June Hetzel, professor and dean of the School of Education at Biola University, grew up in the culturally and linguistically rich basin of the San Francisco Bay Area in the Franklin McKinley School District in south San Jose. Her childhood background shaped her passion for access for all learners. Her teaching experiences in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, Africa, and Thailand have provided her with insight into working with elementary and secondary students and adults in multilingual, multicultural settings. Additionally, she has enjoyed travel throughout Europe and on a trip to Oxford University, presented “The Three Literacy Gaps and Title III of NCLB,” co-authored with Ivannia Soto-Hinman, at the Oxford Round Table at Harris Manchester College, Oxford University, upon which the book The Literacy Gaps is based. In partnership with Ivannia Soto-Hinman, the model has been refined for ELLs and SELs, developing into its current form.
With 30 years in education, Hetzel remains passionate about literacy. She facilitates local volunteer tutoring partnerships and she and her husband, Geoff, enjoy leading teams of literacy teachers overseas to work with English language learners. A long-time member of the International Reading Association and the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, Hetzel has authored many literacy resource books and currently freelances for Purposeful Design Publications, serving as a content editor for two textbook series, including the English as a Foreign Language series. She earned her MS in reading education from Cal State Fullerton and her PhD from Claremont Graduate University.
