2026-2027 Social Media Sub-Committee
Erpin Said
Erpin Said is a Ph.D. student in Teaching and Curriculum at the University of Rochester. Before pursuing doctoral studies in the United States, he taught English across a range of educational settings in Indonesia, including schools, universities, and language programs. His research focuses on multilingual writers’ engagement with generative AI in academic writing, with a particular interest in how EFL students use ChatGPT in English-medium academic contexts. In addition to his research, Erpin serves as a social media assistant at the University of Rochester’s International Services Office, where he captures campus events, creates digital content, and connects with international students in the Rochester area. He values community-building and enjoys using communication and media to support student engagement. His long-term goal is to become a professor and researcher in TESOL and language technology, particularly in TEFL settings. Outside of work, he enjoys cooking Indonesian cuisine, exploring recipes from different cultures, and traveling. As a member of the AAAL GSC Social Media Subcommittee, Erpin aims to create creative, meaningful social media content that increases engagement, highlights the community's work, and helps connect graduate students in applied linguistics.
Rika Nakano
Rika Nakano is a doctoral student in the Multilingual Language Education (MLE) program at The Ohio State University. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, she worked as a Japanese language instructor at Emory University in Georgia. Drawing on this experience, her research focuses on the identity shifts of language teachers teaching abroad. As a member of the GSC social media sub-committee, her goal is to facilitate easy access and scholarly communication for those interested in applied linguistics.
HyeEun Jung
HyeEun Jung is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Applied Linguistics at The Pennsylvania State University. Drawing on her background as a secondary English teacher in South Korea and her involvement in human rights activism for North Koreans, she is interested in secondary migration, North Korean refugees, and linguistic ideology and identity. She is currently engaged in a multi-sited and longitudinal ethnographic case study of North Korean escapees who have moved from South Korea to the Western countries, tracing both the sociopolitical conditions that drive onward migration and the new constraints under which they renegotiate belonging, values, and identity upon arrival. As a member of the AAAL SCC Social Media Subcommittee, HyeEun aims to support graduate students navigate key resources for both their scholarly and personal growth.
Li Peng
Li Peng is a Ph.D. student in Educational Studies (Language Acquisition) in the Department of Integrated Studies (DISE) at McGill University, Canada. Her research interests focus on plurilingualism, pluriculturalism, translanguaging, plurilingual pedagogy, teaching Chinese as an additional/heritage language, teacher education, and teacher identity. She has extensive experience as a language teacher. More specifically, besides working as an English teacher for college students in Guangzhou, China for two years, she has also been a Chinese teacher for Canadian and international students for about a decade at different levels, including K-12 and university level students and instructors. Li also proactively takes part in volunteer work at conferences, including serving as a photographer for the Canadian Association of Applied Linguistics (ACLA/CAAL) . As a member of the GSC social media subcommittee, she is passionate about advocating for graduate students presenting in AAAL as well as their research to a larger audience.
Member Testimonials
"Being a part of AAAL GSC has been a great experience for me since I feel a sense of belonging. AAAL GSC members are helping the AAAL grad student community by providing helpful resources and interacting with students via multiple platforms. This has taught me a lot about how to build a community and how to serve an academic community as an aspiring professional researcher."
- Yunjung (Eunice) Nam
"During the 2017-2018 academic year, I was a member of the GSC social media sub-committee. As a social media sub-committee member, I was able to connect with other graduate students in the field. Additionally, I acquired various skills that I was able to use in my future service endeavors. For members who are considering applying to be a part of the social media subcommittee, I highly recommend doing so as it can provide professional opportunities to expand one's network and to learn from others in the field."
- James Coda
"I have benefited a lot from serving in the GSC Social Media Sub-Committee in 2018 and in the GSC Event Planning Sub-Committee in 2017. Through these experiences, I got the opportunity to talk with many talented and well-known scholars in the field, as well as junior scholars (like our graduate fellows!) who could be long-term collaborators and friends. Such experience broadened my view towards the field and opened a conversation that was just not limited to the sub-field that I am interested in researching. More importantly, I feel really proud to have the autonomy and voice to be heard as a graduate student."
- Yi Wang
2025-2026 Social Media Sub-Committee
Nilima Hakim Mow, George Mason University
Michol Miller, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Mukib Khan, Oklahoma State University
Rika Nakano, Ohio State University
Anthony Lin, Texas A&M University
Mushaal AlBugami, University of Mississippi
Li Peng, McGill University
2024-2025 Social Media Sub-Committee
Michol Miller, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Mukib Khan, Oklahoma State University
Rika Nakano, Ohio State University
Nilima Hakim Mow, George Mason University
Anthony Lin, Texas A&M University
Mushaal AlBugami
2023-2024 Social Media Sub-Committee
Wei Xu, Arizona State University
Myssan Laysy, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Ayako Hiasa, Arizona State University
Minghui Sun, Pennsylvania State University
Michol Miller, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
2022-2023 Social Media Sub-Committee
Eva Jin, Arizona State University
Juyeon Yoo, Ohio State University
Wei Xu, Arizona State University
2021-2022 Social Media Sub-Committee
Yunjung (Eunice) Nam, Georgia State University
Tetiana Tytko, University of Maryland, College Park
Gordon West, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Sophia Minnillo, University of California, Davis
2020-2021 Social Media Sub-Committee
Yunjung (Eunice) Nam, Georgia State University
Larissa Goulart, Northern Arizona University
Tetiana Tytko, University of Maryland, College Park
2019-2020 Social Media Sub-Committee
Josiah Murphy, Kent State University
Yunjung (Eunice) Nam, Georgia State University
Yi Wang, University of Arizona
Larissa Goulart, Northern Arizona University
Svetlana Koltovskaia, Oklahama State University
2018-2019 Social Media Sub-Committee
Nicole Deschene, New York University
Andrea Lypka, University of South Florida
Maria Ruiz-Martinez, University of Colorado
2017-2018 Social Media Sub-Committee
James Coda, University of Georgia
Shyam Pandey, Purdue University
Jui-Hsin (Renee) Hung, Indiana University-Bloomington
2016-2017 Social Media Sub-Committee
Jessica Lian, Georgia State University