Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Intervention and Assessment Practices with Emergent Bilingual Students

Desiree Vega, PhD, LP, NCSP, received her B.A. in Psychology from Binghamton University-State University of New York, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in School Psychology from The Ohio State University. She completed her pre-doctoral internship in the Omaha Public Schools district, where she worked as a bilingual school psychologist from 2010 to 2013. She is a Professor in the School Psychology program at the University of Arizona and previously served as a faculty member at Texas State University. Dr. Vega’s research focuses on three primary areas: 1) Understanding bilingual school psychology training and practice; 2) Preparing school psychologists for culturally competent assessment and intervention practice; and 3) Building collaborations to advance college access and persistence. In 2023, she was awarded a Spencer Foundation grant ($49,828) to examine school psychologists’ assessment practices with bilingual students within the context of Arizona’s restrictive English-only legislation. Dr. Vega is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Excellence in Graduate Teaching and Mentoring Award from the Graduate College (2021), the New Leader Award from the College of Education and Human Ecology Alumni Office, The Ohio State University (2023), the Presidential Award for Exceptional Service to Children and School Psychology from the National Association of School Psychologists (2023), the APA Division 16 Outstanding Contributions to Mentorship Award (2025), and the Mentoring Future Scholars Award (2025).

Jaclyn N. Wolf, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist and credentialed school psychologist. Dr. Wolf is currently an Assistant Professor (tenure-track) and clinical supervisor in the Psychology Department at San Francisco State University, and also works as a testing psychologist at Mind Matters, where she completes psychoeducational evaluations for preschool to college-aged youth. Dr. Wolf earned her bachelor’s (psychology with a minor in family studies) and master’s degrees (clinical psychology) at California State University, Northridge. She earned her doctoral degree in school psychology at the University of Arizona. Dr. Wolf has provided consultation, therapeutic, and assessment services in several settings, including K-12 schools (public and non-public), hospitals, and residential treatment centers. Dr. Wolf’s teaching, research, and clinical practice focus on examining the impact of sociocultural factors on the educational, academic, and mental health outcomes of culturally and linguistically minoritized youth, particularly Spanish-speaking Latine children and adolescents, from a holistic and strengths-based lens. She is also a heritage language learner (Spanish).