Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) M.Ed. student Lucero Rodriguez knows first-hand the challenges teachers confront today, particularly the obstacles that bilingual teachers face ensuring that dual language students receive an equitable education to their monolingual counterparts. As a second-grade dual language teacher, Lucero found herself spending an extraordinary amount of time translating her curricula and creating resources for her students, their families, and tools for her classroom. The same was true for her colleague Maggie Moreno; they agreed that being a bilingual teacher often requires double the work. Together, they decided to address the lack of bilingual resources and created LatinXChange, a collaborative platform for bilingual educators that provides professional development opportunities, 1:1 consultations, and podcast episodes for dual-language teachers. The organization aims to build "community, collaboration, and conversations that will catapult Bilingual Education forward."

"Maggie and I founded LatinXChange to serve Latinx and bilingual educators better," said Lucero. "Instead of reinventing the wheel every time or translating work every time we step into a new classroom, teachers can access the platform and find the resources they need."

As a part of Lucero's C&I program, she is earning a Teacher Leader endorsement. She credits the leadership curriculum for influencing aspects of LatinXChange. "I truly do not believe I would have been confident enough to take on LatinXChange had it not been for what I learned through my NCE coursework. I've gained the courage to advocate for myself, my colleagues, my students, and the change we need."

Although new, LatinXChange is already creating waves of impact, namely that the teachers participating in these professional development opportunities and conversations feel less isolated. "I've
noticed teachers share their personal experiences, and they receive assistance from those who have gone through similar obstacles. I've received the feedback that teachers feel better knowing how they feel is not a singular event; rather, they build camaraderie and are learning how to work through challenges."

Lucero is also a teacher mentor and, as she approaches the end of her M.Ed. program, she is looking forward to achieving her goals as an educator. "I've gained the knowledge to understand and enhance my teacher leadership skills. I hope to one day become a coach for new teachers to support retention."

For more information on LatinXChange or to see some of their upcoming professional development opportunities, click here.