Teacher Education Directory

Education
Dr. Sawyer holds an Ed.M and Ed.D from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Teaching
Dr. Sawyer is an Assistant Professor of Teacher Education, Director of Liberal Studies, and Coordinator for the Bilingual Authorization program. He served as a Spanish bilingual elementary school teacher in California and as an academic consultant to the Mexican National Ministry of Education.

Research
His research explores the nexus of migration and education with a focus on Latinx children, youth, and families. He is also a specialist in the design and study of bilingual education programs and models for place-based and culturally sustaining pedagogies for historically minoritized populations, especially in rural California.

Publications
His recent work has been published by Journal of Latinos and Education, International Migration Review, and Teacher Education Quarterly, and he is co-editor of the 2013 Teachers College Press Volume Regarding Educación: Mexican American Schooling, Immigration, and Binational Solutions. Previous to his academic career.

Education
Dr. Alice Hays received her Ph.D. in English Education from Arizona State University in 2017.

Teaching
Prior to embarking on her PhD career, she was a secondary English teacher in Arizona for 18 years, along with teaching composition for both the local community college and university. She is currently an Assistant Professor in Teacher Education at CSU Bakersfield. Her roles include coordinating the Kern High Teacher Residency Program as well as acting as the faculty liaison for Service Learning for the Community Engagement/Career Exploration office.

Research
Dr. Hays is excited to share her experiences and learned wisdom with teachers and is passionate about supporting leaders as they consider literacy issues in education. Dr. Hays’ research interests include young adult literature, participatory research, community activism, residency programs and teacher education.

Education
Dr. Bre Evans-Santiago is an Assistant Professor at CSU Bakersfield and the Department Chair for Teacher Education. She received her Ed.D. with a focus on culturally sustaining pedagogy at Illinois State University in 2015.

Teaching
Dr. Evans-Santiago grew up in both California and Illinois. She taught for 15 years in PK-8 in San Bernardino and La Cañada, CA, Washington D.C., and Bloomington, IL.

Research
Dr. Evans-Santiago continues to research issues in education as they relate to underrepresented populations. She is the Co-Director for the CSU Center for Transformational Educator Preparation Programs (CTEPP) and her current research projects include, but are not limited to, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in education as well as intersectionalities connected to Queer People of Color.

Education
Dr. Beck received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Teachers, Schools, and Society in 2017.

Teaching
Her work resides at the intersection of democratic education, teacher and student activism, and university-school-community partnerships. At these intersections, she explores how school systems can best engage the material and ideological realities of the community to inform curricula and pedagogies in ways that engage teachers and students as active citizens.

Current Projects
She is the Project Director and Principal Investigator of The Citizen Scientist Project. This project builds the capacity of K-12 teachers and students to apply their budding competencies in computer science, science, technology, engineering, art, and math (C-STEAM) to identify and address issues of community concern in collaboration with scientists and community agencies. Through this work, we seek to democratize science by including more diverse voices in question posing, data collection, data analysis, and data-informed advocacy. Our ultimate goal is to prepare environmental and climate change literate citizens, who know how to care for each other and our home planet. We use Citizen Science as a way to capture these intersections and many partnerships contour this ever-evolving, interdisciplinary work.

Education
Rhonda Conte received her Master of Arts Degree in Education, Curriculum & Instruction from California State University, Bakersfield in 1994. Rhonda grew up in Missouri and earned her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Central Missouri State University in 1986.

Teaching
She taught various grades in Missouri and the Antelope Valley before earning her Reading Recovery Teacher Leader Certificate from California State University, San Bernardino in 1997 which changed her focus to working with struggling readers. Since beginning her higher education career at California State University, Bakersfield Antelope Valley over 20 years ago, she has focused on literacy instruction and co-teaching models in student teaching.

Education
Holly Gonzales is a first-generation college graduate and CSU Bakersfield alumna. She earned her bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies and a multiple-subject teaching credential in 2008, and then earned her Master's in Education in 2009.

Teaching
Holly served the students in the Panama Buena Vista Union School District and Bakersfield City School district for 9 years, as an elementary classroom teacher and Academic Coach. She began her journey in higher education in 2016 and currently serves as the Coordinator for the Kern Urban Teacher Residency and as a faculty member in the Teacher Education Department. She strives to share her love and passion for serving students in Kern County by actively modeling a positive growth mindset, equitable practices, and student engagement strategies.

Education
Dr. Kristina LaGue is a Professor in the Department of Teacher Education specializing in language and literacy studies. Dr. LaGue received her Ph.D. in Education specializing in Literacy and Composition Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Teaching
Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Dr. LaGue taught elementary school in the Delano Union School District while pursuing her teaching and reading specialist credentials and her Master of Arts degree from CSU Bakersfield.

Research
Dr. LaGue’s research interests explore the impact of various models of teacher preparation programs (primarily teacher residency programs) on teacher candidate preparedness and on diverse groups of students, including those living in rural communities. Dr. LaGue has served in multiple leadership positions including Director of Teacher Credentialing, Chair of Teacher Education, and Coordinator of the Master of Arts and Reading Certificate Programs.

Education
Anaya holds a multiple subject teaching credential, and a Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction.

Teaching
Anaya Lee has 12 years experience teaching 1st, 2nd, and 5th grade in Kern County. During her time in the elementary classroom, she participated in curriculum planning committees, professional development trainings, and new teacher support programs at her school. Starting with CSUB in 2016, Anaya was an adjunct lecturer teaching Classroom Management for the Credential Program. She is now the lead coordinator, university supervisor, and lecturer for the Kern Teacher Residency in Greenfield. Anaya has a passion for supporting, educating, and motivating future teachers in Kern County.

Education
Anne O'Bannon earned her Bachelor's Degree in Liberal Studies and Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from CSU Bakersfield.

Teaching
She has 11 years teaching experience in 6th and 7th grade language arts and 5th grade in Kern County. Mrs. O'Bannon joined the Teacher Education Department in 2016 as a University Supervisor. She continued supporting students and was named the Program Advisor in 2018. Mrs. O'Bannon has since become a full-time faculty lecturer and university supervisor for the Kern Teacher Residency in Greenfield.

Education
A first-generation college graduate and CSUB Alumna. Ashley earned her Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature, Single Subject Teaching Credential in English, and Master of Arts in Education: Curriculum and Instruction at CSUB. Currently, she is working on her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Arizona.

Teaching
Ms. Sanchez has worked in the education field for over a decade. While a student at CSUB she began working as an Instructional Assistant in the Writing Resource Center. Since then, she has been a middle school English teacher, a TK-8 school district Curriculum Specialist, and instructor for CSUB and Bakersfield College.

Honors and Awards
Classroom Excellence, California Association of Teachers of English (CATE), 2019 Outstanding Student, CSUB Single Subject Credential Program, 2016

Education
Dr. Shaylyn Marks is an Instructor at CSU Bakersfield and the Director of MS/SS Teacher Credential Program. She received her Ph.D. in English Education from Purdue University in 2013.

Teaching
Dr. Marks was previously a secondary English teacher in Illinois, Indiana, and California prior to moving to the collegiate level. The main focus of her work centers on advancing innovative ways to disrupt the status quo and create more equitable learning opportunities for underserved populations.

Research
With culturally sustaining and historically responsive pedagogy at the core of her work, her research interests include evolving teacher education preparation practices, using literature as a means to support and enact social justice, and exploring equitable structures within classroom spaces.