About me
Dr. John Alcalde is a native of Vilafranca del Penedès, Catalonia. He pursued his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Barcelona, Catalonia. He attained his Master of Arts in History in 1998. After college, he relocated to England to acquire proficiency in the English language. A year later, he came to Illinois to become a visiting teacher in the Bilingual Education program at East Aurora High School. Over the course of a decade, he served as a secondary teacher at the East Aurora school district, teaching in their bilingual, mainstream, and honors programs at both the high school and middle school levels.
John completed his Ph.D. in history at Northern Illinois University driven by the intersection of his interests in legal history, labor history, ethnic history, and immigration history. His research examines court interpretation and English language fluency in US law from the Revolution to the Progressive Era.
Currently, John serves as the Director of History & Social Sciences Secondary Educator Licensure Programs, where he teaches and advises clinical students during their four semesters in the licensure program. While his main goal is to provide students with the tools and skills necessary to become successful teachers, he also wants them to be able to address and support the ever-increasing diversity of students in the American education system to ensure all students feel safe and accepted in their classrooms.
