Monica Lara

Dr. Lara is the CEO, a senior educational consultant for Bilingualism and Biliteracy, Keynote speaker, and author of ¡Toma la palabra!: Enlazando la oralidad y la lectoescritura and The Structure of a Reading Test in Grade 1: In Search of a Relationship with Reading in Spanish. She is also the co-author of ELLs in Texas: What Teachers Need to Know and ELs in Texas: What School Leaders Need to Know. She has been in education for over thirty years. Her roles in education include experience as a teacher, reading specialist, assistant principal, and educational specialist in the areas of dyslexia and bilingual/ESL education.

Dr. Lara is a recipient of the 2019 Future School Leaders Leadership Legacy Award, a testament to her commitment and belief in teaching all learners. Dr. Lara’s biliterate and bicultural belief system is engaging, invigorating, and refreshing when she delivers her signature message: Enseñanza para todos (teaching for all).

She is currently a visiting professor/lecturer at Purdue University. In addition, she assists districts in evaluating their Bilingual/ESL programs, and serves as an administrator and teacher coach/mentor, to insure accountability and implementation of best practices for English Learners (ELs). She holds a Masters of Arts degree in reading and a Ph.D. in Culture, Literacy, and Language. Her research interests include early reading assessment, biliteracy education, and English as a second language.