CATESOL Education Foundation
Board of Directors 2024-2025
Our Board of Directors are elected in the late fall annually. If you have experience working with the CATESOL organization and would like to be considered for our Board, please contact CATESOL.
Susan Gaer
President
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S​​usan Gaer, retired professor of ESL at Santa Ana College, has been a promoter of digital literacy for teachers throughout the world for the last 25 years. Currently, as a Google Innovator, she is experimenting with using AI with her students. She is a past President of CATESOL, a frequent presenter at TESOL, an English Language Specialist for the State Department, and a Subject Matter Expert for the Outreach Technical Assistance Center (OTAN). She worked as an adjunct instructor in English for the American University of Afghanistan until this year, a job she hopes to return to should USAID funding be restored.​​
Nirmla Flores
Vice President
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​Dr. Nirmla Griarte Flores is currently an Assistant Professor for the Education
Department at Cal Poly Pomona. Her research activities revolve around multilingualism,
dual language immersion, transnationalism, and global competence. Her passion
towards culture and language preservation propels her to explore deeply how
educational equity can be achieved within marginalized communities. Her aspiration to
investigate closely the needs and strengths of Less Commonly Taught Languages
(LCTL) is at the forefront of her current research endeavor.
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Judy Hu
Treasurer
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Judy Hu has over fifteen years of English teaching experience with teenagers and adults on three continents. She holds a Cambridge Certificate in English Language to Adults, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology/Business, and a Master’s degree in Education, A CATESOL volunteer (and beneficiary!) since graduate school, Judy has served in roles from Orange County Chapter Treasurer to Northern Regional Donations Coordinator. She has been the Treasurer of CATESOL Education Foundation since 2019.​​​​​​​
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L. Erika Saito
Director-at-Large:
Secretary
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L. Erika Saito, PhD, is the Director of Strategic Partnerships in PK-14 Education at University Massachusetts Global. Dr. Saito is a California credentialed teacher with over 20 years of experience in various roles within K-12 public and private schools and teacher preparation programs. Her research and publications center on disaggregated Asian American history, communities, ethnic identity, social and emotional learning, international students, and multilingual learners.
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Song Hong
CATESOL Liaison
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Honored to serve as the CATESOL President from 2023 to 2025, Song is an ESL Assistant Professor within the Division of Continuing Education at Santiago Canyon College. After her MA TESOL degree from Azusa Pacific University in 2012, she has instructed diverse ESL and Citizenship students in the community college districts. Since 2015, she has been an active and dedicated member of CATESOL, demonstrating her leadership abilities through multiple roles.
Emily Wong
Director-at-Large:
Awards
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Emily has taught ESL for over 15 years and has a love for helping learners understand and be understood. Her hobbies include learning cultural nuances, getting lost in new areas, asking
learners to teach her about their language, and eating delicious bread.
Margi Wald
Director-at-Large:
Strategic Communications
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Lecturer of first-year writing and director of the Summer English Language Studies program at UC Berkeley, Margi co-edits The CATESOL Journal and has extensive experience presenting at and organizing conferences for English language teaching organizations.
Ana Mendoza Santiago
Social Media Coordinator
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PHD Candidate Ana Mendoza-Santiago is the ESL Program Specialist at Salinas Adult School and Professional Expert for SVAEC. Mendoza has organized and presented at various professional development presentations within Salinas Adult School, Salinas Valley Adult Education Consortium, CCAE, CAEP, COABE conference among other state, local and national presentation events. Her educational background, professional and personal experiences have contributed to her successful implementation of various programs within her department and consortium-wide that have impacted thousands of students. Mendoza is indigenous from the Mixtec community in Oaxaca, Mexico. She has over 15 years of experience in adult education. Mendoza has two bachelor's degrees and a masters in English with an emphasis in adult education. Her PHD is in adult education where she is studying the generational effect adult education has on the families of adult learners. Being the child of adult learners herself, Mendoza is committed to what she calls the generation-changing-business which is integrated in adult education.
Margaret Teske
Advisor
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Margaret is past president of the CATESOL Education Foundation (2017-2021) and past president of the CATESOL organization (2011-2013). After years of working at Mt. San Antonio College as an ESL Instructional Support Mgr., she is now a program specialist for CASAS, providing testing of basic and academic skills for youth and adults and curriculum tools to design instruction.