Program Schedule 2025

DAY 1 – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4th

12:00-1:00 pm – Il Monastero Front Hall
Conference Registration
1:00-2:15 pm – Sanctuary
Welcoming Remarks
  • Kristin Sobolik, Chancellor, University of Missouri-St. Louis
Keynote 1 – Health & Well-being
  • Nestor Gomez 
  • Immigrant Journey – In this intimate and immersive performance, Gomez tells personal stories of his family’s immigration to the United States and the social, cultural, and linguistic struggles he has navigated ever since. Nestor believes that we’re all connected by universal experiences; his stories will draw you in and connect you to those experiences. Be prepared to laugh and commiserate with him and his unforgettable personal stories. Nestor is a Chicago poet and author of Your Driver Has Arrived – stories about his ride-sharing experiences.
2:15-2:30 pm – Break
2:30-3:45 pm – Concurrent Breakout Sessions
Breakout 1 – Storytelling Workshop (English) – SANCTUARY
  • Find Your Voice – Nestor Gomez, Chicago Poet & Author
Breakout 2 – Community & Economic Development – Research & Promising Practices – ST. CABRINI
  • Latine Farmworker Recruitment and Community Wellbeing in Ohio, Isaiah Franco, The Ohio State University
  • Advancing Inclusive and Culturally Responsive Leadership Programs for Latiné Communities in Minnesota, Guillermo Narváez, University of Minnesota 
  • Social Capital, Belonging, and Mental Wellbeing in Multicultural Communities, Sarah Caldera Wimmer & Andrea Somoza, LifeWise StL
  • Stronger Together: Building Lasting Change Through Collaborative Advocacy, Ben Molina, Hispanic Leaders Groups of Greater St. Louis
Breakout 3 – Education & Youth Development – Workshop – ST. MADALEINE
  • Growing Up with Pride: Fostering Additive Bilingualism in a Multilingual America, Amanda Niedzwiecki, Carver Dual Language School
Breakout 4 – Health – Workshop – ST. KATHERINE
  • Helping Newcomers Be STRONG! Our experience providing the Supporting Transition Resilience of Newcomer Groups (STRONG) in a school setting, Jessica McDonald & Deena Murdock, Carthage R9 School District
Breakout 5 – Education & Youth Development – Workshop – ROSE
  • Using AI to Make Programs, Routines and Resources Accessible, Ryan Rumpf, Missouri Office of Refugee Administration
4:00-5:30 pm – Sanctuary (and St. Louise de Marillac)
Opening Reception & Cash Bar
Musical Guest: TBA
Poster Exhibit
  • LGBTQ Students in Public Schools-How Can We Help? Sarah Langley, University of Saint Thomas
  • The History of Dual Language Education In: Kansas City Public Schools, Marena Nuñez Cruz, University of Missouri-Columbia
  • New Frontiers in Preaching, The Aquinas Way, Theresa Orozco, Aquinas Institute of Theology
  • Providing linguistically accessible mental health services in Missouri: A question of capacity or demand? Miranda Wood, HEART Lab, University of Missouri-Columbia

DAY 2 – THURSDAY, JUNE 5th

8:30-9:00 am – St. Louise de Marillac

Breakfast

9:00-10:15 am – Sanctuary

Keynote 2 – Education & Youth Development

  • Socorro Herrera, Kansas State University
  • Querencia: Comunidad, Familia y Fortaleza – In community, we will engage in conversation for collective change that is grounded in our history and faith in our own strength. Together we will explore intersections of community, family and fortitude to uplift and leverage la historia, el lenguaje and y la cultura of the home and community for educators and students. We will reflect on how to create spaces where the learner’s full “humanity” is shared, valued, and made part of the tapestry of learning without reservation.

10:15-10:30 am – Break

10:30-11:45 am – Concurrent Breakout Sessions

Breakout 1 – Sanctuary: Education & Youth Development – Workshop

  • Community, Family and Biography: Situating and Valuing All Knowledge – Socorro Herrera, Kansas State University

Breakout 2 – St. Cabrini: Storytelling – Workshop 

  • Storytelling for Impact: Communicating Research, Practice, and Policy Across Sectors, Thi Nguyen

Breakout 3 en español – St. Madeleine: Health – Workshop

  • Arte y duelo migratorio: Pintando nuevos caminos, Erendira Garcia Guzman, Coach de bienestar emocional, LifeWise StL 

