Voting is open to WAESOL members November 15th through November 21st, 2020.
Read about the candidates and then scroll to the bottom of the page to link to the online voting system. Log-in using the email address associated with your WAESOL membership.
Below are the WAESOL Board on the ballot for the 2021 Board.
- President (one-year term followed by a year as Past President)
- President Elect (one-year term followed by a term as President and Past President)
- Two Member-at-Large positions (two-year term)
You must be a current member of WAESOL to be eligible to vote for the 2021 board.
Instructions
- Read the candidate biographies below.
- Scroll to the bottom of this page to proceed with voting.
- You will need to log-in using the email address associated with your current membership.
Candidate Bios
President:
Naomi Hagen
Naomi Hagen is a dedicated teaching professional with 20 years of experience in the field of education including teaching, administration, and teacher training. Naomi has served on the WAESOL board for over five years as a member at large, assistant treasurer, treasurer, and recording secretary. She has a BA from Fresno Pacific University and an MA in TESL from Gonzaga University and holds teaching credentials in California and Washington with endorsements in Elementary Education, English, and English Language Development. She also holds certificates in TESOL and Differentiated Instruction training. She has worked with ELLs in the United States from pre-school to university, and her international teaching experience includes teaching English in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia as well as working with K-12 teachers from bilingual programs in Colombia. She currently works for Spokane Public Schools as the ELD Title III K-12 TOSA and serves as an adjunct professor in the ESL endorsement programs at Whitworth University and Gonzaga University.
President-elect:
Christina Momono
Christina Momono has been teaching at the Community Colleges of Spokane and Gonzaga University for 15 years working with international students, immigrant, and refugee students. She is currently full time in the ABE ESL Division at Spokane Community College. Ms. Momono has presented workshops on sociocultural and intercultural communication, ESL interactive communicative projects and on adult literacy. Last year, Ms. Momono worked with the Jesuit Refugee Service Schools collaborating with teachers in Bandar, Afghanistan working on a project to assist their students with literacy.
Ms. Momono worked at a non-profit, Northwest Fair Housing Alliance, for 17 years advocating for housing equity in eastern Washington. She has also participated in the JustLead Washington Academy that works toward equity and justice. Ms. Momono has served as a member-at-large on the WAESOL Board for the year 2020 and is committed to how it helps promote scholarship, teacher training, and research.
Member-at-Large: (Two open positions)
David Martin (incumbent)
David Martin has served as member-at-large for this past year and is currently in the process of taking on duties as assistant editor for the WAESOL Educator. David is a Teaching Assistant Professor at Washington State University’s English department where he teaches first year composition and teacher education classes as needed by the department. Until 2016, David taught at intensive ESL programs at the University of Idaho and Washington State University for 15 years with a 3-year diversion to teach middle school and high school language arts (teaching ESL during Summers). He has also served on the Spokane ESL Conference committee as well as multiple departmental committees throughout his career. David seeks to serve WAESOL and its members as both a resource and an advocate at both the K-12 and higher education levels.
Alexander Tang
Alex is an adjunct faculty member in the Basic and Transitional Studies Division at Seattle Central College. His research interests include but are not limited to: the use of L1 in the second language classroom, sociolinguistics, and less commonly taught grammar structures such as multi word units and focus structures. He is currently researching second language acquisition among adult learners, as well as focusing on bilingual education efforts with Cantonese and English. He serves on Seattle College’s District Distance Learning committee and Seattle Central’s College Council as a representative for the Basic and Transitional Studies Division.
Alexey Kuznetsov
Alexey started his career thirteen years ago in Russia, teaching English to adults and children while working on his degree in Language and Culture Education. After immigration to the US, Alexey sought to stay true to his calling and to combine Russian and American pedagogical thought. He is an ELL teacher and department chair at Renton High School, and teachers Russian through STEM in the UW Startalk Summer Program. Alexey served on the Seattle Immigrant and Refugee Commission (2016-2017), was a Fellow with the Institute for Democratic Future (2017), and participated in Glass Leadership Institute at Anti-Defomation League (2020). He is a Community Language Organizer and ELL Workgroup participant with OneAmerica. Nonconformist by nature, Alexey has always questioned existing structures as upholding barriers to people’s self-actualization and well-being. He is on a journey to build understanding across individuals and communities, which he believes is key to building a better world.
Karen O’Donnell
Karen O’Donnell is a full-time student at Central Washington University working to obtain credentials in teaching ELL/ESL and a full-time para educator in ELL/ESL and ELA for elementary students. Personal interaction with the community as a small business owner of 18 years, has inspired the desire to work within the public educational system. Karen has a passion for linguistic and cultural inclusivity advocacy within education. Experience in volunteering in multicultural elementary classrooms and outreach community centers has encouraged the deep study of areas of linguistics, cultural inclusivity, and equity for those who are the least represented within the public schools and its impacts. These practices are in line with a growing passion for research and development of culturally sustaining curriculum and classroom practices.
Ana Kear
Affiliation: Auburn School District
Ana Kear is passionate about teaching and learning. She has taught Portuguese and Spanish for many years. After receiving her M. Ed. with an emphasis on Curriculum and Instruction with an EL endorsement she has been teaching Language Arts to high school English Learners and loving it. Her interests include researching language acquisition, the application of art in a language classroom, and blended learning. She has served in various Equity teams throughout her career. She also enjoys serving her students and her community by being an advocate of equitable practices and bilingual education.