Mariana Castro

Mariana Castro serves as the current Deputy Director at the Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER). She brings more than 25 years of experience in education to her research and development work. Castro’s extensive service to the field of education includes curriculum and instruction, language development, teacher preparation, and professional learning. In her research, Castro integrates her background as an educator, her passion for working with multilingual youth and their teachers, and her commitment for social justice. Beginning in 2006, Castro worked at WIDA as a professional learning delivery specialist. Since then, she has held positions coordinating, managing, and directing professional development, the standards department, and as a researcher focused on language development. Prior to her role at WCER, she also led the development of English and Spanish WIDA Standards and related initiatives for early childhood and K-12.