21:00 - 23:00 GMT FINISHED

"Access to Education: Still an Issue Across the US"

Panel discussion with Natalia Abarca, hosted by Ludmila Golovine.

Natalia Abarca manages the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) Multilingual Consortium, a professional network established to support high-quality translation and interpreting services in schools. Natalia holds a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master’s degree in Coastal management.

Passionate about language access she became a medical interpreter, and a licensed trainer for The Community Interpreter International training program. She facilitates the implementation of networks and leadership development. Natalia hosts the annual OCDE Interpreters and Translators Conference in Education. A founding member of the American Association for Interpreters and Translators in Education (AAITE), she serves on the board as Committee Coordinator. She is also a member of ATA’s Interpreters Division blog team and a past leadership council member.

Ludmila Golovine, Founder & CEO of MasterWord, has dedicated over 30 years to the language services industry and 15 years to her role as an international speaker advocating for language rights and social justice. She is the Strategic Partnerships Manager for the Global Community Programs of Women in Localization, founding member of the Global Coalition of Language Rights, member of TBAT (Texas Business Against Human Trafficking), active participant in the UN Global Compact Initiative, and chairs the Advisory Subcommittee for the Translation and Interpretation Program at the Houston Community College. Her work has been recognized by numerous awards, including California Healthcare Interpreting Association (CHIA) Trainer of the Year Award 2021, Houston Business Journal's Women Who Mean Business Award, and Congressional Recognition G7 “Excellence in International Service” award.

Dr. Renae Bryant serves as the Director of Plurilingual Services at Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) in Anaheim, California where she leads the efforts to increase student access, opportunity, equity and success through the Plurilingual, World Languages and 2019 CSBA Golden Bell Award winning Spanish and Vietnamese Dual Language Immersion (DLI) programs. Previously at Westminster School District, Renae led a team to implement the first Vietnamese DLI program in California, which was awarded the California School Board Associations Golden Bell in 2017 and at AUHSD the first secondary Vietnamese DLI program in the United States. She is the founder and facilitator of the Leadership Book Chat and leads national book studies most every Monday night featuring expert speakers leading the learning on such books as: Leading While Female, How to Be An Antiracist, The New Jim Crow, Ready For Anything, How Women Rise, Beyond Conversations About Race, The Unfinished Leader, Evolving Learner and She Leads. She earned her Doctorate in Organizational Leadership at the University of La Verne in 2017 and completed ACSA Superintendents Academy, AASA/USC Urban Superintendents Academy, the AASA Aspiring Female Superintendents Academy, and is currently enrolled in the Stanford EdLEADers Program.