Friday, October 10, 2025
14:00- 15:00

This webinar draws from Voices of Courage and Vulnerability: Teaching English in a Society at War (Ukraine 2022-2023), a collection of narratives by English language educators during the first year following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The volume amplifies the experiences of Ukrainian teachers who continued to sustain learning and foster community amid displacement, trauma, and war, as well as U.S.-based educators who supported Ukrainian students through virtual instruction across borders.

Together, these powerful stories reveal how English language teaching became a lifeline—offering safety, continuity, and hope in the midst of emergency. The webinar will explore trauma-informed and culturally responsive strategies used in such contexts, the role of storytelling and intercultural dialogue, and the ways educators act as peacebuilders in times of upheaval.

Participants will be invited to reflect on the global relevance of these experiences and consider how to approach teaching with greater empathy, resilience, and purpose during emergencies.

Roxanna M. Senyshyn, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and Communication Arts and Sciences at Abington College, Pennsylvania State University. Her research focuses on transformative intercultural learning in preservice teacher education, teacher professional development, and the sociolinguistic integration of newcomer students, including refugees, immigrants, and international students. More recently, her work has expanded to include heritage language education. Her scholarship has appeared in journals such as Intercultural Education, Journal for Multicultural Education, Journal of Transformative Education, and Journal of Language and Intercultural Communication, among others. She is the co-editor (with A. Lypka) of Voices of Courage and Vulnerability: Teaching English in a Society at War (Ukraine 2022–2023) (SSTESOL Press, 2025). Dr. Senyshyn bridges research and practice through professional development, advocacy for bilingual education, and community-engaged research on heritage language education, including teaching and leadership roles in Ukrainian heritage language programs.

Andrea Enikő Lypka, Ph.D., serves as Publications Chair for the Florida Educational Research Association and Community Manager at the Intercultural Interest Section of TESOL.   Her research interests include qualitative research methods, language learner identity, and computer-mediated language learning.

Register

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