Tasha Austin

Tasha Austin is an assistant professor of teacher education, language education and multilingualism. She is the outgoing Teacher Education Special Interest Group Representative for New Jersey Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages-New Jersey Bilingual Educators (NJTESOL-NJBE) and co-created and hosted their "Critical Conversations" YouTube series. Her research uses critical race theory and Black feminist epistemologies through a raciolinguistic perspective to qualitatively examine language, identity and power, and the ways in which anti-Blackness emerges in language education and (language) teacher preparation. Through her purposeful enactment of critical consciousness and engaged pedagogies, her praxis seeks to effect meaningful change in the field of language education and within teacher education more broadly.

• PhD, Rutgers, School of Graduate Studies, Education (2022)
• M.A., Rutgers School of Graduate Studies, Education (2021)
• Ed.M., Rutgers, Graduate School of Education, Language Education (2007)
• B.A., Douglass College, Spanish Language and Culture (2006)

• Stephen A. Freeman Award for Best Published Article; Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages; 2023-03-04;
• Outstanding Dissertation Award; Critical Educators for Social Justice Special Interest Group, American Educational Research Association; 2023-02-15;
• Outstanding Dissertation Award; Division K Teaching and Teacher Education , American Educational Research Association; 2023-02-08;
• Anthony J. Papalia Award for Outstanding Article in a State or National Foreign Language Education Publication; New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers (NYSAFLT); 2022-10-21;
• Cultivating New Voices 2022-2024 Fellow; National Council of Teachers of English; 2022-08-26;

• Austin, T. (2022). “A Hard Time Seeing the Relevance”: Race and discourse identity in language teacher preparation. International Journal of Literacy, Culture and Language Education.
• Austin, T. (2022). Linguistic Imperialism: Countering AntiBlack Racism in World Language Teacher Preparation. Journal for Multicultural Education.
• Porcher, K. M., Austin, T., (2021). “Black Women are the Mules of the World”: Black Women Professors of Practice in Teacher Education Programs. Journal of African American Women and Girls in Education, 1(3), 109-129.

• Austin, T. (2023). Modeling Cultural Competence: Digital Reflective Journaling in Teacher Preparation. In From Being Woke to Doing# theWork (pp. 240-250). Brill
• Austin, T., Porcher K., Curran M., DePaola, J., Pelaez J. & Raffaelli L. (2021). We Still Have Work to Do: Community-Engaged Experiences and Impact in an Urban Social Justice Program. Teachers College Press.

• Austin, T. (March, 2023). We Been Off That: Mimicry, Agency and Politics in Critical Language Awareness. Invited Webinar for Bilingual and Multilingual Special Interest Group. Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.[Virtual];
• Austin, T. , Hsieh, B. (February, 2023). Connections to Feminism. Invited discussant for Abolitionist and Liberationist Language Pedagogies course at University of Wisconsin, Madison. Madison, WI.;

• Austin, T. (November, 2022). Addressing antiBlackness in World Language Teacher Preparation. Paper accepted at the annual meeting of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages: Boston, MA.;
• Bryan, K., Austin, T., Cooper, A., & Fall, M. (March, 2023). Courageous Conversations: Racism & Linguistic Well-Being in English Language Teaching. Invited Panel at Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages. Portland, OR.;
• Krishnamoorthy, R., Austin, T., Duncan, R., Tan, E., Smithen, B., Yoshi, J., & Reichsman, F. (June, 2022). Collaborating Online Through a Pandemic: Designing Virtual Spaces for Rightful Presence. Paper accepted at International Society of the Learning Sciences conference, Hiroshima, Japan.;

• University at Buffalo, Graduate School of Education Micro-Funding for Research Program; Foundation and Research Organization; University at Buffalo, Graduate School of Education; Awarded; (02/01/2023-06/30/2023)