Maria Coady, the Goodnight Distinguished Professor in Education in NC State’s College of Education, has been re-elected to the executive board of the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE).

The NABE is a non-profit organization that advocates for academic excellence for bilingual and multilingual students by improving instructional programs and practices, providing professional development to dual-language educators and securing funding for dual-language programs that serve English language learners. 

Coady will serve a three-year term on the executive board as the eastern region representative. Her previous three-year term on the board began in 2023. 

“I’m deeply grateful to have been re-elected as the national eastern region representative. I aim to bring the eastern region’s experiences, voices, challenges and solutions to the national board,” Coady said.

During her previous three years on the NABE executive board, Coady started a new North Carolina affiliate called the CarABE, incorporated NC State’s Bilingual Education Student Organization (BESO) and supported local teachers and leaders to attend NABE events. She has also served on the organization’s national journal as an editor and reviewer. 

During her next term, Coady is looking forward to strengthening ties with eastern region affiliates as well as strengthening and advocating for bilingual education programs at the local, state and national levels. 

As she engages in this work, Coady will also be taking on the role of president of the ASPIRA Association, a non-profit organization that empowers Latino youth through education, leadership development and advocacy. 

She is stepping into this role after the sudden death of former president Dr. Rosie Castro Feinberg, whom Coady described as an “intellectual mentor.” She hopes to build on Feinberg’s legacy of advocacy while bringing new youth into APSIRA.   

“I would like to bring new, young people onto ASPIRA who are connected to their local communities. We need their voices and energy on ASPIRA, as well as building a strong network with the national organization,” Coady said.