Francie Christopher, Assistant Director, returned to the Institute in the spring of 2009 to coordinate the Kansas Migrant and English Language Learner (ELL) Academy, a professional development opportunity for regular education teachers of ELLs. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in French from Colby College, ME, a Master’s Degree in Secondary Education-Spanish from Bowie State University, MD, and a doctorate in TESOL from the University of Kansas. As a doctoral student she worked with Dr. Paul Garcia on the Topeka Teachers, Today & Tomorrow grant at the Institute. Her dissertation “Accommodating English Language Learners in Mainstream Secondary Classes: A Comparative Study of Professional Development Delivery Methods” was completed in 2006. Prior to returning to the Institute, Dr. Christopher was an assistant professor at Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, MO. She initiated the TESOL certification and Master’s program and taught elementary education courses to pre-service students.

Dr. Christopher currently is Project Coordinator for the Kansas Migrant & ELL Academy and the Migrant Family Literacy Professional Development Project and oversees a variety of professional development grants and contracts at the Institute.

Her research expertise is in professional development for teachers and administrators of English language learners.

CV/Resume