SAILN Team

Program Principal Investigator: Mat Schulze

Mat Schulze is the Director of the Language Acquisition Resource Center at San Diego State University and Professor of German at SDSU European Studies.
Director, SDSU-LARC; Professor of German, Comparative and International Studies
Email: [email protected]

Program Director: Shahnaz Ahmadeian Fard

Shahnaz Ahmadeian Fard manages and leads SAILN program’s ongoing activities and trainings. She has many years of experience in developing, overseeing and administering professional development programs.
Email: [email protected]

Program Coordinator and Strand A Developer and Lead: Cecile Nedellec

Cecile Nedellec contributes to the planning and implementation of activities, coordinates project resources, and liaises with project stakeholders to collect and disseminate project information. She currently teaches French at Patrick Henry High School. She is a National Board-Certified French Teacher & a CWLP fellow. Dr. Nedellec is also a mentor for the induction program.
Email:[email protected]

Spanish Strand Developer and Lead: Mariana Apalategui

Mariana Apalategui has 20+ years teaching experience in Spanish and English as a Second Language. Mariana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from San Diego State University and a Master’s of Art in Spanish Linguistics from the San Diego State University. During her graduate course work, she traveled to Spain, where she taught ESL and took graduate courses in Teaching Spanish as a Second Language at the Universidad de Alcalá de Henares. She currently teaches Spanish at Point Loma Nazarene University in Point Loma, CA.

Strand B Developer & Lead: Robin Newsom-Wuertz

Founder of Creative ASL Teaching blog and an #aslteacherchat moderator has 20+ years teaching experience in ASL. Robin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Deaf Studies from California State University Northridge and a Master’s of Science in School Counseling from the University of LaVerne. She teaches ASL and Physical Education at Sage Creek High School in Carlsbad, CA. Robin is a workshop presenter in ASL curriculum, standards, and second language acquisition. Robin also works as a consultant to help other schools in her area establish and maintain thriving ASL programs. She is a new teacher mentor, a Fellow in the California World Language Project, and the world language department chair at her school site. Her passion is to support ASL teachers in their journey to become creative innovators and leaders in the field of World Language instruction.

Strand B Developer & Lead: Evan Rubin

Evan Rubin is the Language Training Center Manager at SDSU-LARC. Evan has his BA in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara and MA in Latin American Studies, with a specialization in education technology, from SDSU.
Email: [email protected]

Strand C Developer & Lead: Nadezda Novakovic

Dr. Nadezda Novakovic has a PhD in Applied Linguistics from the University of Cambridge. She has over ten years of research experience in the areas of language testing and assessment both in the European and US educational context. She has a special interest in less commonly taught languages, performance assessment, and learner motivation.

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