Secretary

Dr. Lawrence Paska is the Executive Director of ACTFL, the largest professional association in the United States for world language education. In his role, he oversees the strategic direction, operations, and staffing of ACTFL. With his extensive background in association management and education, he is well-equipped to lead the association in achieving its mission of “providing vision, leadership, and support for quality teaching and learning of languages.”



Dr. Paska comes to ACTFL with more than 25 years of experience in association management and education. He recently served for eight years as Executive Director of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), a professional association for social studies educators. During his NCSS tenure, he had a track record of leading an organization of teachers, securing grants and funding, and establishing the organization’s strategic vision.



Previously, he served as the Director of Professional Development at the Southern Westchester (NY) Board of Cooperative Educational Services, providing professional learning services to a region of 32 school districts. He served in multiple roles at the New York State Education Department, primarily as the Coordinator of Technology Policy and as a state social studies curriculum and assessment specialist.



Dr. Paska began his career as a middle school social studies teacher in New York State public schools. He holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction (University at Albany-NY), an M.A.T. in Social Studies and B.A. in History (Union College-NY), and is an ASAE-certified association executive and New York State-certified school district administrator.