Mary A. Avalos joined the University of Miami faculty in 1999.  She earned her Ph.D. at University of California, Riverside.  She was an elementary bilingual teacher at Riverside Unified School District, Riverside, California, before moving to Miami.

At the School of Education, Avalos has served as coordinator, instructor and director of the Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Scholarship Program, overseeing the teaching and training of instructors/lecturers/teaching assistants, and advising students.  She has also served as assistant department chair for Teaching and Learning and, currently, as principal investigator of Project RESSULTS (Reading Endorsement Supports Scientific Up to Date Language Teaching Strategies).

Her professional publications include, “Effective Second Language Transition: From Learner Specific to Generic Instructional Models,” “Promoting Science Instruction and Assessment for English Language Learners,” and “Promoting Paperless Portfolios as Assessment in Graduate Level TESOL Programs.