Welcome to our New 2024-2025 Board!  

Illinois TESOL-BE's Board also consists of Officers and SIG Leaders.

For more information on each Board position, view TESOL-BE's Constitution and Bylaws webpages. 

Abdulsamad Humaiden

Treasurer 
Contact: ahumaiden@itbe.org 

Abdulsamad Humaidan, 2023-2025 ITBE Treasurer and spring 2023 ITBE Interim Secretary, is an ESL Lecturer at the Department of Linguistics, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and is also a Ph.D. Candidate majoring in Language, Literacies, and Culture/TESOL at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Mr. Humaidan first came to the United States in 2012 as a recipient of a Fulbright Foreign (Global) Students Scholarship sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Yemen to pursue an MA/TESOL at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and since then, Illinois has been home for him. He was also a recipient of a 2021 TESOL Leadership Mentoring Program Award by TESOL International Association. He also served as a member of the Professional Development Professional Council (2019-2021) - TESOL International Association – where he was involved in a range of activities such as reviewing book proposals, revamping course materials, and sharing input on professional development needs for the TESOL community. 
 

Dr. Akiko Ota

Technology chair
Contact: technology@itbe.org 

Dr. Akiko Ota is the director of English Language Learning and Educational Partnerships at Governors State University. She obtained Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership, M.S. in Postsecondary, adult, and continuing eduction, and M.A. in TESOL - all from Portland State University in Portland, OR. She has served ITBE Board since 2017 as the technology chair, Vice President, President, Past President, and Operations Manager. She has been teaching English in the United States and Japan across the full spectrum of instructional levels (literacy to college transitional ESL) for various student populations and institutions for more than twenty years. In addition to her expertise in teaching English, she specializes in international student research and teaching, student services personnel training in U.S. higher education, curriculum development, and online teaching and learning. In her free time, she enjoys taking photography and good coffee at local coffee shops.

Ayesha Riaz
Awards Chair
Contact: awards@itbe.org
Ayesha currently teaches 4th grade In Evanston, IL. She received my B.A in Elementary Education with an endorsement in TESOL from NEIU and is working on my M.A in Curriculum and Instruction from Concordia University Chicago. In her free time, she likes to read, travel, kickbox, and spend time with friends and family. She is also Bilingual in English and Urdu.

 

Catherine Stepan 
Member At Large
Contact:cstepan@itbe.org

Catherine Stepan has over 25 years' experience in a variety of roles in Education beginning with teaching at the Department of Education in NYC.  Her portfolio includes curriculum design, training programs and finding education management solutions for corporate clients and educational institutes across the UK, Italy, and the Czech Republic. She received her BA in both English and Secondary Education, and her MA in English from CUNY Queens College in NYC. After moving to Europe, she undertook PhD in Comparative Literature at Masaryk University in the Czech Republic. She led a team of Academic Managers and teachers for language programs at universities such as the University of Bath, among others across the UK. Currently, she is an adjunct ESL teacher at Elgin Community College. She is also an educational compliance auditor for Eaquals Organisation, a TESOL and English UK member. She is also pursuing her Doctorate in Higher Educational Leadership. 

Dr. Gina Johnson Wells
Advocacy Co-Chair
Contact: advocacy@itbe.org

Gina Johnson Wells has been an educator for nearly all of her professional life. A faculty member in the Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Department at Northeastern Illinois University, Dr. Wells teaches courses in the TESOL Department, serves as the NEIU Graduate Program Advisor to MA TESOL and ESL Endorsement students, and teaches Bilingual/Bicultural courses in the Goodwin College of Education. She is a member of the NEIU Black Student Success Committee and NEIU’s Illinois Equity in Attainment/Partnership for College Completion Committee. Dr. Wells holds a PhD in Professional Studies in Education, focused on Educational Inquiry and Curriculum Studies, from Capella University. She holds two Master’s Degrees: one in TESOL and one in Music Education. Previously, she was a coordinator for the NEIU Grow Your Own (GYO) Teachers Program. Dr. Wells, a professionally licensed music educator, has taught music in four states in the U.S. and in Sweden. Her interests include: policy and advocacy for English Language Learners and TESOL teaching professionals; the role of cultural competency in the retention of minoritized student populations; and the processes that facilitate intercultural competence and cultural proficiency in all teachers, in general, and teachers of English Language Learners, specifically. Additionally, Dr. Wells enjoys singing, traveling, being outdoors, reading, playing board games, and spending time with her husband and their adult children. She speaks Swedish and has studied French, Spanish, and American Sign Language.