Breakout 4 – St. Katherine: Education & Youth Development – Panel

  • Fostering State Capacity to Support Refugee Newcomers to Missouri K-12 Schools
  • Emily Crawford, University of Missouri-Columbia 
  • Shawn Cockrum, Missouri Office of Refugee Administration
  • Shelly Wooten Fair, Columbia Public Schools
  • Juan José Reyes, Cambio Center

12:00-1:00 pm – St. Louise de Marillac

Lunch

1:00-2:15 pm – Sanctuary

Keynote 3 – Civil Rights & Political Participation

  • Daniel I. Morales, University of Houston
  • Recovering Migration’s Reality in a Surreal World – Forty years of bipartisan effort have gone into producing today’s surreal migration horrors; a world where America’s greatest strength—the ability to integrate newcomers into society— is felt by most citizens today to be its biggest liability. In this talk I will explore the ways law has helped to produce the present moment and how social movements might work to push us out of it; if only law can both get out of the way—and lend a hand.

2:15-2:30 pm – Break

2:30-3:45 pm – Concurrent Breakout Sessions

Breakout 1 – Sanctuary: Community & Economic Development – Research & Promising Practices

  • Latinos Contributions to the United States’ Economy, Marcelo Siles, Julian Samora Research Institute, Michigan State University
  • Establishing a Community Centered Multicultural, Multilingual Participatory Advisory Council, Natalie Gemberling-Webb & Sarah Caldera Wimmer, LifeWise StL
  • Asian Americans Live Here: Oral Histories, Origins and Opportunities for Reclamation, Robin Hattori, Japanese American Citizens League
  • Welcoming in Central Illinois, Ricardo Diaz & Rachel Joy, City of Champaign

Breakout 2 – St. Cabrini: Health – Research 

  • The ‘Viviendo Bien’ study: Optimal Wellness for Missouri’s Hispanic people, Maithe Enriquez, University of Missouri
  • Exploring sub-Saharan African immigrant males’ experiences of gender roles and Intimate Partner Violence  in the US: A critical qualitative inquiry, Annie Banda, Iowa State University
  • Increasing access to mental healthcare: A qualitative appraisal of barriers and opportunities for Spanish-speaking populations in Columbia, Missouri, Miranda Wood & Maia Zalik Markollari, University of Missouri-Columbia

Breakout 3 en español – St. Madeleine: Storytelling – Workshop

  • Descubre su voz, Nestor Gomez, Poeta y Autor de Chicago

Breakout 4 – St. Katherine: Education & Youth Development – Workshop

  • Cultivating Global Citizens: Developing Intercultural Competence in High School Students, Sarah Wolters, Sarah Wolters Co

4:00-5:30 pm – Concurrent Breakout Sessions

Breakout 1 – Sanctuary: Health – Panel

  • “Good data, better lives”: Using the All of Us Research Program to engage communities and researchers to better understand Latino health
  • Maria Jose Sanchez, University of Nebraska Medical Center
  • Marcela Carvajal, University of Nebraska Medical Center
  • Natalia Trinidad, University of Nebraska Medical Center
  • Athena Ramos, University of Nebraska Medical Center
  • Misty Phillips, University of Missouri-Columbia

Breakout 2 – St. Cabrini: Education & Youth Development – Research & Promising Practices

  • Exploring Bilingual Education in Oregon: Equity, Resilience, and the Future of Multilingual Learning, Carrie Larson, Pacific University & Esperanza De La Vega, Portland State University 
  • The Role of Latino Teachers’ Lived Experiences in Shaping their Retention in Midwestern Schools, Haydee Taylor-Arnold, Ladue Horton Watkins High School & Foreign Language Association of Missouri
  • SchoolLink: Bridging Gaps and Supporting All School Communities, Donna Garcia & Valeria Adams, ParentLink / SchoolLink
  • Teaching for Translanguaging: Lessons from a Newly Expanding Language Policy Context, Alissa Blair & Vicki Collet, University of Arkansas 
  • Interpreting Latin American Styles in Paquito D’Rivera’s Lecuonerias: A Guide to Authentic Performance, Lucas Willsie, Central Methodist University

Breakout 3 en español – St. Madeleine: Education & Community Development – Research & Promising Practices

