Multilingual Learner Symposium 2027

Registration Opens March 1, 2027

Multilingual Learner Symposium 2027

June 3, 2027 | Virtual

SupportEd’s 3rd Annual Multilingual Learner Symposium is a one-day virtual professional learning event designed to inspire and equip educators with practical strategies to support multilingual learners. Through keynote presentations, breakout sessions, premium resources, and collaborative learning opportunities, attendees will gain valuable insights and ideas to put into practice.

Join hundreds of educators from across the U.S. and Canada for this immersive learning experience!

Save the date: June 3, 2027

Event Features

Experience an easy-to-use event platform—no clunky downloads required
Earn a certificate for 6 PD credit hours with full event participation
Win professional learning resources during event giveaways
Enjoy this accessible online event wherever you are

Keynote Address

Coming Soon

Sessions

Coming Soon

Translanguaging: A Bridge to Academic Language for Multilingual Learners

Multilingual learners do best when all of their language skills are valued and leveraged in the classroom. In this session, we’ll explore practical strategies for connecting languages in meaningful ways and building students’ academic language skills.

The Power of Intentional Groupings for Multilingual Learners

This interactive session will describe the importance of tapping into intentional student grouping as a powerful scaffold to foster MLs’ engagement with content, peer learning, and relationship building. You will leave with practical tools and strategies for student grouping that help create inclusive, language-rich learning environments for MLs.

Beyond Vocabulary: Fostering MLs’ Understanding and Use of Content-Specific Language at the Sentence and Discourse Level

Integrating content and language learning for multilingual learners requires instruction that goes beyond practice with new vocabulary. This session provides tools for understanding the language demands of content learning and offers instructional strategies that you can apply immediately to foster language development and use in your classrooms.

Engaging Multilingual Learners in Self-Assessment and Goal Setting

Engaging multilingual learners in self-assessment and goal setting are practices that place students at the center of learning and empower them to have greater autonomy in their learning. In this interactive session, we’ll discuss the benefits of self-assessment and goal setting for MLs and explore strategies that support these practices.

Literacy Instruction with Multilingual Learners at the Center

Where does instruction for multilingual learners fit within your literacy program? In this session, we will discuss the urgency for equitable literacy practices, grounded in the research that literacy and language are connected. We will also explore instructional strategies that will help MLs become stronger readers and writers.

Next Steps in Advocating for Multilingual Learners

This engaging session builds on and extends participants’ learning from the morning keynote. Together, we will collaborate to focus on strategies and tools to help participants prioritize their areas of ML advocacy. In addition, we will focus on building a team of allies to have a larger impact of their advocacy efforts.

Join the exclusive one-day event!

Agenda

Coming Soon

10:00 – 10:10 am

Opening Remarks

Meghan Gregoire-Smith, MA

10:10 – 11:10 am

Keynote Address | Sharing the Joy, Sharing the Responsibility: Engaging All Educators in Multilingual Learner Advocacy

Dr. Diane Staehr Fenner & Dr. Sydney Snyder

11:20 am – 12:20 pm

Translanguaging: A Bridge to Academic Language for Multilingual Learners

Shannon Smith, PhD

11:20 am – 12:20 pm

The Power of Intentional Groupings for Multilingual Learners

Mindi Teich, MEd

12:20 – 1:00 pm

Lunch Break

Refuel, take a screen break, and recharge for the afternoon sessions!

1:00 – 2:00 pm

Beyond Vocabulary: Fostering MLs’ Understanding and Use of Content-Specific Language at the Sentence and Discourse Level

Sydney Snyder, PhD

1:00 – 2:00 pm

Engaging Multilingual Learners in Self-Assessment and Goal Setting

Meghan Gregoire-Smith, MA

2:00 – 2:10 pm

Break

Enjoy a 10 minute screen break.

2:10 – 3:10 pm

Literacy Instruction with Multilingual Learners at the Center

Deena Marshall, MA

2:10 – 3:10 pm

Next Steps in Advocating for Multilingual Learners

Diane Staehr Fenner, PhD

3:10 – 3:20 pm

Break

Enjoy a 10 minute screen break.

3:20 – 4:00 pm

Live Q&A Panel, Celebrations, Closing Remarks

Dr. Diane Staehr Fenner, Dr. Sydney Snyder, Mindi Teich, Meghan Gregoire-Smith, Shannon Smith, Deena Marshall

Join the live Q&A as our panel of ML experts field your questions on all things multilingual learners.
Close out the day with prize raffle announcements and instructions on how to obtain your PD certificate.

