This high-status award is another example of how our College of Education faculty leadership and service contributions make an impact at the national level. Alfaro has dedicated her career to creating pathways for access and equity education for all students, especially Latin@ students who speak English as an additional language with a low socio-economic status background. Her leadership in the area of Dual Language Education continues to be recognized nationally due to her relentless advocacy for high quality dual language teacher preparation and professional development for dual language programs that take into account ideology, pedagogy, access, and equity issues. Additionally, Dr. Alfaro is nationally renowned for her research and leadership in biliteracy development, bilingual teacher preparation, and for assisting school districts in planning and implementing research-based Dual Language Education Programs. Cristina Alfaro is best known for her dual language education collaborative work with local, state, and national educational leaders. "I am honored to know that the work and research I engage with so much cariño (love) and commitment is recognized by communities and colleagues at the local, state, and national level."
Dr. Alfaro's most current work and research focus on working with local and state officials around increasing the bilingual teacher pipeline to meet the demand of the exponential growth of Dual Language Education Programs as a result of the California landslide passage of Proposition 58.
In addition to receiving this impressive award, the National Forum on Higher Education for the Public Good (National Forum) at the University of Michigan in partnership with AAHHE have awarded Dr. Cristina Alfaro a substantial scholarship for her participation in the Higher Education Leadership Academy at the University of Michigan during summer 2017.