  • Redacción colaborativa de textos académicos: una actividad basada en el Aprendizaje Colaborativo, Nadya Carolina Portillo Flores, Escuela Agrícola Panamericana Zamorano, Honduras
  • Migrants Narrative Typologies: How do Spanish-speaking migrants construct knowledge about migration through digital platforms? Indiana Garcia Torres, University of Missouri-Columbia
  • Resisting Linguistic Marginalization: Lessons from Colombian Interns and Rural Latine Youth in the U.S., Alejandro Baquero Sierra, Purdue University

Breakout 4 – St. Katherine: Education & Youth Development – Workshop

  • Collaboration for PreK-3 Transitions with Bi/Multilingual Children, Amanda Spalter, Tricia Blanco, WIDA, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Eduardo Pérez, Western Illinois University

6:00-8:30 pm – Film Screening at Washington University

Un Día Normal by Mexicut Films

Panelists Include:

  • Director Maurizio Dominguez
  • William D. Lopez, School of Public Health & Latina/o Studies, University of Michigan
  • Cynthia Feliciano, Sociology, Washington University

DAY 3 – FRIDAY, JUNE 6th

8:30-9:00 am – St. Louise de Marillac

Breakfast

During this time, the participants who signed up for Site Visits to LifeWise StL and SEED St. Louis will meet up. They will enjoy their visits and share some food, between 9-11 am. More details on pick-up/drop-off will be provided at the conference!

9:00-10:15 am – Concurrent Breakout Sessions

Breakout 1 – Sanctuary: Community & Economic Development – Panel 

  • Texas-Mexican Music and Community in the Midwest: Telling Our Story Through Oral History
  • Richard Dávila, Julian Samora Research Institute, Michigan State University
  • Alicia Loza, Community Member
  • Jose Chapa, Community Member
  • Daniel Oropeza, Community Member

Breakout 2 – St. Cabrini: Civil Rights & Political Participation – Workshop

  • What Researchers Can Learn from Community Organizers and Why Organizers Need More Economics
  • Trinidad Raj Molina & Itzel Vargas-Valenzuela, Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation (AIRR)

Breakout 3 – St. Madeleine: Education & Youth Development – Panel 

  • Vivimos Aquí! Interpreting and Projecting Latiné Students’ Educational Outcomes: Using Research and AI
  • Theresa Torres, University of Missouri-Kansas City
  • Jesse Lowe, University of Missouri-Kansas City
  • Robert Johnson, University of Missouri-Kansas City
  • Robert-Abel Porras, University of Missouri-Kansas City

Breakout 4 – St. Katherine: Education & Youth Development – Workshop

  • ¡Estudiamos Acá! Resilience, Resistance, and Well-Being in U.S. Higher Education Through Our Own Practices
  • Sophia Piral Lee, University of Missouri-Columbia 
  • Maryluz Hoyos Ensuncho, MOST Policy Initiative

10:15-10:30 am – Break

10:30-11:45 am – Concurrent Storytelling Sessions (to be determined)

Breakout 1 – Sanctuary: 

  • Amplifying Voices, Building Bridges: Stories of Strength, Storytelling, and Solidarity
  • Esmeralda Aharon, #1 International Best Selling Author
  • Gabriela Ramirez-Arellano, #1 International Best Selling Author
  • Krysta Grangeno, #1 International Best Selling Author

Breakout 2 – St. Cabrini: 

  • Tentative title: Latina Entrepreneurs of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro STL 
  • Martha Garcia Kampen 
  • Author 2 
  • Author 3 

Breakout 3 – St. Madeleine: 

  • Stories from Immigrant Women in Rural Missouri 
  • Kandice Grossman, University of Missouri-Columbia  
  • Rebecca Scott, University of Missouri-Columbia 

Breakout 4 – St. Katherine: 

  • Story circle

Breakout 5 – Rose: 

  • Story recording room

12:00-1:30 pm – Sanctuary

Lunch

Keynote 4 – Community & Economic Development

  • Gilberto Pinela, Director of the Office of New Americans
  • Bridging Opportunity: How New Americans Are Shaping the Future of St. Louis – New Americans are helping shape the future of St. Louis—starting businesses, revitalizing neighborhoods, and contributing to a more dynamic and inclusive city. The City’s Office of New Americans is paving the way by ensuring that immigrants and refugees have access to the tools, resources, and support they need to thrive. Under the administration of Mayor Cara Spencer, the Office will continue to serve as a vital bridge—connecting communities, fostering economic opportunity, and assuring that all newcomers are genuinely welcomed and have a sense of belonging.