Join the exclusive one-day event!

Pricing

Coming Soon

Individual Rate

169

/seat

Perfect for individual educators and professionals

Full access to all sessions and resources

Attend from anywhere, 100% online

Credit card or PO accepted

BEST VALUE!

Group Rate

155

/seat

Save per seat when registering as a team (5 person minimum)

Ideal for schools, districts, and departments

Build shared learning and impact together

Credit card or PO accepted

Meet Our Speakers

Diane Staehr Fenner, PhD

Dr. Staehr Fenner is the president and founder of SupportEd, established in 2011 to support educators working with MLs. An author of eight books on ML education, including "Social Emotional Learning for Multilingual Learners", "Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners", and "Unlocking Multilingual Learners’ Potential (2nd ed.)". She is a sought-after keynote speaker at conferences across North America. With a decade of experience as an ELD teacher and assessment specialist in Fairfax County Public Schools, VA, she has also taught English in Mexico and Germany.

Sydney Snyder, PhD

Dr. Snyder is passionate about advocacy and educational equity for MLs, a passion that began during her time as an English language development (ELD) teacher. At SupportEd, she coaches ML educators, facilitates professional development, and provides technical assistance on topics like ML newcomer instruction. She co-authored "Unlocking Multilingual Learners’ Potential (2nd ed.)" and "Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners" and contributed to "Breaking Down the Monolingual Wall". With 25+ years in ELD, she began her career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guinea and later taught in Indonesia.

Mindi Teich, MEd

Mindi Teich has been an advocate for Multilingual Learners (MLs) and their teachers for over 20 years. She began her career as an ESL teacher in DC Public Schools, later spending a decade coaching and training educators in language acquisition. Since joining SupportEd in 2020, she has served as an ML Coach and Project Manager, supporting co-teaching initiatives and professional development in districts across multiple states. She co-authored the book "Social Emotional Learning for Multilingual Learners" and conducts training on scaffolding, academic language, and SEL.

Meghan Gregoire-Smith, MA

Meghan Gregoire-Smith is passionate about supporting educators of MLs and co-authored "Unlocking Multilingual Learners’ Potential (2nd Ed.)". With over 12 years of experience, she began teaching English in Ecuador before earning her Master’s in TESOL from UMBC. She later taught K-5 MLs and served as an ELD Teacher Specialist in Anne Arundel County, where she developed curriculum, led professional development, and coached educators. Now at SupportEd, she focuses on high-quality training and coaching.

Shannon Smith, PhD

Shannon Smith, PhD, is an ML Coach and Technical Assistance Specialist with SupportEd, working with educators across multiple states to enhance ML education. She has led initiatives like South Portland School District’s first Multilingual Learner Master Plan and collaborated with state education departments on SLIFE instruction and ML programming. Previously, she was an ESL teacher, instructional coach, and administrator in Pennsylvania, overseeing ML curriculum and professional learning. Shannon is dedicated to equipping educators with the tools to support MLs through high-quality coaching and technical assistance.

Deena Marshall, MA

Deena Marshall is an experienced educator with 17 years dedicated to advocating for multilingual learners (MLs). As Director of Multilingual Learning at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School (2015–2024), she led programming for over 400 ML students. Previously, she served as an ML teacher and instructional coach. With a Master’s in ESOL and a background in sociology, Deena specializes in ML program development, compliance, and best practices.

Who Should Attend

Administrators

All administrators including superintendents, principals, coordinators, and directors will gain knowledge, insight, and strategies from a leadership level.

Content Teachers

All K-12 content teachers across the U.S. and internationally will gain knowledge, strategies, and tools specifically for their role.

ELD Teachers

All ELD teachers, ESL teachers, and ESOL teachers will gain specific knowledge, strategies, and tools that leverage their expertise.

Join the exclusive one-day event!

The 2027 Multilingual Learner Symposium is hosted by SupportEd. SupportEd is a woman-owned small business based in Fairfax, VA specializing in solutions for all educators of Multilingual Learners (MLs) across the United States and Canada. Founded by Diane Staehr Fenner, PhD, a former ML teacher and four-time best-selling author, SupportEd offers professional development, personalized coaching, technical assistance, and valuable educator resources.

Questions?

Email our team at info@SupportEd.com with the subject line Symposium 2027 and we’ll be happy to help with whatever you need!

Who Should Attend