[1] A Professor Emerita at the University of San Francisco, she is recognized for her work promoting bilingual and multicultural education in the United States.

[3] Born into a family of storytellers, poets, and educators,[4] she grew up hearing traditional tales re-told by her grandmother, father, and uncle.

[16] In 2008, the California Association of Bilingual Educators (CABE) established "The Alma Flor Ada Teachership Award" given annually in her honor.

[17] Alma Flor Ada is a major contributor to the advancement of critical pedagogy focused on personal realization and social justice,[18] centered around incorporating experience based knowledge of parents and students into the classroom through authentic writing.

[22] For example, the picture book I Love Saturdays, y dominos, the chapter book My Name is María Isabel[1] held in 1817 libraries,[22] and two middle grade novels, co-authored with her son Gabriel Zubizarreta, Dancing Home and Love, Amalia all focus on the themes of celebrating heritage while living Latino in the United States.

Alma Flor Ada has also translated extensively from English into Spanish for authors such as Lucille Clifton, Evaline Ness, Judy Blume, Judith Viorst, Ruth Heller, Nancy Luenn, Audrey Wood, Jane Yolen, Cynthia Rylant.

In collaboration with Isabel Campoy, Alma Flor has also translated works of authors such as Lois Ehlert, Ellen Stoll Walsh, Mem Fox, and Gerald McDermott.