Kristina Cardona Collins is a seasoned educator with over 20 years of experience teaching children and adults in both public and private schools. Her current work is focused on preparing educators to become culturally and linguistically responsive teachers and reading specialists. She began teaching in afterschool programs for elementary students in Prince George’s County, and teaching English at night to adults seeking their high school diploma in Washington, D.C.
She is a Maryland Eastern Shore native. After graduating high school, she attended the University of Maryland Eastern Shore where she obtained her Bachelor's of Arts degree with honors in English with a concentration in Telecommunications. After moving to the Baltimore-Washington area, she was accepted into graduate school at Towson University. She graduated with her Master of Science degree in Professional Writing with a concentration in Teaching College Writing.
In 2011, she began teaching English language arts and social studies to elementary and middle school students at Archbishop Borders School in southeast Baltimore city. Borders is the only dual language Spanish-immersion school within the Archdiocese of Baltimore school system. Still committed to public education, she also taught in afterschool and summer programs through EBLO (Education Based Latino Outreach), a Baltimore-based community organization.
During her distinguished tenure at Borders, she developed her school leadership skills. She chaired several committees, served as interim principal, and Dual Language Program Director. She worked relentlessly to promote literacy, dual-language education, community and family engagement, and to help foster relationships within the school community across racial, cultural and socioeconomic lines.
Her scholarly interests include: second language acquisition, language development for culturally and linguistically diverse students, literacy education, critical theory, culturally responsive pedagogy, and teacher development.
Research Interest:
- Intersections of Language, Literacy, and Culture
- Teacher Development and Training
Awards:
- 2014 Loyola Literacy Educator of the Year
Publications:
- Who Gets to Count as Emerging Bilinguals?: Adapting a Holistic Writing Rubric for All (2020). Margarita Gomez and Kristina Collins
- Whose Language Is Legit? Intersections of Race, Ethnicity, and Language (2016) Margarita Zisselsberger and Kristina Collins