Faculty & Staff

Yuna Seong is the Director of the Community Language Program and two advanced certificate programs, TESOL and Language Program Management Certificate Programs, at Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), where she hires and trains language educators and language program professionals who aspire to teach and manage their own language programs. Prior to TC, Yuna was a Clinical Assistant Professor and Assessment Coordinator at New York University (NYU). During her years at NYU, she designed and taught a wide array of specialized courses for English language learners from diverse language, academic, and professional backgrounds. In addition, she developed, administered, and managed the program’s English proficiency exams and successfully led a two-year project overhauling the curriculum. She is also a consultant and exam reviewer for major testing companies such as the Educational Testing Services (ETS) and College Board and has presented her research on language assessment and cognitive processes involved in oral communication in peer-reviewed journals and at a number of international conferences. Yuna earned her MA in Second Language Studies from University of Hawai’i at Manoa with concentration on language Assessment, measurement, and program evaluation, and she is a doctoral candidate in Applied Linguistics at Teachers College, Columbia University with specialization in second language assessment. Her research interests include teaching and assessing second language speaking ability, scenario-based assessment, and metacognitive and cognitive processes in second language test performance. 

James E. Purpura is Professor of Linguistics and Education in the Applied Linguistics and TESOL Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. He teaches courses in second and foreign language assessment and research design in applied linguistics. He has written scholarly books on assessment, and has published widely in the journals, handbooks, encyclopedias, companions, and other edited volumes. He is currently the Co-Editor of Language Assessment Quarterly and is co-editor of two books series. Jim has served on scientific committees related to assessment and has consulted in several countries. In 2017 Jim served as a U.S. Teaching and Research Fulbright Scholar at the University for Foreigners of Siena (Italy), and currently he is on the Committee on Language Assessment for the U.S. Foreign Service Institute sponsored by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

Jim began his career teaching French in the U.S., and English as a Second or Foreign Language in the U.S., France, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Spain. In his early career, he played a leading role in the development of several English language curricula, including an English for specific purposes curriculum in Iran, in Saudi Arabia, and in Kuwait. He co-authored a successful English language textbook series (4 levels) published by Pearson. Jim is currenting co-authoring a book on learning-oriented assessment (LOA), and is actively carrying out research on scenario-based assessment.

Allie Hope King is a doctoral candidate in Applied Linguistics at Teachers College, Columbia University. She has an Ed.M. in Applied Linguistics from TC, an M.Ed. in Foreign Language Education and TESOL from the University of Pittsburgh, and a bachelor’s in Modern Languages from Carnegie Mellon University. Her research focuses on classroom discourse, specifically what co-teacher interaction looks like through a conversation analytic lens. Prior to returning to New York for her current academic endeavors, she taught ESL in a number of contexts and locations around the U.S. While at TC, she has taught several courses in the Community Language Program, and has been a mentor and instructor for the TESOL Certificate Program.

Natalia Sáez is a professor and researcher focusing on second language development as well as bilingual/bicultural education. She is also the founder of TraducGlobal (www.traducglobal.com), where she carries out classroom research with visually impaired EFL learners. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Cognitive Science from Universidad de Chile, and a Master of Arts degree in Applied Linguistics from Teachers College, Columbia University, where she also earned a Doctor of Education degree specializing in Applied Linguistics. 

Farah Akbar is a doctoral student in the Applied Linguistics Program at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she previously earned an M.A. in TESOL. She also has an M.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Karachi, Pakistan. She has taught ESL/EFL for almost 15 years in Pakistan and the U.S. She has taught TESOL Practicum and Second Language Acquisition courses to graduate students at TC. Farah has also taught in the M.A. TESOL program and the International English Language Institute (IELI) at Hunter College, City University of New York. Her areas of interest include second language acquisition (SLA), interactional feedback, naturalistic L2 development, computer-mediated communication (CMC), and teacher education. Farah teaches the Pedagogical English Grammar course in the TESOL Certificate Program.

Michael Perrone received his doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University, with a concentration in educational assessment, after earning his MA from Hunter College, CUNY and MSW from Columbia. He served as an Adjunct Lecturer and Field Supervisor in the Curriculum and Teaching Department at Hunter for eight years, while also working as a Field Instructor in the Applied Linguistics and TESOL programs at Teachers College for over five years. His research interests include the construction, implementation, and evaluation of classroom-based assessments to enhance student learning, in addition to focusing on the effects of high-stakes assessments on teacher pedagogy and learners' academic development. Michael teaches the Second Language Assessment course in the TESOL Certificate Program.

Kelly Frantz is a doctoral student in Applied Linguistics at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she also earned her MA. As a former Fulbright English Teaching Assistant, she has taught English as a second language in the US and abroad. Most recently, she has designed and taught speaking and writing courses for the English Language Institute at City College of New York and the TC Community Language Program. She is currently a Doctoral Teaching Fellow at the Community Language Program and a writing consultant for the TC Graduate Writing Center. Her doctoral research uses conversation analysis to examine interactions in various pedagogical settings. Kelly teaches the Intercultural Communication course in the TESOL Certificate Program.

Talya Kahan is the Program Associate for the Language Management Program and the TESOL Certificate Program at Teachers College. She previously worked in research, communications strategy and operations for local non-profits and international organizations, before  moving into teaching. She currently tutors ESL students. Talya holds an MSc. in Human Rights from the London School of Economics and a BA in Politics and Sociology from Brandeis University. As a former student in the TESOL Certificate Program, Talya is excited to support  current students on their journeys and to help ensure that their experience at Teachers College is a positive one.