Board Members

Betsy C. Romero

Blakeney A. Vásquez

ElShadey Bekele
Board Secretary

Jimell Sanders
Board President

Kevin Clinton
Board Treasurer

Maria Tukeva

Ximena Hartsock
Past Board Members

Maquita Alexander

Bill Rivers

Martha G. Abbott
Marty Abbott began her career in Fairfax County Public Schools (VA) where she was a language teacher, foreign language coordinator, and Director of High School Instruction. She has served on national committees to develop student standards, beginning teacher standards, and performance assessments in world languages. Working at the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL), Marty served as President (2003-2004), Director of Education (2004-2011), and Executive Director (2011-2018). Under her leadership, ACTFL created the Center for Assessment, Research and Development and launched the public awareness campaign, Lead with Languages. She recently served as a commissioner for the American Academy of Arts and Sciences national report America’s Languages: Investing in Language Education in the 21 st Century. In 2016, Marty was appointed by President Obama to serve a four-year term on the National Security Education Board, and in 2018, she was appointed to the University of Mary Washington Board of Visitors by Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, where she is currently serving a four-year term until 2022. Marty’s education consists of a B.A. in Spanish with a minor in Latin from the University of Mary Washington and a Master’s Degree in Spanish Linguistics from Georgetown University.