Learn, connect and grow: #WIDA2024 features award-winning keynotes and sessions by teachers, for teachers

By Hannah Haynes

There’s just a handful of weeks left before we gather in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for the 2024 WIDA Annual Conference (#WIDA2024)! The in-person event runs October 16-18, 2024. For those who can’t attend in person, a virtual track is available on October 15.

Whether this is your first time attending or you’re a regular at the WIDA Annual Conference, we’re excited to have you! This conference is truly unique in that it’s a conference by teachers, for teachers. It gives thousands of educators of Pre-K through grade 12 multilingual learners, from around the globe, the opportunity to share best practices and discover innovative classroom strategies.

#WIDA2024 theme

Our theme this year, Bridging Cultures, Empowering Multilingual Voices, is an ode to the many bridges of Pittsburgh, PA and the essential work that educators like you do to uplift multilingual learners.

Here’s what Tim Boals, WIDA founder and director, had to say about this year’s conference:

“We never want to lose sight of who this work is ultimately for — multilingual learners. They are our North Star. With the WIDA Annual Conference, we’re committed to bringing you tangible strategies, resources and connections that you can take back to these learners. We hope to bring you sessions that will empower you to empower your students!”

#WIDA2024 headliner

We’re excited to welcome Quiara Alegría Hudes as our keynote speaker! 

Quiara Alegría Hudes is the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of "Water by the Spoonful"; author of a memoir, “My Broken Language”; and screenwriter for the major motion picture “In the Heights.” Previously, she wrote the book (aka script) for the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical and Hollywood blockbuster “In the Heights” and authored other plays and musicals that have been produced around the world. Her notable essays include "High Tide of Heartbreak" in American Theater Magazine and "Corey Couldn’t Take It Anymore" in The Cut. In opposition of the carceral state, Hudes and her cousin founded Emancipated Stories, a platform where people behind bars can share one page of their life story with the world. As a barrio feminist and joyous mischief maker, Quiara y su hermana created the Latinx Casting Manifesto.

But wait, there’s more! For the first time ever, we’ll offer a virtual keynote. In-person attendees will have recording access to the virtual keynote. Keep reading to learn more.

#WIDA2024’s virtual track  

We’ve taken your input and made some changes to the virtual track this year. There will be one full day of live sessions on October 15, 2024. These sessions are curated from the in-person conference and tailored to a virtual audience.

And drumroll ... We’re having a virtual keynote for the first time!

Jo Napolitano spent nearly two decades reporting for The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and Newsday before winning a Spencer Education Fellowship to Columbia University in 2016 — where she was paid to attend the Graduate School of Journalism so she could write a long-form piece on young immigrants.

That story morphed into a book. “The School I Deserve: Six Young Refugees and Their Fight for Equality in America” was published by Beacon Press in the spring of 2021. A sought-after public speaker, Napolitano lectures across the country about the often-overlooked potential of newcomer students. And while she has reported on many topics throughout her award-winning career, education remains her primary focus. Napolitano is a two-time Education Writers Association Fellow.

Virtual attendees will also get to live stream the in-person keynote.

There’s still time to catch #WIDA2024 on-demand!

Interested in catching the virtual track on your own schedule? A recording-only option is available so you can participate in your own place, at your own pace. Recording-only participants will receive access to recorded virtual sessions and both the virtual and in-person keynotes on November 4, 2024.

Recording-only access is available for purchase until October 31, 2024.

#WIDA2024: Get social!

Share your favorite conference quotes, moments and photos on social media! Use the hashtag #WIDA2024. Follow WIDA on X, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram before and during the conference to stay connected to the #WIDA2024 buzz and excitement.