Awards and Accolades

By: NWP Staff
Publication: The Voice, Vol. 8, No. 2
Date: March-April 2003

Summary: Find out about your colleagues' latest articles, books, and awards.

Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas Writing Project
Rita Caver, 2000 fellow, earned National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification in history. Caver teaches English at Fayetteville High School in Fayetteville.

Pam Mulson, 1998 fellow, earned National Board certification in early adolescence/mathematics. Mulson teaches math at Kimmons Junior High School in Ft. Smith.

Betsy Penix, 1997 fellow, won third place in the 2002 Bessie B. Moore Arkansas Awards Competition for excellence in economics education. Penix teaches at Walker Elementary and Helen Tyson Middle School in Springdale.

Anita Philbrick, 2000 fellow, was elected to the 2003 editorial board of The Reading Teacher, the elementary journal of the International Reading Association.

Lynette Terrell and Lacinda Files, 1997 fellows, hosted a poetry writing session and poetry slam for the city of Fayetteville's First Night (New Year's) Festivities.

Samuel Totten, director, published Working to Make a Difference: The Personal and Pedagogical Stories of Holocaust Educators Across the Globe (Lexington Books, January 2003).

California
Inland Area Writing Project
The following teacher-consultants earned National Board certification in November 2002: Phyllis Dinwiddie, 1991 fellow; Darcy Salvatore, 1999 fellow; Nancy Pace-Skinner, 1992 fellow; and Sandi Wasserman, 1986 fellow. Dinwiddie teaches fifth grade at D'Arcy Elementary School in Colton. Salvatore teaches at Colton High School in Colton. Pace-Skinner teaches at Roosevelt Middle School in Vista. Wasserman teaches in the Chino Unified School District in Chino.

Jason Fowler, 2002 fellow, was named 2002-2003 Teacher of the Year at Mount San Jacinto High Continuation School in Cathedral City. Fowler is also a finalist for Teacher of the Year for the California Continuation Education Association, District VIII.

Judy Wenrick, 1985 fellow, had a poem, "I'd Like to Write a Great Poem," published in The Pomona Valley Review. Wenrick also had an article, "Current Events Take Center Stage, Teens Speak Out," published in the February 2003 issue of California English. She teaches at Upland High School in Upland.

San Diego Area Writing Project
Kim Douillard, co-director, and Danan McNamara, 1999 fellow, contributed chapters to Teacher Inquiry: Living the Research in Everyday Practice, edited by Anthony Clarke and Gaalen Erickson (Routledge-Falmer Press, 2003). Douillard's chapter is titled "Writing Matters: Exploring the Relationship Between Writing Instruction and Assessment," and McNamara's chapter is titled "Sketching to Learn." Both Douillard and McNamara teach in multiage (1-3) classrooms at Cardiff Elementary in Cardiff-by-the-Sea.

South Coast Writing Project
Sheridan Blau, director, published The Literature Workshop: Teaching Texts and Their Readers (Heinemann, 2003), a book on the teaching of literature based on the writing project model for presentations and workshops with teachers. The book is dedicated to James Gray, founder of the National Writing Project.

Lesley Tibbits, 1997 fellow, was recognized in Who's Who Among America's Teachers 2002 (Educational Communications). Tibbits teaches ELL and sixth grade language arts and reading at Anacapa Middle School in Ventura.

UC Irvine Writing Project
The following teacher-consultants earned National Board certification: Bill Burns, 1981 fellow; Cathie Hunsberger, 1987 fellow; Susan Starbuck, 1981 fellow; and Angie Balius, 2002 fellow.

Florida
Jaxwrite Writing Project
Mary Baron, director, had a poem, "Sea-Otter Woman: Instructions," published in the winter 2000 issue of The Hampton-Sydney Poetry Review.

Shawn Kight, 2002 fellow, was named Teacher of the Year at Fernandina Middle School in Fernandina.

Denise Rambach, co-director, was chosen as Teacher of the Year at First Coast High School in Jacksonville. Rambach is also a finalist for the county-wide Teacher of the Year award.

Denise Rambach and Mary Baron co-authored a chapter entitled "Getting Out of the Way" in Teaching Writing in High School and College: Conversations and Collaborations, edited by Thomas C. Thompson (National Council of Teachers of English, 2002).
Jean Ann Vukota and Julie Cassidy, 2002 fellows, were appointed leaders of the ninth grade language arts team at First Coast High School in Jacksonville.

Georgia
Coastal Georgia Writing Project
Dan Ailes, 2002 fellow, was named Teacher of the Year at Bartow Elementary School in Savannah, where he teaches third grade.

Judith Kolodny, 2002 fellow, presented her Fulbright experience in Japan at the 2003 International Conference on Teaching and Learning in Honolulu, Hawai`i. Her presentation revolved around the writing project's role in uniting teachers across the country and encouraged teachers in other countries to embrace writing project philosophies. Kolodny teaches at Isle of Hope Elementary School in Savannah.

