DESMADRE Summit 2026 | Special Education & Language Justice

Disrupting Misidentification, Defending Language Justice, and Reimagining Support for Multilingual Learners

A recent national lawsuit revealed a devastating truth: a student graduated from high school unable to read or write after years in special education. Stories like this force us to confront hard questions about how schools identify disabilities, how bilingual students are assessed, and how systems often confuse language difference with learning disability.

The DESMADRE Summit 2026 is a call to action.

This powerful, half-day summit brings together educators, parents, special education professionals, and community advocates who refuse to accept harm as the status quo. Together, we will examine how systems fail multilingual learners—and more importantly, how we can disrupt, reimagine, and rebuild them to ensure every child is truly seen, understood, and supported.

When language is mistaken for disability:

• Students are misidentified and overrepresented in special education
• Families are left without answers or advocacy
• Long-term academic and emotional harm occurs

The DESMADRE Summit centers language justice, system accountability, and collaborative solutions that elevate student voice and family partnership.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Mujeres with Doctorates