Trailblaze Into Language Learning

Kia is a passionate educator, keynote, writer, and advocate for equity by way of representation and intercultural competence in the world language curriculum. Kia carries nineteen years of experience in the classroom, and has taught Spanish to second language learners, native, and heritage speakers, for all grade levels K-12. She currently teaches Spanish to high school students.

I value connecting and learning from my students. I love supporting and working with them where they are at, while maintaining high expectations. My goal is for my students to acquire the target language, and I do so by providing various contexts of the language by way of proficiency. This includes providing comprehensible input on a daily basis, reading short stories, writing tasks, addressing grammar in context, and embedding intercultural competence through representation throughout the curriculum.

Awards 2023 ICTFL Teacher of the Year Finalist 2023 AATSP Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award 2023 AATSP Chicago Area Chapter Award for Professional Distinction 2023 ICTFL Teacher of the Year Finalist 2022 ICTFL Distinguished Service Award to Foreign Language Learning Keynotes Maintaining the Joy of World Language- 2024 Comprehensible Iowa Conference Embracing DEI & Social Justice: Making Language Learning Universal- ACTFL Assembly of Delegates 2023 Trailblazing a Path of Representation, Inclusion & Belonging- 2023 MittenCI Conference

I earned a B.A. in Spanish, and an M.A. in Linguistics, specializing in language and identity. As a certified mentor and coach, I facilitate a curriculum design cohort for world language teachers that is focused on belonging, equity, and interculturality.

I talk more about my journey as an educator on my podcast, Wisdom from An Almost Veteran Teacher!