Awards and Accolades

By: NWP Staff
Publication: The Voice, Vol. 9, No. 3
Date: 2004

Arizona
Northern Arizona Writing Project
Catherine Lytle, 2003 fellow, had her article, “The Elements of Fiction and Dr. Seuss,” published in the April 2004 issue of Classroom Notes Plus 21 (1).

California
Bay Area Writing Project
Deborah Brown, 2001 fellow, was named the 2003 San Ramon Unified School District Teacher of the Year.

Lola Brown, 1983 fellow, received the 2003 Mill Valley School District Teacher of the Year Award.

Liane Cismowski, 2001 fellow, was honored as both the Mt. Diablo Unified School District Teacher of the Year and Contra Costa County Teacher of the Year, 2003.

Patsy Lockhart, 1984 fellow, was recognized as an expert and committed educator in the community who has made a difference in the lives of many children by the Cosby on Campus Celebrating Teachers: Inspiring Innovation event, held at Stanford University.

Jesse Madway, 2000 fellow, and Robert Roth, 1994 fellow, published a collection of student writing titled Youth Speaks Out: Inheriting a Violent World in conjunction with 826 Valencia, an organization headed by writer Dave Eggers that helps students develop their writing skills. The book project was supported by a grant from the Isabel Allende Foundation, and Allende wrote the book’s introduction.

Gail Offen-Brown, 1987 fellow, received a 2004 Faculty Award for Outstanding Mentorship of Graduate Student Instructors at the University of California, Berkeley.

Katherine Vasquez, 1997 fellow, was one of two teachers in California to receive the 2004 Milken National Educator Award.

Rod Septka, 1996 fellow, received the 2004 Marin County Teacher of the Year Award.

Cheryl Wozniak, 1997 fellow of the Toledo Area Writing Project (Ohio) and now BAWP teacher-consultant, received the 2004 San Lorenzo Unified School District Teacher of the Year Award.

UC Irvine Writing Project
Maureen Rippee, 1988 fellow, was elected president of the California Association of Teachers of English.

Colorado
Denver Writing Project
Melissa Rude, 2002 fellow, was named Teacher Leader at Aurora Hills Middle School in Aurora.

District of Columbia
District of Columbia Area Writing Project
Veronica Gonzalez, 2001 fellow, was included in the eighth edition of Who’s Who Among American Teachers 2004 (Educational Communications). Gonzalez teaches English language learners at Bell Multicultural High School in Washington, D.C.

Diane Riley, 2000 fellow, earned National Board certification in Early Childhood Education.

Florida
National Writing Project at Florida Gulf Coast University
Katie O’Hara, 2002 fellow, was awarded a full scholarship from the English Speaking Union to study British Literature at the University of Oxford, England.

Georgia
Georgia Southern Writing Project
Mildred Pate, 2001 fellow, and Laura Kalloniatis, 2002 fellow, were awarded a Georgia Southern University (GSU) Service Grant for youth project activities with digital cameras. Their project is called “Back to the Future: Marrying Traditional and Digital Technologies.” Both Pate and Kalloniatis teach composition classes at GSU.

Kennesaw Mountain Writing Project
As yearbook advisor, Traci Blanchard, 1997 fellow, led her school to win Yearbook of the Year for Georgia high schools. Blanchard teaches at Lassiter High School in Marietta.

Renee Kaplan, 1999 fellow, won the Spirit of Anne Frank Award, a national-level honor given by the Anne Frank Center of New York to a leading holocaust studies educator. Kaplan teaches at Mabry Middle School in Marietta.

Sylvia Martinez earned National Board certification in English Language Arts. Martinez teaches at Campbell High School in Smyrna.

Diane Shearer won the Georgia Association of Journalism Advisers Teacher of the Year Award. Shearer teaches at Chamblee High School in Chamblee.

South Georgia Writing Project
Brett Drawdy, 2003 fellow, was awarded Teacher of the Year for Cook County. Drawdy heads the science department at Cook High School in Adel.

Hawai‘i
Hawai‘i Writing Project
Lionel Barona, Wendie Burbridge (2002 fellow), and Diana Sanchez gave a presentation on Hawai‘i’s multiethnic literature at the National Council of Teachers of English Convention in San Francisco in November. Barona, Burbridge, and Sanchez teach at Kamehameha School.

Lillian Cunningham, 1981 fellow, was named Windward Arts Treasure for 2003 by the Windward Arts Council. Cunningham received the award for her role as advisor of the literary magazine at Windward Community College where she teaches English and for work with writers at monthly retreats.

Laurie Dela Cruz, 2000 fellow, was one of 17 teachers recognized as an Everyday Hero by the Hawai‘i Department of Education, the Hawai‘i Association of Independent Schools, the Hawai‘i Catholic Schools, and several corporate sponsors. Dela Cruz teaches at Hokulani Elementary School in Honolulu.

Kim Evans, 2002 fellow, published a book entitled Whale! (University of Minnesota Press, 2003). Evans teaches at the University of Redlands in Redlands, California.

Bob Franco, 1988 fellow, is the recipient of the Chair Academy’s 2004 International Exemplary Leadership Award for his work in service learning, both on the Kapi‘olani Community College campus and in the nation. Franco received the award at the Chair Academy’s 13th Annual Conference in Reston, Virginia, on March 6, 2004.

Laura Fukumoto, 1982 fellow; Patricia Miyahira, 1992 fellow; and Kathleen Nagaji, 1996 fellow earned National Board certification. Fukumoto teaches at Aliamanu Elementary School, Miyahira teaches at Momilani Elementary School, and Nagaji teaches at Pearl Ridge Elementary School.

