How do students deal with the stigma sometimes associated with English learners and immigrants in our schools and communities? What are some of the main factors that help ensure success for English learners? What can educators do to best support English learners?

We discuss these questions and much more in our conversation with Take the Pledge scholarship winner Melany Quintero. Melany is a recent high school graduate from Pembroke Pines, Florida, just outside Miami. She is beginning her higher education journey at Dartmouth College this fall, where she is studying Biomedical Engineering. She came to the US from Cuba at age 9 and as you’ll hear in the episode, she attributes much of her English learning to the Hannah Montana series.

Melany’s story exemplifies the educational journey of so many English learners across the country. For more information about Ellevation’s Take the Pledge Scholarship for English learners, visit takethepledge.net.

You can read the full transcription of our conversation with Melany here.