cristinarincon1

Cristina has worked as a bilingual educator for nearly 30 years.  She began her career teaching homeless youth at La Fundacion Ninos de los Andes as a teenager in her homeland of Colombia and made education her chosen career as an undergraduate at Indiana University at Bloomington.  Raised between the U.S and Colombia, she has owned her own bilingual day care and taught ages newborn to adults.  With a specialty in dual language teaching, she has successfully published poems and stories in English and Spanish and promoted dual language learning and multicultural understanding.  She's an active member of her local union and a Fed Rep for her school.  She spearheads a program called Celebrando Cultura con Literatura, supported with a generous grant from the Albuqueruque Foundation, that promotes literacy through a love of diverse and dynamic literature, promotes student authors through a culminating Kids are Authors Day and reading buddies school wide.  She believes in integrating the leadership skills she's developed over the years including while receiving a masters in Educational Leadership to help students and colleagues maximize their potential and develop a genuine love of learning.