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Dr. Olga De Jesus-Diaz is an educator with 28 years of experience across the P–16 continuum, specializing in special education, bilingual education, language acquisition, and teacher preparation in higher education. She holds two master’s degrees—from Mercy College—in Elementary Education and School Administration, and earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Liberty University.
Dr. De Jesus-Diaz is currently an Associate Professor and Senior Director for Assessment and Accreditation in the Graduate School of Education at Touro University. Her professional career spans P–12 and higher education and includes service as a bilingual special education teacher, associate professor in teacher preparation programs, and an associate at the New York State Education Department advocating for English language learners with disabilities. She has also held multiple leadership roles in higher education focused on assessment, accreditation, and program quality.
Her scholarship, teaching, and service reflect a strong commitment to equity and access for diverse learners. Dr. De Jesus-Diaz has presented her work nationally and internationally. In 2017, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and provided professional development to faculty and teacher candidates at the University of Vienna under the theme “Empowering the Diverse Learner through Digital Storytelling.” She has published several articles in peer-reviewed journals and is the author of the book International Undergraduate English Language Learners’ Perceptions of Distance Learning.
In service to the field, Dr. De Jesus-Diaz has served as an expert for the U.S. Department of Education on initiatives related to alternative assessments for English language learners. She is a member of the Women’s Leadership Council at Touro University, the NYS CEEDAR Taskforce, and the Bilingual Curriculum Design Taskforce with the University–School Partnership for the Renewal of Educator Preparation (USPREP). She served as the 2024-25 President of the NYS TESOL organization. Most recently, she was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP), where she serves on the Governance and Conference Planning Committees.
Recent Publications
BOOK CHAPTER:
De Jesus- Diaz, O. & Soto-Ruiz. N. (2025). Mentoring Hispanic/Latina Higher Education Faculty: Needs, Considerations, and Case Studies. Baila Conmigo Dos. Mentoring Latinas in Higher Education/Academia Book Series.
De Jesus, O. (2024). Leading from the middle: Perspective of a newly hired leader. In Case studies in higher education leadership and management. Myers Education Press.
Easley, J., Daniel, L.G., De Jesus, O., & Edmonson, S. (2024). Academic leadership & USPREP: Three institutions’ experiences with building capacity for institutional transformation. USPREP, Austin Texas.
De Jesus, O. (2023). Professional Development for University-Based Teacher Educators: Learning Communities. Advances in Teacher Education Series. University of North Florida. https://www.infoagepub.com/products/Pathways-Into-Teacher-Education