Jesus Villegas
Convention Program Designer
Contact: program@itbe.org

Jesus’s experience teaching English to speakers of other languages spans more than 20 years. His teaching journey includes roles as a Peace Corps Volunteer and an English Language Fellow, where he worked on various projects in Northern Africa and the Middle East. Jesus has delivered presentations and led workshops at multiple conferences, including the International TESOL Conference in the US. For the past 12 years, Jesus has been teaching English to international students enrolled in Intensive English Programs. Presently, he is teaching in the English Language Academy at DePaul University, where, in addition to teaching a comprehensive ESL course load, he leads students on city excursions to provide a well-rounded international student experience.  Periodically, he also teaches ESL and computer literacy skills to adults: in community colleges, online, and at their place of employment.

Linda Jiang 
Publicity Chair
Contact: publicity@itbe.org
 

Marcia Luptak 
Convention Proposal Chair
Contact: proposals@itbe.org

Marcia Luptak studied linguistics at Southern Illinois University and has M.S.Ed. in Adult Education from National Louis University. She taught ESL from 1993-1994 at Southern Illinois University and 1996-2014 at Elgin Community College (ECC). She became director of ESL at ECC in 2014. She has been awarded for teaching and administrative excellence: NISOD Excellence Award, John & Susanne Roueche Excellence Award, IACEA Arthur J. Stejskal Teacher of the Year Award, and IACEA’s Administrator of the Year Award. Marcia has presented at local, state, and national conferences, including COABE and TESOL, since 1992.  At the state level, she participated on the ICCB ESL Strategic Plan subcommittee in 2018 and has served on the ICCB Adult Education Advisory Board since 2019. Marcia has been a member of ITBE since 1999 and a member of the board since 2018.

Marie Friesema
Director of Exhibitors 
Contact: ads-exhibits@itbe.org

Marie Friesema has been actively involved with ITBE since 2011 where she served in various roles including Adult SIG Chair, Convention Chair, President, and Past President/Nominations Chair. 
She recently returned to the ITBE Board to resume her previous role as Director of Exhibits and Advertising. For 15 years, she worked at Wheaton College (IL) as the English Department Academic Coordinator and later in a dual role as the Assistant to the Dean of Humanities and Program Coordinator of Interdisciplinary Studies. She holds an M.A. in Intercultural Studies and TESOL from Wheaton College Graduate School where she wrote a master’s thesis on migrant education. 
Marie has taught ESL for 20 years and currently serves as adjunct faculty at Waubonsee Community College. She also taught at Moraine Valley Community College's Intensive English Language Program for five years.  Marie enjoys writing fiction and non-fiction, public speaking, baking, sewing, tennis, and playing the piano

Richard Sasso
Member at Large
Contact: rsasso@itbe.org

Richard Sasso has been an ELL educator for almost 30 years now. Has worked in Adult Ed, higher Ed, family literacy, citizenship/naturalization education, and secondary Ed. He is looking  forward to serving ITBE.
 

Watsachol Narongsaksakul

Social Media Chair
Contact: socialmedia@itbe.org

 Vacant

ITBE Link Chair   
Contact: publicity@itbe.org

Vacant
Professional Development Chair / Webinar Chair 
Contact: prof-develop@itbe.org