Dra. Gladys Yacely Aponte is a Kiskeyana-New Yorker, a bilingual teacher educator, and a Postdoctoral Research Scholar at the Children's Equity Project. Her work focuses on disrupting oppressive language ideologies and creating more liberatory schooling experiences for emergent bilingual children. Gladys was previously a dual language bilingual elementary school teacher, and her translanguaging classroom practices are featured in CUNY-NYSIEB videos.

Olivia Mulcahy has worked in education for over 20 years, supporting multilingual and multicultural programs at the Illinois Resource Center. Previously, she led the Dual Language Education Initiative and oversaw bilingual and ESL programs at Chicago Public Schools. She began her career teaching middle school at Telpochcalli Elementary, focusing on bilingualism, culturally responsive curriculum, and arts integration. Raised in a multilingual home, she now raises her three children the same way and is also a poet, gardener, meditator, and martial artist.

Dr. Izquierdo, a linguist with a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics and Bilingual Education from Georgetown University, has 17 years of leadership in bilingual education. She was a founding principal of the Oyster Bilingual ES, a pioneering dual language school, and now serves as a professor at the University of Texas at El Paso. Her extensive experience bridges theory and practice, shaping innovative dual language programs. Her recent publications include Dual Language Education: Teaching and Leading Through Two Languages (2019) and contributions to The Handbook of Dual Language Bilingual Education (2023).

William Estrada is a Clinical Assistant Professor at UIC School of Art & Art History and a teaching artist at Telpochalli Elementary. His art and teaching focus on collaborative discourse, critically examining public and private spaces through engagement with images, texts, and politics. Recognized with numerous awards, including the 2023-2024 Imagine Just Fellowship and 3Arts Next Level Award, he develops community-based projects that explore power, race, and cultural access. Through sustained collaborations, he works toward a more equitable collective future.