Sheldon Hershinow, director, and Colette Higgins, 1997 fellow, received Kapi‘o Awards from the Kapi‘olani Community College student newspaper for being teachers that students cannot stop talking about and also for being teachers who have inspired and educated their students while leaving lasting impressions that will follow them into their futures. Hershinow was named Most Humble Teacher, and Higgins was named the Teacher Least Likely to Let Students Slip Through the Cracks.

Gaylen Issacs is the advisor for her school paper Ka Leo, which tied for first place in the annual Hawai‘i High School Newspaper Contest. Issacs teaches at Sacred Hearts Academy in Honolulu.

Both Melvia Kawashima, 1983 fellow, and Trina Nahm-Mijo, 2000 fellow, contributed to the Fall 2003 Special Korean Centennial Celebration issue of YOBO: Korean American Writing in Hawai‘i (Bamboo Ridge Press, 2003). Kawashima contributed a poem “Halmuni,” and Nahm-Mijo contributed “Night Soil.”

Clifford Lee, 1986 fellow, received a Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics based on innovations in his classroom. Lee teaches second grade at Iolani School in Honolulu.

1980 fellow Nancy Moss had her play Anna produced by the Actors Group in Honolulu. Moss’s play won the Hawai`i State Theatre Council Po`okela Award for Original Script and also won the Resident Prize in Kumu Kahua’s playwriting contest. Moss is retired from Iolani School in Honolulu.

Patrice Wilson published a book of poetry entitled When All Else Falters (Finishing Line Press, 2003). Wilson is a professor at Hawai‘i Pacific University in Honolulu.

Louisiana
National Writing Project of Acadiana
Lisa Meaux, 2003 fellow, had “Acts of Contrition,” a piece of creative nonfiction, published in the online journal Literary Mama at www.literarymama.com.

Maryland
Maryland Writing Project
Barbara Bass, director, had her essay “Darwinian Gardening” chosen for the new book Nesting (It’s a Chick Thing): Tips and Tales for an Inspired Home and Garden by Anne Mahler Beanland and Emily Miles Terry (Workman Publishing, 2004).

Jennifer Morrison, 2003 fellow, won the Paul and Kate Farmer Excellence in Writing Award for her article “Using Student-Generated Film to Create a Culturally Relevant Community,” published in the September 2002 issue of English Journal.

Michigan
Third Coast Writing Project
Dan Holt, co-director, was named Michigan’s Creative Writing Teacher of the Year 2003-2004 by the Michigan Council of Teachers of English. The award was presented at the Michigan Youth Arts Festival on May 14, 2004. Holt teaches creative writing, college writing, and journalism at St. Joseph High School in St. Joseph.

Mississippi
University of Mississippi Writing Project
Ben W. McClelland, former director, published Soldier’s Son (University Press of Mississippi, 2004). In this memoir, the author imagines and resurrects the life of his deceased soldier father. McClelland is a professor of English at the University of Mississippi.

Missouri
Prairie Lands Writing Project
Jan Reeder, 1991 fellow, had a piece, “Forever,” published in Crafting Authentic Voice by Tom Romano (Heinemann, 2004). Reeder teaches English and creative writing at Central High School in St. Joseph.

Ken Rosenauer, 1993 fellow, was inducted into the College Media Advisers Hall of Fame in 2003. Rosenauer’s journalism textbook, Storycrafting: A Process Approach to Writing News, was slated for release in 2004 from Blackwell Publishing. Rosenauer, an English/journalism professor, chairs the English, Foreign Languages, and Journalism Department at Missouri Western State College.

Valorie Stokes, 1994 fellow, had two teaching units, “Magazines Redux: An Exercise in Critical Literacy” and “Exploring Literacy in Cyber Space,” published at readwritethink.org. Stokes, a district secondary content area reading enhancement facilitator, teaches English and Latin at Central High School in St. Joseph.

New Hampshire
Plymouth Writing Project
Brian McNabb, 2002 fellow, was named one of three finalists for the 2004 Treat Award for Excellence in the Teaching of the Humanities by the New Hampshire Humanities Council.

New Jersey
National Writing Project at Rutgers University
Sara Bauer, 2002 fellow, had “An Energetic Exchange: The National Writing Project Works to Improve Writing and Learning,” published in the January 2004 issue of the NJEA (New Jersey Education Association) Review.

Julie Cheville, director, had “Automated Scoring Technologies and the Rising Influence of Error” published in the March 2004 issue of English Journal 93 (4): 47-52.

Toby Kansagor, 2003 fellow, was named The College of New Jersey fellow to represent the Professional Development School Network in the development of Holocaust curriculum materials for schools and colleges. Kansagor will be attending seminars scheduled in Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic.

Pennsylvania
Southcentral Pennsylvania Writing Project
Colleen Myers, 1992 fellow, has been selected as one of 102 teachers in the state who will form a new state leadership group called Keystone Technology Integrators. Colleen, who teaches first grade, was selected based on her integration of technology into her teaching.

Rhode Island
Rhode Island Writing Project
Dennis Kafalas, 1993 fellow, published Whale Pirates (Imprint Books, 2003).

South Carolina
Lowcountry Writing Project
Lori Gaillard, 2000 fellow, was named Teacher of the Year for Charleston County School District. Gaillard teaches at St. Andrew’s Elementary School in Charleston.

Heather Hendrix Paternoster, 2002 fellow, was selected Teacher of the Year at H. E. McCracken Middle School in Bluffton.

Anne Herlong-Bodman, former director of the Charleston Area Writing Project, published Voices Over Water (Harbor House Books, 2004), a piece of historical fiction that tells the story of one of five unnamed southern teachers who had already started schools for freed slaves when the Freedmen’s Bureau arrived after the Civil War.

Christy Wegmann, 2003 fellow, was named Teacher of the Year at Sedgefield Middle School in Goose Creek.