EL Summit 2018
Bridging Cultures
 Director of the Bilingual and World Languages Department |  TESOL k-8 Blackham School |  High School ESL teacher BeGlad CAT EL Summit Webmaster |
|---|---|---|
 Bilingual Teacher Multicultural Magnet School |  K-8 ESL Teacher |  Bilingual teacher Geraldine Johnson School |
 ESL teacher Geraldine Claytor Magnet Academy & Bridgeport Military Academy |  High School ESL Teacher Beglad CAT |  K-8 ESL Teacher BeGlad TnT |
 Bilingual Teacher at Luis Munoz Marin |
Director of Bilingual Education & World Languages in Bridgeport, CT
Ana Sousa-Martins has over 20 years of experience in the field of education. She is the Director of Bilingual Education and World Languages for the Bridgeport Public Schools for K-12. She holds a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from Southern CT State University, an M.A.T. in Elementary Education from Sacred Heart University, a Sixth Year in Bilingual Education and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from Fairfield University and a certification as a Literacy Specialist and Educational Leadership from Sacred Heart University.
She has conducted many workshops on a variety of topics that include curriculum, instructional strategies, and assessment, Professional Learning Communities, SRBI, Data Teams, and Data Driven Decision-Making. Her quest for educational challenges has led to involvement in many committees and task forces as well as an adjunct professor at Sacred Heart University.
She has received the following awards: Milken Educator Award, Bridgeport Teacher of the Year, and BPEF Outstanding Teacher Award.
Cristina DaSilva-Novotny
Cristina DaSilva-Novotny, who originated from Lisbon, Portugal, is currently an English to Speakers of Other Languages teacher at Blackham Elementary School. She graduated from Southern Connecticut State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Education, a Minor in Art, and a cross-endorsement in Bilingual Middle School History. Cristina earned a master’s degree in Bilingual/Bicultural TESOL Education from Fairfield University. Cristina has taught art K-8, Early Childhood K-2, TESOL K-12 and self-contained Bilingual Portuguese 7-8. As both an EL and a 20 year veteran of the Bridgeport School System, Cristina has always focused on advocating for all second language learners by participating on curriculum committees, School Governance Council, SRBI, data teams both at school and district levels, and as a Teacher Liaison for the Blackham PAC (Parent Advisory Council). Cristina is also a teacher mentor and a reader for the Connecticut Teacher Education and Mentoring Program.
Kiria Cruz
Kiria Cruz is a certified ESL teacher who currently teaches ESL and Social Studies-Bilingual at Harding High School. She is tech-savvy and loves to integrate technology in the classroom. Cruz started her teaching career in 2006 in Puerto Rico as an English teacher and has offered workshops in technology integration in Puerto Rico and Connecticut. She had a Bachelor's Degree and 25 graduate credits in TESOL from the University of Puerto Rico and graduated from Saint Joseph University in May 2017 where she completed a Master's Degree in Educational Technology. Additionally, Cruz is a certified agency trainer for BeGLAD (Guided Language Acquisition Design), a Seesaw Ambassador and a ClassDojo Mentor. It is her goal to provide a significant contribution to her school, to the Bilingual Department, and to the community in Bridgeport, CT.
Amy Lee
Amy Lee currently teaches in a bilingual second-grade classroom at Geraldine Johnson School. She earned a B.A. in Liberal Arts at California Lutheran College, a teaching certificate at the University of California at Davis and a Masters in Bilingual Education at Fairfield University. She began teaching in 1987 and taught in four California school districts before moving to Connecticut in 2007. Amy enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, traveling, reading and listening to country music.
Laurie Maurao
Laurie Maurao received her B.S. from Florida State University. She earned her Masters in Elementary Education from the University of Bridgeport. Laurie started her teaching career in 2001 at Thomas Hooker Elementary as a third-grade teacher. She then taught third grade for two years at Manatee Bay Elementary in Weston, Florida. Laurie also taught third grade at Columbus School for five years and the past 7 years has been teaching second grade at Multicultural Magnet School. Last school year Laurie successfully completed the coursework for the ACES ARCTELL program and received her cross-endorsement for TESOL. She is so excited to begin a new chapter in her teaching career this school year as an ESL teacher at Geraldine Claytor Magnet Academy and the Bridgeport Military Academy..
Meregilda Matteo
Meregilda Matteo is a 3rd-grade bilingual teacher at Luis Munoz Marin in Bridgeport, CT who came from the Dominican Republic 20 years ago. She is a great contribution to EL Summit Committee and to our community.
Evelyn Alicea
Evelyn F. Alicea is currently a Bilingual Kindergarten Teacher at Multicultural Magnet School in Bridgeport. She has been working to facilitate language acquisition for English Learners for the last twenty years. She holds a BA from Fairfield University, M.A.T. From Sacred Heart University, a Certificate of Advanced Studies in TESOL from Fairfield University and is currently pursuing her Intermediate Administrative Certification at Sacred Heart University. She has received the Teacher of the Year Award and was the recipient of an Inter-District Grant that provided the opportunity for urban and suburban students to collaborate and share each other’s culture and customs for two years.
Mayra Medina
Mayra Medina received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and Certification in Elementary Education from Sacred Heart University. She received a Master's Degree and 6th-year credits from Southern CT State University and Fairfield University. Mayra Medina has been teaching in the Bridgeport Public School System for 26 years where she has served as a classroom teacher for eight years and Mathematics Coach for thirteen years. She was an English Language Learner herself as an early elementary student in Bridgeport and knew she would one day pursue a career in TESOL. She received a cross-endorsement in TESOL and is currently a Kindergarten through eighth grade ESL teacher at Barnum Elementary School. Mayra is a committed teacher and an active community member