30am)
Niles North HS (9800 Lawler Ave, Skokie, IL 60077)
To participate in WinterFest 2023, one must be a member of ICTFL. Membership year is July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023 Click here to JOIN.
3 PDs will be awarded by ICTFL upon completion of the workshop. The WinterFest fee is $75 (not including membership)
3 PDs will be awarded by ICTFL upon completion of the workshop. The WinterFest fee is $75 (not including membership)
Announcing our ICTFL WinterFest 2023 Topics & Presenters
ICTFL WinterFest 2023 includes two timely, compelling topics designed to help educators better serve Illinois language learners. When you register, you will have the opportunity to select your preferred location, date, and session topic.
Meet our 2023 WinterFest Presenters - Topic ONE
Challenging and Engaging our Heritage Language Learners in Their Own and Mixed Classrooms
This WinterFest 2023 workshop provides an overview of the research-based programs and materials for heritage language learners (HLLs) in their own world language classrooms and mixed with L2 learners. Sample lessons, FVR program recommendations, materials and sources will be presented which will help educators understand how to adapt their language classrooms at multiple grade levels. Finally, it will focus on how to advocate for and support not just heritage language education, but our own heritage language students by emphasizing their relationship with the language and what they CAN do with it. Teachers will also be able to reflect on their own practices and how they are able to meet the needs of their heritage learners in all classroom settings.
(Extended/refocused version of the session presented at ICTFL’s 2022 Fall Conference, based on the 2022 CSC Extension Workshop)
(Extended/refocused version of the session presented at ICTFL’s 2022 Fall Conference, based on the 2022 CSC Extension Workshop)
Luz-María Acosta-Knutson
Marmion Academy and Waubonsee Community College Luz-Maria has been teaching Spanish to 6-12 graders and Higher Ed for more than 25 years traditionally, distance learning, and technology enhanced (1:1) classrooms to second language learners (L2) & heritage language speakers (HLS). Currently, she teaches Spanish L2/HLS at Marmion Academy and Waubonsee Community College. Marmion’s new HLS course is receiving Dual Credit through Loyola University-Chicago. |
Andrea Quintanar-Schafer
Lockport Township High School Andrea Quintanar-Schafer currently teaches Spanish to heritage speakers, AP Spanish Literature and ELL at Lockport Township High School, where she has been an educator in World Language Department since 2002. She began her teaching career, however, at the preparatory school at Monterey Tec, Campus Queretaro. She has completed study abroad experiences in Quito, Ecuador, Heidelberg, Germany and Queretaro, Mexico. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education with a Spanish Major and a German Minor from Bradley University as well as a Master of Arts in Education, Bilingual Bicultural Education from DePaul University and a Master of Science in Education-Teaching and Learning Reading from the University of St. Francis. Since 2006 she has served on the executive board of the Network of Illinois Educators of Spanish for Heritage Learners (NIESHL), an affiliate of ICTFL. She has presented several times at ICTFL and CSCTFL. Andrea was the recipient of the District 205 Maroon Apple in 2017 and was named a University of Chicago Outstanding Educator in 2022. |
Nicole Ozark
Orland Junior High School Nicole Ozark is a current Bilingual Spanish / ELL Teacher & EL Department Coordinator at Orland JH, Orland SD135 with her ELS-TBE Bilingual Endorsement (Spanish). Nicole co-teaches 6th-8th grade ELA classes and teaches EL Resource class. She is in her 2nd year of teaching full-time and her 1st year of grad school at UIC, pursuing a Masters in Teaching (MAT) of Spanish w/ an endorsement in Bilingual Education. Prior to full-time teaching, she worked as a substitute teacher for middle schools in Orland SD135, Kirby SD140, and Homer 33C for 3 years. Her first teaching experience was in 2016, co-teaching for 9 months as a English Teaching Fellow for the Colombia Bilingüe Program at I.E. El Diamante, Cali, Colombia for public high school students. Nicole has studied abroad in San José, Costa Rica, and interned abroad with the US State Department in Geneva Switzerland. Nicole received her B.A. from SIUC, magna cum laude, in Political Science w/ concentration in International Relations and minors in Spanish & International Studies w/ regional focus on Near East and Africa. |
Meet our 2023 WinterFest Presenters - Topic TWO
Creating Inclusive Classrooms of Belonging
World Language classrooms provide the ideal place for students to explore their identity as they learn another language and its cultures. As language educators, how do we create a welcoming classroom environment that explores and values multiple perspectives, invites students to compare and contrast through mirrors and windows, and ensures that students feel welcome and valued? Bring your experiences, ideas, and challenges to the discussion as you learn with three language educators who are involved in diversity, equity, and inclusion work as part of their professional journeys.
Todd Bowen
Niles Township. High School Dist. 219 Todd Bowen serves as Director of Languages for Niles Township High School District 219 in Skokie. He also currently serves as the Executive Director of ICTFL. With over 35 years of experience in education, Todd has worked in a variety of schools in Illinois and Indiana. His life experiences make him a passionate advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. |
Mike Ayala
John Hersey High School Dr. Michael Ayala is an AP Spanish teacher at John Hersey High School District 214 in Arlington Heights. Mike received the ICTFL Paul T. Griffith Teacher of the Year Award at the 2021 ICTFL Fall Conference. He is a SEED Facilitator and founder of the Latin American Students Organization LASO. Currently, Mike is a Board member of the Network of Illinois Educators of Spanish for Heritage Learners and Co-Leader of ICTFL's Affinity Groups. After serving as 2nd VP and 1st VP for ICTFL, he will become the President of ICTFL January 1 for two years. |
Kia London
Latin School of Chicago Kia is a passionate educator, writer, and advocate for equity by way of representation in the world language curriculum. She carries seventeen years of experience in the classroom, and has taught Spanish to second language learners, native, and heritage speakers, for all grade levels K-12. She currently teaches Spanish to 5th and 6th grade students, and works in an additional capacity as a DEI Coordinator in her school community. As an active board member of ICTFL (Illinois Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages), she co-developed and co-leads the Affinity Groups for ICTFL. Kia has provided workshops and webinars focused on student representation, the African Diaspora, and intercultural competence. As a writer of comprehensible short stories and articles, she successfully designs a rich curriculum filled with victories and stories of African identities, DEI, and student representation! |