Mary Carol Combs - Associate Lecturer

Ph.D., University of Arizona

Teaching: Preparation of English language learners, bilingual education, Structured English Immersion, Indigenous language and identity in film.

Mary Carol Combs is an Associate Lecturer in the Department of Language, Reading and Culture, University of Arizona (Tucson) where she teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in bilingual education law and policy, ESL methods, and multicultural education. She is also on the faculty of the American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI); her institute courses include indigenous language planning and policy, foundations of American Indian language education, and indigenous culture, language, and identity in film. Her current research focuses on the English language acquisition and literacy development of Kindergarten and first grade English language learners in Structured English Immersion (SEI) classes. She is also participating in a study to assess the effect of state and federal immigration policies on undocumented students in K-12 schools in Southern Arizona. The former director of the English Plus Information Clearinghouse, a national clearinghouse on language rights and public policy based in Washington, DC, Dr. Combs remains active in national networks concerned with policy developments in the education of ELLs in the United States. She receiv¬ed her Ph.D. in Language, Reading and Culture from the University of Arizona, an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from Georgetown University, and a B.A in German from the University of Michigan. She has published articles on the education of English language learners, bilingual education and language policy, and is co-author of the 4th edition of Bilingual and ESL Classrooms (2006, McGraw-Hill), with Carlos Ovando and Virginia Collier.