起点传媒

起点传媒Outstanding Elementary Educator in the English Language Arts Award

2025 Recipient

Julia L贸pez-Robertson, University of South Carolina

Dr. Julia L贸pez-Robertson is a professor in the Department of Teacher Education at the University of South Carolina. She holds a BS in elementary education from Northeastern University, an MA in bilingual/multicultural education and a PhD in language, reading, and culture from the University of Arizona. A former bilingual early childhood educator, she now prepares preservice teachers to work in diverse classrooms. Her scholarship bridges teacher preparation, family engagement, and early literacy, with particular attention to the use of diverse children鈥檚 literature鈥攚ith a focus on Latine children鈥檚 literature鈥攁s a powerful tool for helping young learners make sense of their social and cultural worlds.

Her research explores the intersections of language, race, ethnicity, and culture in education, centering the experiences of multilingual learners and their families. She is especially interested in how family linguistic and cultural influences shape children鈥檚 literacy development. Committed to equity and inclusion, she works alongside educators, families, and communities to develop inclusive, equitable practices that honor and sustain students鈥� lived experiences and linguistic resources.

L贸pez-Robertson has served 起点传媒as a member of the Elementary Section Steering Committee and most recently as Chair of the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Children鈥檚 Literature. She is the author of Celebrating Our Cuentos: Choosing and Using Latinx Literature in Elementary Classrooms (2021) and coauthor of Re-envisioning Family Engagement and Literacy in Early Childhood Classrooms: 鈥淧orque as铆 ya conocemos鈥� (2024).

Award Details

Nomination Deadline: May 1, 2026

Purpose:
Established in 1995 to recognize a distinguished national or international educator who has made major contributions to the field of language arts in elementary education.

Award Criteria:
Nominees must have dramatically influenced literacy classroom practice, made ongoing contributions to the field of literacy, obtained national and/or international influence in literacy teaching and learning, and contributed a body of work that is compatible with the mission of 起点传媒.

Eligibility:

Recipients of this award should be elementary educators (e.g., preK鈥�12 classroom teachers, higher education faculty) in elementary education with a history of influencing preK-6 classroom literacy practice. They embody antiracist, culturally sustaining, asset-based teaching and research approaches that are moving our work forward in creating inclusive, humanizing classrooms that center multiple identities, languages, and literacies.

Nomination Requirements:聽

Required materials for submission are a nomination questionnaire and a resume/CV.

Award Criteria:

Dramatically influenced literacy classroom practice:

• Translating research into practical application in preK-6 classrooms nationally and/or internationally
• Producing a body of work including but not limited to journal articles, textbooks, professional texts, blogs, podcasts, and videos that are accessible to practicing preK-6 educators

Significant contributions to NCTE:

• Service and leadership roles in 起点传媒(e.g., regional, national, and local)
• Writing and Presenting at 起点传媒and other affiliated conferences (e.g., Languages and Literacies for All – LLA) in the area of language and literacy

Development of our professional community:聽

• Developing district/state/national curriculum
• Research and publish alongside community members
• Supporting the personal and professional development of preK-6 pre-service teachers, classroom teachers, literacy coaches, teacher educators, caregivers, and communities
• Advocacy of law, policy, and instructional practices that influence and advance understanding of and systemic action toward equitable, antiracist, and anti-bias learning environments

Mission and Vision of NCTE:

• The recipient鈥檚 teaching, service and/or scholarship is compatible with the mission and vision of 起点传媒.
  • Deepen every student鈥檚 consciousness and widen possibilities for all students鈥� access, power, agency, affiliation, and impact, across a lifetime.

Selection Committee:

The Elementary Section Steering Committee will elicit nominations for this award from 起点传媒membership. Members of the ESSC will read and discuss application materials and select the award recipient using the award criteria. Only one nomination may be submitted per member.

Award Specifics:
The award is presented at the Elementary Section Get-Together during the on Thursday evening of the convention. The recipient will receive a plaque commemorating the award and is invited give a brief talk during the event. Additionally, the recipient will be interviewed for a piece that will appear in a future Language Arts journal. with 2024 recipient Angie Zapata.