Meet Daniella

I am an immigrant and a language teacher at heart. I use research to help enact change that promotes the flourishing of historically underserved learners. I stay grounded in the everyday experiences of MMSD teachers and students by studying student engagement in the district, supervising teachers, volunteering in classrooms, and engaging closely in my children’s education. 

I was born and raised in Bulgaria, and came to the United States to pursue graduate school. I completed a master’s in Teaching English as an Additional Language with a specialization in writing at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I moved to Madison in 2005 to pursue doctoral studies. I received my PhD from the department of Curriculum & Instruction in 2010.

I have worked as an education researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 2010. My work has always focused on promoting equitable teaching and learning. For the first 11 years of my career, I worked for WIDA as a professional development researcher. I tried to understand how we could best support teachers to meet the needs of multilingual youth.

For more than 10 years, I also supervised teachers who were working towards their ESL/bilingual license at Edgewood University. I taught a class that supported practicing teachers in reflecting on and changing their practice so that their multilingual students could develop their English skills and learn challenging content. 

For the past four years, my focus has shifted from classrooms to districts. I help lead a national research project that documents how districts change their practices to promote equity. 

I have always had a strong connection to teaching and learning in MMSD schools. When I do not supervise practicing teachers, I volunteer in MMSD classrooms. I also remain actively engaged in my children’s day-to-day educational experiences.