2025 Multilingual Illinois Statewide Conference

We are pleased to welcome a trio of dynamic, informative keynote speakers for the 2025 Multilingual Illinois Statewide Conference.

Tuesday, December 9th –  Carly Spina

Carly Spina joined the Illinois Resource Center in 2021 and has two decades of experience in Multilingual Education across various roles throughout her career. Through her work at the IRC, she is deeply passionate about providing relevant and engaging professional learning experiences to educators and leaders across the country, both in-person and virtually. She is a passionate, high-energy keynote speaker and weaves storytelling, lived experiences as an EL teacher, and practical strategies into her craft.

Spina loves delivering hands-on workshops to content teachers, classroom teachers, and multilingual teachers and leaders to support multilingual students. Some of her most requested workshops include supporting newcomers, long-term English Learners, serving higher proficiency MLs, and student engagement strategies. Her first book, Moving Beyond for Multilingual Learners, was a 2023 Equity in Excellence Award Winner. Her second book, Igniting Real Change: Equity and Advocacy In Action (June 2025), centers on actional steps for more equitable outcomes for multilingual students and families.

Carly considers all teachers and leaders her teammates, and is deeply committed to collaboration to best support the needs of those we serve. You can catch her at her favorite conferences wearing pink and probably laughing a little too loudly.

Wednesday, December 10th: Carl Hooker

Carl Hooker is an educator, consultant and speaker from Austin, TX. He
spent the past 25+ years as a teacher and administrator supporting the
thoughtful integration of technology with learning. He serves as an advisor
for multiple ed tech companies and is the co-founder of the social media
platform K12Leaders.com – a social platform built by educators for educators.

He’s the author of 8 books, including his latest two best sellers, Ready, Set,
FAIL! and Learning Evolution, which explores the impact of AI-enhanced learning in schools.

He’s a National Faculty Member Emeritus for Future Ready Schools out of Washington, D.C. He hosts four podcasts (ISTE’s
Learning UnLeashed, The UnDisruptED podcast, the Forward to Different podcast and the Search podcast) and was recently named one of America’s top 100 educators by District Administrator magazine. Follow him on Twitter/X @mrhooker, @hookertech on Instagram and his blog at https://HookEdonInnovation.com.

Thursday, December 11th: Dr. Lynmara Colón

Dr. Lynmara Colón is a nationally recognized educational leader, author, and advocate whose work has transformed opportunities for marginalized students across the country. Honored by the National School Boards Association as one of “20 to Watch”, Dr. Colón has been featured in numerous articles and media outlets for her relentless commitment to equity and excellence in education. She is the author of Empower Our Girls.

Dr. Colón also serves as a board member for ALAS DMV, helping to advance leadership opportunities for Latino administrators across the region.

A champion for multilingual learners, Dr. Colón’s research and leadership have influenced policies and services at local, state, and national levels. Her groundbreaking doctoral research
earned her the title of Doctoral Student of the Year and the prestigious opportunity to serve as a Clark Scholar
for the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA).

Currently, Dr. Colón leads the Student Opportunity and Multilingual Services Department for Prince William
County Public Schools (PWCS), the 10th most diverse school district in the United States, serving more than
25,000 English Learners and 92,000 students. Her portfolio spans Title I, III, and IV programs, English Learner
instruction, immigrant youth registration, translation and interpretation services, world languages, dual language immersion, sustainability of federal programs, and preschool initiatives—work that touches the lives of students from their earliest years through high school graduation.

Driven by her belief that every student’s story matters, Dr. Colón continues to break barriers, amplify voices, and create systems where multilingual learners and historically underserved students can thrive. Born and raised in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, her journey is a testament to the power of vision, research, and heart to
reshape education for a more just and inclusive future.

The Illinois Resource Center is excited to bring together educators from across the state for the 2025 Multilingual IL conference to be held December 9-11, 2025 at the Tinley Park Convention Center in Tinley Park, Illinois.

For many years, this annual December conference has showcased talented individuals, such as yourself, who have shared new ideas and fresh perspectives on the education of our state’s students, especially multilingual learners.

In addition to presentations relating to multilingual learners, this conference will feature critical topics such as dual language education, special education, and school improvement, as well as the attention to different populations including secondary students and our state’s youngest learners. 

We invite you to submit a conference session proposal to provide a one-hour session. 

Please use this Google form to submit your proposal. 

Presentation proposals must be submitted by Monday, September 22, 2025, to be considered.

Topic areas of interest include the following: 

• Multilingual learners
• Literacy
• Content Instruction
• Exceptional needs
• Early Childhood/PreK Education
• Assessment
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Family and community engagement
• MultiTiered System of Support (MTSS)
• Professional development
• School improvement policy
• Title I, Title III and other ESSA programs 

Topics such as dual language and special needs as well as sessions related to early childhood and secondary student populations will be distributed across the three days of the conference. 

If your proposal is accepted, you will be notified during the third week of October 2025. Please note that presenters must pay for registration to attend the conference; in most cases, school districts will pay for this expense. 

If you have any questions, please contact Louisa Finnberg at lfinnberg@cntrmail.org. We look forward to receiving your proposal presentations. 

We invite you to consider becoming a Sponsor of this year’s Multilingual Illinois Statewide Conference, Dec 9-11, 2025, at the Tinley Park Convention Center.There are many levels of sponsorship to choose from.  All levels include a 6-foot display table for all three days of the conference.