About the Author

Arnhilda Badía was born in Havana, Cuba. She left Cuba in 1965 to start a new life in the United States. While living in North Carolina, she obtained her Bachelor’s Degree from Meredith College and received her Master’s Degree and Ph.D. in Romance Languages from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She completed a post-graduate degree at Harvard University in Educational Leadership.

Dr. Badía has devoted her life to advocacy for immigrant and minority students by promoting educational equity. With over 35 years of experience in teacher education, she has expertise in a wide variety of specialties including language policy, language acquisition, and curriculum development. She is a strong advocate for the implementation of the Florida Seal of Biliteracy, an award given by a school, school district or county office of education in recognition of students who have studied and attained proficiency in two or more languages by high school graduation. 

Currently, as President of Badia & Associates, Dr. Badia works with school districts as an evaluator and educational consultant. She also designs and facilitates teacher-training workshops for teachers and administrators. She is the author of several series of classroom textbooks for children and adults such as Family Engagement, US Civics Education, among others.

Dr. Santiago Wood, NABE Executive Director, presents the NABE Recognition Award to Dr. Arnhilda Badía for her vision, passion, and dedication to Bilingual Education (2014).