Carlos Baez Ronquillo is an English Faculty member at Century College, with over 20 years of experience teaching English and Spanish in higher education. His work centers on student-centered, culturally responsive pedagogy and the creation of inclusive learning environments for multilingual, first-generation, and diverse student populations. Carlos has taught a wide range of courses in composition, literature, Spanish language, and Latin American civilization across several Minnesota institutions, including Century College, Inver Hills Community College, North Hennepin Community College, and the University of Minnesota. He has a strong record of curriculum development, particularly in language instruction and Open Educational Resources (OER), and is currently co-designing an OER for intermediate Spanish as part of the Vamos Pa?l Norte initiative. Carlos holds a PhD in Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian Literature and Linguistics from the University of Minnesota, an MA in Spanish from Ohio University, and a BA in Teaching English as a Second Language from the Benemerita Universidad Autonoma de Puebla in Mexico. He also holds certificates in Online Teaching (Quality Matters) and TESOL. Dedicated to language education, cultural understanding, and equitable student success, he is honored to be recognized with the 2025?2026 Excellence Award.