Olga G Rubio

I was born and raised in South Texas and began my teaching (1969-1974) and developing materials for Language Minority Students in maintenance bilingual classrooms (1974-1977). I later became a teacher trainer at the Lau Desegregation Center in San Antonio, Texas. We assisted monolingual/bilingual classroom teachers to use second language assessment measures/teaching strategies in three states: Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas and to teach in bilingual transitional and maintenance bilingual programs. Because of these experiences with students, teachers, and colleagues, I sought a deeper understanding of the relationships between first and second language theoretical frameworks to teach Language Minority populations. It led to my pursuance of my Masters with a double specialization in bilingual studies and second language learning (TESOL) at the University of Texas in 1977.

I later pursued, my Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, Penn. There, I studied with educational, linguistic anthropologists, linguists and social historians who positioned me as an expert in bilingualism. Penn enabled me to think beyond the box of bilingualism and to connect interdisciplinary theories to teaching bilingual education in diverse bilingual settings, sociocultural contexts and understanding social construction of identities and their narratives. My doctoral studies focused on a one year ethnographic, case study, conducted from 1992-1994 (pilot, 1992-03) where I examined the role of Puerto Rican parents in a successful dual language program in Philadelphia at Potter Thomas Elementary.The study provided a snapshot of the range of voices of parents in the school and their views of the role of Spanish and English in teaching academic content among other themes. I published two articles in scholarly journals from the ethnographic studies. The school implements successful 50/50 model and it remains one of most established dual language immersion programs in the country (at the time 25 years old).

Later, I studied another successful dual language school in New York City, P.S. 165. There I conducted an ethnographic case study of a principal in the school, Ruth Swinney. The case study, fueled my mission and goals with bilingual teachers to prepare informed leaders, well-grounded in language policy, and sociocultural foundations, and able to articulate instructional goals in dual language programming. It corroborated the trust between a university professor and public schools. I presented with Swinney at AERA and in seminars at Teacher's College Columbia. I also published a scholarly article from this work and it has provided me with great insights in working with principals in schools today. At Columbia, graduate students and I conducted a study of student teacher's use of Spanish in the preparation of the candidates in seminars and their use of it the actual practice in classrooms. 

In California, I pursued studying Structured English Immersion, Proposition 227 and it’s implications for Pre-Service BCLAD teachers. This work also situated me in the evaluation of language policy implications for bilingual teachers. I published two articles from this this work. My professional, scholarly and research interests remain consistent with my specialization on the preparation of teachers to understand and implement language policies, sociocultural theories and their implications for teaching language and literacy in two languages. My teaching, training, research and thinking on social, cultural, and educational problems and issues are all based on over 24 years of experiences with Latino and diverse populations in Texas, Philadelphia, New York and Southern California.

My current research work continues to be focused on the role of teachers and others in providing effective practices to Language Minority Students. I am expanding my earlier work on the effect of Post Proposition 227 on BCLAD Teachers, action research work with teachers of second language students (work to be published) and I am now redirecting my research interest in earlier work in dual language schools. Specifically, I am pursuing the role of principals and teachers as leaders in dual language schools landscapes. In preparation for this work I am presenting in scholarly venues in local and international landscapes.

Rubio, O. Dual language education programs in the United States. Mansucript in Progress.

Rubio, O. (2004). Latinos, heteroglossia and hybridity. Book Review: I Am My Language: Discourses of Women and Children in the Borderlands by Norma Gonzalez, 2001 and Language as Cultural Practice: Mexicanos en el Norte by Sandra R. Schecter & Robert Bayley, 2002. Educational Researcher, 28, 7, 2004. Accepted December 2003

Attinasi, J. & Rubio, O. (2003). Reader for Cultural and Linguistic Diversity in Schools. Boston, MA: Pearson Custom Publishing.

Burnett, E., Rubio, O. Golez, F. (2001) Minority faculty crossing borders to create more effective college class learning environments. In National Association Multicultural 9^th Annual International Conference Proceedings. Carl Grant (Ed).

Rubio, O. & Attinasi, J. (2000). Teachers in Post-Proposition-227 Southern California: Implication for teacher education. In Journal of Instructional Psychology. Springhill Station. September/Winter 2000 issue

Rubio, O. (2000) 227 in the Classroom: Multiple Perspectives on the implementation of Proposition 227-Classroom teachers tell about their experiences. In Multilingual Educator, 1, 1, Winter 2000. California Association for Bilingual Education.

Rubio, O. (1997) Research Methods in Language and Education. In Encyclopedia of Language in Education Vol. 8. N. H. Hornberger & D. Corson (Eds.)Kluwer Publishers: Netherlands. pp.153-163

Over the past 10 years I have served the university, college and department in various roles. I serve on the Professional Review Assessment Committee, 2007-09, and the California Faculty Association College of Education Representative from 2003 to 2007. I score Writing Performance Exams for the University and I serve on joint RTP Committees for the College of Liberal Arts and Search Committees for Chicano Studies. I am active in the Latino Faculty and Staff Association on campus, and I am an advisor to Student California Teachers Association at CSU Long Beach. At the College of Education level I have served on the Retention , Tenure, and Promotion Committee once at the Department, 2000-02 and twice at the College level, 2003-07. I serve on Faculty Council 2006-09. I have served on the SCAC Committee and the Professional Review Committee. At the Department level, I served on the Standard and Admissions Committee from 1997-2005 and the Teacher Education Committee, 2006-present. I served as Chair of the Evaluation of Part-Time Lecturer's for 4 years, the Nominating Committee, Faculty Senator, Single Subject Education Committee and various other committees. I serve on the Consuelo Nieto Scholarship Committee, assist the Office of International Programs by interviewing candidates for Directors in Residence for Programs in Mexico, Spain and Latin America and I serve as a Representative to the International Teacher Education Council.