Rain S. Bongolan has supported over 120 beginning secondary teachers as a mentor for the Santa Cruz New Teacher Project. Her contributions to the profession reflect 22 years of teaching history and English at the middle and high school levels, and her dedication to ensuring students’ access to rigorous, culturally responsive instruction. For three years, Bongolan directed and codesigned the New Teacher Center’s ELL Institute, one of California’s 24 professional development institutes. Bongolan consults with national organizations as well as state school districts working to improve instructional practices in adolescent literacy and English language development. She has authored several mentor and teacher training modules and directed grant projects for the NTC featuring practical and innovative teaching and mentoring strategies designed to advance students’ content literacy in Grades 7–12.
