NVTESOL
NVTESOL and Nevada State College
The involvement of the faculty and staff at Nevada State College have become an integral part of designing and creating this organization. With the support of the School of Education we have been able to start the process towards becoming a TESOL affiliate. To learn more about the committee members please read below!
Vanessa Mari- President
Dr. Vanessa Mari has worked as an English teacher for the past 8 years. She started her career teaching English as a second language in a public high school in Puerto Rico. Dr. Vanessa Mari has also taught in diverse academic settings including the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, the University of Texas San Antonio and The University of Piura. She has also collaborated with the Ministry of Education in Peru as the English Language Fellow.
Lori Navarette
Dr. Lori Navarrete, Associate Professor of Education, is in her 11th year at Nevada State College and 24th year in higher education. Her professional experiences include positions as a high school general and special education teacher, educational diagnostician, and faculty and administrator in higher education. Her professional interests are in disability education, preparing culturally competent educators, higher education access and equity, and promoting teaching as a profession among today’s youth.
Christine Draper- Treasurer
Dr. Christine Draper was a former 5th and 7th grade teacher for Clark County School District and was an Associate Professor of education at Georgia Southern University where she taught future teachers courses on language arts methods, integrated curriculum, young adult literature, and more. She is now an Instructional Designer at Nevada State College where she is a passionate advocate for engaging and innovative curriculum and in supporting faculty in professional development and course design.
Barbara Hasting- Delegate at Large
Barbara Hasting is a Northern Nevada native, with 30 years in education. She’s a graduate of the University of South Carolina, with a Master’s of Science in Curriculum and Instruction from Hood College, of Maryland. Barbara has taught English Learners from Kindergarten through adults, with a brief stint as a K-4 Spanish Teacher. She currently serves as the EL Coordinator for Elko County School District. One of many projects near to her heart is family engagement, and building on the home-school connection for families of English learners.
Roberta Kaufman
Dr. Roberta Kaufman is associate professor of special education at Nevada State College. She taught in PK-12 districts in diverse rural, suburban and urban areas. As a former administrator at a Midwest university, she was engaged in program development and administering grants aimed at preparing under-represented populations to become teachers. Dr. Kaufman has co-authored two books and regularly presents at regional, national and international conferences to topics related to working with new teachers and language learners.
Rachael Bower- Secretary
Dr. Rachel Bower is assistant professor of mathematics education at Nevada State College. She previously taught high school in various places across the country. Her research interests examine ways K-12 mathematics teachers create effective learning opportunities in multilingual classrooms. Her work can be found in TESOL’s 2018 publication, Putting Research into Practice: Middle School.
Laurie Hackett- Delegate at Large
Laurie Hackett has been an active member of the Southern Nevada TESL/TEFL community for the past 20 years. A former Clark County School District employee, Laurie now advises on TEFL programming at the state and national levels for various countries in Africa. She is passionate about building capacity in teacher-driven leadership as it relates to quality English instruction in linguistically diverse schools and communities. Laurie is also an adjunct faculty member in the TESL endorsement program