Richland School District One Multilingual Learner (ML) educator Jennifer Cárdenas has been named a WIDA Fellow for the 2022-2023 academic year. 

WIDA is a nationwide consortium dedicated to research, assessment, and practice in the field of multilingual education. The distinguished honor of being named a Fellow allows Jennifer the opportunity to engage with other ML educators across the WIDA consortium, contribute feedback to WIDA’s development of professional learning resources, serve as a classroom implementation expert for WIDA’s research team, and collaborate with other WIDA fellows and members of WIDA’s research and development teams. She will represent South Carolina at the national WIDA conference in Louisville, Kentucky on September 28-30, 2022.

Originally from Morganton, North Carolina, Jennifer is in her eighth year in Richland School District One. Her inspiration for pursuing a career in multilingual education stems from her extensive traveling and love for experiencing other cultures. Her first opportunity to travel abroad was as a volunteer. As part of a service learning project, Jennifer helped build a park, assisted women in the community find ways to generate income, and taught students English, hygiene, and other needed topics. Returning many summers to support the same community over time built a foundation for Jennifer’s career of service to multilingual learners.

In addition to serving as a WIDA Fellow, Jennifer is a doctoral student at the University of South Carolina. She is working toward an Ed.D. in Educational Practice and Innovation with a concentration in Curriculum Studies. She also serves on the Leadership Team of the South Carolina Multilingual Learner (ML) Educator Network.