Multilingual Education Faculty

Pronouns: she/her

Dr. Gladys Yacely Aponte is a teacher educator and researcher committed to language justice and liberatory bilingual education that promotes critical perspectives and positive self-identities. Her work is deeply informed by her experiences as the daughter of immigrants from Ayiti-Kiskeya, a first-gen college graduate, and a former English Learner in New York City public schools—where she later taught as a dual language bilingual teacher.

For over a decade, Gladys has worked in teacher preparation programs and supports educators of multilingual learners across various contexts. She taught in the TESOL and Bilingual Education graduate programs at The City University of New York and Bank Street Graduate School of Education. Gladys also supports teachers in developing culturally and linguistically sustaining classrooms—building on her previous roles as a professional development specialist and researcher with the CUNY–New York State Initiative on Emergent Bilinguals (CUNY-NYSIEB), and as a content expert on bilingualism for the Office of Head Start’s National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning.

Gladys earned a Ph.D. in Urban Education from The Graduate Center, City University of New York, and a master’s degree in Childhood Bilingual and Special Education from Bank Street Graduate School of Education. She was a postdoctoral research scholar at the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University. Her work and research examine and disrupt raciolinguistic ideologies that shape the schooling experiences of Black and Brown multilingual children.

In her day-to-day, Gladys finds lots of joy in cooking and sharing plant-based meals and spending time outdoors with her family.