Equity and Access in Mathematics Education: A Deeper Look

Dr. Ma Bernadette Andres-Salgarino, Assistant Director of iSTEAM at SCCOE in San Jose, CA, is an esteemed educator and leader in the field of mathematics education. In addition to her role at SCCOE, she serves as the President of the California Mathematics Council (CMC) and is a contributor of the newly published book, “Antiracist Mathematics Education: Stories of Acknowledgement, Actions, and Accountability.”

Before joining SCCOE, Dr. Salgarino taught a range of courses including AP Calculus AB/BC and AP Statistics at the East Side Union High School District. Her dedication to excellence in teaching led her to become a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) in AYA Mathematics. She has also contributed significantly to shaping educational policy as a former member of the Mathematics Curriculum Framework and Evaluation Criteria Committee in both 2013 and 2023. Additionally, Dr. Salgarino has served as an AP Calculus Reader and has been recognized for her outstanding contributions with awards such as the Texas Instruments – STEM Teacher of the Year in 2012 and the East Side Union High School District Teacher of the Year in 2013.

Dr. Salgarino is a nationally and internationally recognized speaker on transforming math to be R.E.A.L. - Restorative, Emancipatory, Accessible, and Limitless. Her pursuit of joyful mathematics is evidenced by her passion to co-design professional learning opportunities for educators and families, cultivating creative and lively mathematics experiences. She is committed to fostering family engagement in mathematics education and was instrumental in achieving 2,432,859 minutes of family engagement through the Mind Education Math Week initiative. Dr. Salgarino’s dedication to promoting equity and excellence in mathematics education continues to inspire educators and students alike.

Brandon Smith is the Lead Mathematician and Product Director at MIND Education, where he creates experiential learning programs for people of all ages, both in and out of the classroom — including two patent-pending. Over the past several years, he has focused on developing innovative projects to close what he calls the math “experience gap,” where children have insufficient exposure to math in their daily lives. These projects include interactive exhibits and games for math fairs, camps, and family math nights. Early in his career at MIND, he designed mathematical requirements for the game-based ST Math® software and led the national roll-out of the sixth-grade ST Math curriculum. Smith co-authored a paper in Cognitive Science Research Principles & Implications and has written for the Huffington Post and presented at ISTE. Prior to joining MIND, Smith was a college instructor, where he won an outstanding teacher award and was an educational liaison for the City of Costa Mesa to Windham, Australia.