2026 Keynote Speakers

Phi Beta Delta

HONOR SOCIETY FOR INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARS

40^th ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

Theme: Celebrating 40 Years of PBD: Advancing Global Knowledge and Learning
June 1 and 2, 2026
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Keynote Speaker

Monday, June 1, 2026
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM (Eastern Time)
The Lucas Room, Cone Center, UNC Charlotte

The MU Chapter of Phi Beta Delta (PBD) at UNC Charlotte is pleased to welcome Emily Francis as the Keynote Speaker for the 40th Anniversary Phi Beta Delta (PBD) Honor Society for International Scholars Conference. The conference will be held at the Cone Center at UNC Charlotte on June 1 and 2, 2026.

Keynote Title: "From Language Learner to Global Leader: Advancing Knowledge through Identity, Language, and Education"

Astrid Emily Francis is a nationally recognized English as a Second Language educator, author, and speaker based in North Carolina. She currently teaches at Concord High School, serving multilingual learners across a range of English proficiency levels. Originally from Guatemala, Emily’s personal journey as an English Language Learner profoundly shaped her commitment to education and advocacy.

She holds a B.A. in Spanish and a Master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from UNC Charlotte. Her work as a professional development facilitator and keynote speaker centers on culturally responsive instruction, language development, and student empowerment. Emily is the author of If You Only Knew: Letters from an Immigrant Teacher (available in English and Spanish) and the Milly’s Journey bilingual picture book series. As a leader, she is driven to inspire students to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more.

The Keynote session will help kick off our 40th Anniversary PBD Conference and help us begin to engage with our conference theme: "Celebrating 40 Years of PBD: Advancing Global Knowledge and Learning."

The PBD Keynote is co-sponsored by the Department of Reading and Elementary Education and the Global-ready Research and Equitable Education in Teaching (GREET) Center in the Cato College of Education at UNC Charlotte.