Areas of expertise
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bilingual language and biliteracy development in emergent bilinguals
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teacher training and education, birth-12th grade
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dual language instruction in early childhood and elementary school
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translanguaging pedagogies
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culturally sustaining pedagogies
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language justice and anti-racism
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raciolinguistics and critical consciousness in dual language programs
Dr. Gladys Yacely Aponte (she/her) is a researcher, author, speaker, consultant, and teacher educator with a passion for language justice and strength-focused approaches to bilingualism.​​ She is committed to liberatory bilingual education that is not only focused on academic gains but on promoting critical perspectives and positive self-identities.
Dr. Aponte's work is deeply informed by her experiences as the daughter of immigrants from Ayiti-Kiskeya ("The Dominican Republic") and her schooling experiences being classified as an English Language Learner in Lenapehoking (New York City) public schools— where she later taught as a dual language bilingual teacher.
As a Multilingual Education faculty member at the Alder Graduate School of Education, Dr. Aponte works with teacher candidates preparing to teach multilingual children across California. She speaks Spanish, English, and is learning her Indigenous language, Hiwatahia-Taíno.​
Education
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PhD in Urban Education, The Graduate Center, City University of New York
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MSEd in Dual Language Bilingual Childhood Special Education, Bank Street College of Education
Awards & Recognitions
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National Academy of Bilingual Education (NABE): Outstanding Dissertation Award, first place.
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Bilingual Education Research SIG- American Educational Research Association (AERA): Outstanding Dissertation Award, third place.
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National Academy of Education/Spencer: Dissertation Fellowship.
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Research Grant; The CUNY Dominican Studies Institute
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Dissertation Year Fellowship Award; The City University of New York Graduate Center.
Professional Experiences
For over a decade, Dr. Aponte has worked closely with educators of emergent bilingual/multilingual children in various capacities. Recent and current roles include:
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Content Expert on bilingualism at the Office of Head Start’s National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning (NCECDTL)
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Postdoctoral Research Scholar at the Children's Equity Project, Arizona State University, where she has co-authored a number of policy and research briefs related to bilingual education.
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Instructor, Advisor, and Fieldwork Supervisor in the TESOL and Bilingual Education programs at Bank Street Graduate School of Education and The City University of New York (CUNY)
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Mentor of 1st & 2nd Year TESOL Teachers at Teachers College Columbia University
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Research Assistant and Professional Development Specialist at The CUNY-New York State Initiative on Emergent Bilinguals (NYSIEB)
