WABE 2026 Annual Conference: Full Schedule

11:15am PDT

Design with the End in Mind: Backwards Planning for ELD with WIDA Key Language Uses.

Friday April 24, 2026 11:15am - 12:15pm PDT

Move beyond guesswork by designing with the end in mind. Participants will learn how our district used WIDA Key Language Uses, functions, and features to co-construct clear learning targets and develop common units of instruction for our secondary English Language Development courses. We will share our collaborative process, struggles and successes to design instruction that intentionally develops academic language for every student.

Speakers

Megan Anderson-Riley

TOSA, YAKIMA SCHOOL DISTRICT

Megan Anderson Reilly is a multilingual specialist and a mentor for early career educators for Yakima School District. Megan has extensive teaching experience working with multilingual learners in a variety of instructional contexts. She is an advocate for equitable practices, programs... Read More →

WABE 2026 Design with the End in Mind pptx

Friday April 24, 2026 11:15am - 12:15pm PDT
Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Breakout Sessions

1:45pm PDT

Effective Literacy Design for Multilingual Learners: From Comprehensible Input to Academic Output Through Successful Family Engagement

Friday April 24, 2026 1:45pm - 2:45pm PDT

Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

This session will explore literacy instruction that centers multilingual students’ linguistic assets while prioritizing strong family engagement. The session connects science‑of‑reading principles to multilingual learners, highlights home languages as assets, and models culturally responsive practices that deepen family partnerships, communication, and student literacy success.

Speakers

Katie Sperling

Multilingual Education Program Supervisor, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

Katie Sperling is a Multilingual Education Program Supervisor with more than 20 years of experience teaching and leading K–12 language development programs across Washington State. In her current role at OSPI, Katie provides statewide leadership and technical assistance to support... Read More →

Kad El-Atwani

Multilingual Program Supervisor-OSPI, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

Kadriye El-Atwani (a.k.a Dr. Kad) is a Multilingual Education Program Supervisor at the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), currently residing in Eastern Washington. Before joining OSPI, Dr. Kad served as a Multilingual Education Specialist at the New... Read More →

WABE 2026 Effective Literacy Design for Multilingual Learners pdf

Friday April 24, 2026 1:45pm - 2:45pm PDT
Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Breakout Sessions

3:15pm PDT

Semillas: Plant Seeds to Empower and Engage Families of Multilingual Learners

Friday April 24, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm PDT

Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Family engagement is essential to K–12 multilingual learner success. This interactive session explores equity-centered, research-based family engagement practices through real-world dual language case studies. Participants will design a practical, context-specific engagement strategy and leave with actionable tools to support sustainable family-school partnerships.

Speakers

Yvonne Oronoz-Williams

Director for MLs Educator Engagement, WCEPS

Yvonne Williams serves as Director for MLs Educator Engagement at WCEPS, where she leads national initiatives that strengthen partnerships with Local Education Agencies and support high-impact instructional practices, with a particular emphasis on multilingual learners. She oversees... Read More →

Engagement Plan Template docx

Semillas Note taker WABE 2026 docx

PPT Presentation pptx

Friday April 24, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm PDT
Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Breakout Sessions

8:00am PDT

Puentes de Confianza: Building Trust With Spanish-Speaking Families in Challenging Times

Saturday April 25, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am PDT

Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Presentation highlights the work of a Spanish Family Liaison in the Evergreen School District and the intentional strategies used to engage, support, and advocate for families during challenging times.

Speakers

Adriana Ramirez Reyes

BILINGUAL FAMILY LIAISON, EVERGREEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

I am an immigrant from Mexico who came to the U.S. at age 10. My experiences navigating the school system shaped my path, and I now work as a family liaison empowering parents to support their children’s academic success.

Saturday April 25, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am PDT
Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Breakout Sessions

11:00am PDT

Using WIDA MARCO DALE to promote Mathematical Discourse in Dual Language Spanish Classrooms

Saturday April 25, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT

Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

In math, multilingual learners must comprehend mathematics’ disciplinary literacy, a complex system that includes proficiency, practices, and discourse (Moschkovich, 2015a) . Come learn how to use the WIDA MARCO DALE in Spanish to plan discourse rich instruction that moves students beyond vocabulary to also develop sentence and discourse rich mathematical grade level language, enhancing all students’ linguistic knowledge and mathematical reasoning.

Speakers

Patricia Venegas-Weber

Dual Language Program Supervisor, Office of Superintendent of Public Instriction

Dr. Patricia Venegas-Weber is originally from Chile and holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, specializing in the development of bilingual education teachers’ professional identity. She has more than 20 years of experience in bilingual... Read More →

Erica Bailey Ramos

Dual Language Program Specialist, Edmonds School District

Erica Ramos' commitment to dual language education is both professional and personal. A former dual language student and proud Latina, she works out of a deep dedication to her community and a belief in the brilliance of multilingual learners. Currently a Dual Language Program Specialist... Read More →

Saturday April 25, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT
Ballroom 300, Yakima Convention Center

Breakout Sessions

11:15am PDT

1:45pm PDT

3:15pm PDT

8:00am PDT

11:00am PDT

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