Neda Sahranavard

Biography

Neda Sahranavard, Ph.D., is Assistant Director and Continuing Lecturer in the Program in Global Languages & Cultures at the University of California, Irvine. She has taught a range of courses including academic writing, reading and vocabulary, oral communication, Persian language, and international teaching assistant training. Sahranavard received the 2020 TESOL Teacher of the Year Award from TESOL and National Geographic, and the 2020 Gail E. Weinstein Teacher Recognition Award from CATESOL. Her research focuses on multilingual language acquisition, the integration of English loanwords in Persian, and transnational linguistic flows between Tehran and Iranian diaspora communities.

Dr. Sahranavard has published research on topics including the Persianization of English in multilingual Tehran, international teaching assistant training, and translingualism. Her work has appeared in journals such as World Englishes, ELT Journal, and Iranian Studies, and she co-authored textbooks on reading in English as a global language and fundamentals of Persian language for multilingual students. She has conducted research projects on integrating AI tools in Persian language education, heritage language acquisition, and student-centered approaches to teaching academic reading and vocabulary. Sahranavard has presented at conferences including TESOL, the Middle Eastern Studies Association, and CATESOL on topics ranging from culturally responsive curriculum development to multimodal learning in language classrooms.

In addition to her teaching and research, Sahranavard coordinates multiple programs at UCI including the Persian Club, Peer Mentor Program, and International Education Week. She has developed curricula for Persian and Filipino/Tagalog language courses and serves as a manuscript reviewer for the International Journal of Applied Linguistics. Sahranavard received her Ph.D. in English from Islamic Azad University in Tehran, where her dissertation examined traumatized bodies in the works of Sylvia Plath, Toni Morrison, and Margaret Atwood.

Distinctions

• 2020 TESOL Teacher of the Year Award, TESOL and National Geographic, 2020
• Gail E. Weinstein Teacher Recognition Award, CATESOL, 2020
• Lecturer of the Year, Honorable Mention, UCI, 2024
• Thank a Teacher Award, UCI, Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation, 2018, 2021
• Outstanding Graduating Senior of English, Islamic Azad University, 2000
• Certificate of Excellence, Santa Ana College, Centennial Education Center, 2010
• Distinguished Instructor Award, Allameh Ghotb Ravandi, College of Foreign Languages, 2006
• Distinguished Ph.D. Candidate, Islamic Azad University, 2006