Kennesaw Mountain Writing Project
The following teacher-consultants earned National Board certification: George Seaman, 1996 fellow; Mimi Dyer, 1996 fellow; and Debby Kramb, 2000 fellow. Kramb is also Teacher of the Year at Chalker Elementary School in Kennesaw.

Indiana
Indiana Teachers of Writing Writing Project
Margaret (Peg) DeBoer, 1997 fellow, presented a workshop entitled "Should I Stay or Should I Go? Using Joyce's `Eveline' to Center a Discussion on Decision Making" at the 2002 Indiana Teachers of Writing State Conference in Indianapolis. DeBoer teaches language arts at Memorial High School in Elkhart.

Janet Johnson, 2000 fellow, was nominated to the Conference on English Education Nominating Committee, part of the National Council of Teachers of English.

Zola Noble, 1997 fellow, received a Falls Fund Faculty Development Grant of $1,000 to cover expenses while she does her research on a writing project related manuscript for her MFA work at Spalding University. Noble teaches at Anderson University in Anderson.

Iowa
Iowa Writing Project
On October 12, in conjunction with the Iowa Council of Teachers of English (ICTE) Annual Conference, the Iowa Writing Project celebrated its 25th year of operation. Jim Davis, director, was recognized by the ICTE and the Governor of Iowa, Tom Vilsack. A proclamation was presented by Iowa first lady Christie Vilsack, 1979 fellow. Marilyn Kelly, Bill Lyons, and Dana Wall were presented with the Star Thrower Awards. Richard Lloyd-Jones, co-founder, was presented with the NCTE Distinguished Service Award.

Kentucky
Western Kentucky University Writing Project
Darryl Dockery, 2000 fellow, received the Kentucky High School Music Teacher of the Year Award at the Kentucky State Music Educators Convention in February.

Maryland
Maryland Writing Project
Arlene Barte-Lowe, 2000 fellow, was nominated as Teacher of the Year from Montgomery County. Barte-Lowe teaches reading and English at Takoma Park Middle School in Silver Spring.

Barbara Bass, director, published "An Urban Sanctuary" in The Baltimore Sun (September 8, 2002). The essay focuses on an experience she and her granddaughter had in Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia.

Diane Curry, 1999 fellow, published an essay entitled "Life as Haiku" in The Washington Post (January 12, 2003).

Pamela Morgan, 1988 fellow, was appointed to the Standing Committee on Teacher Preparation and Certification of the National Council of Teachers of English. Morgan is a visiting assistant professor of elementary education at Towson University.

Rus VanWestervelt, 1989 fellow, published September Eleven: Maryland Voices (Baltimore Writers' Alliance, 2002).

Minnesota
Minnesota Writing Project
Sharon Chur Lapensky, 2002 fellow, published one essay and two interviews in the Korean Quarterly 6 (2). Her articles are entitled "Hawaiian Odyssey: A Search into History of Family, Korea and Korean America," "Three Generations of Political Activism: An Interview with Hawaiian Leader Jackie Young: Stories from Our Elders," and "Hawaiian Korean Americans: Donald C.W. Kim and Lee Donohue–From Humble Beginnings to Leadership Roles: People to Look Up To."

Mississippi
Live Oak Writing Project
Jacqueline McClain, 2002 fellow, had her first poem, "Looking For Your Eyes," accepted for publication in Letters from the Soul by the International Library of Poetry. McClain is a special education teacher at D'Iberville High School in D'Iberville.

Kelly Schwartz, 2001 fellow, received National Board certification.

Jacqueline Wintruba, 2002 fellow, received National Board certification. Wintruba was also named Teacher of the Year by the Bay St. Louis Waveland School District. She teaches at North Bay Elementary in Bay St. Louis.

Montana
Montana Writing Project
Heather E. Bruce, director, published Literacies, Lies and Silences: Girls Writing Lives in the Classroom (Adolescent Cultures, School & Society Vol. 20, Peter Lang, December 2002).

David Lee Christensen, co-director, was nominated as Elementary Representative-at-Large to the National Council of Teachers of English for 2003-2005. Christensen is a fifth grade teacher at Lolo School in Lolo.

Nevada
Northern Nevada Writing Project
Launie Gardner, 1991 fellow; April Sawyer, 1991 fellow; Stephen Lafer, 1980 fellow; Richard Hoadley, 2002; and Terry DeBarger, 1998 fellow, had "Productively Contentious Discussions: Teachers Talk about the Teaching of Writing" published in Teaching Writing in High School and College: Conversations and Collaborations, edited by Thomas C. Thompson (NCTE, July 2002).

New Jersey
National Writing Project at Rutgers University
Angela Bodino, co-director, coedited Racism: A Global Reader with Kevin Reilly and Stephen Kaufman (New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2003).

North Carolina
Triad Writing Project
Mary Beth Ferrell, 2000 fellow, received National Board certification. Ferrell recently teamed up with Bill McIlwaine, 1990 fellow, and Ellen Gardiner, co-director, to develop the site's new website. Ferrell is also developing a level II course for fellows who seek National Board certification.

Ohio
National Writing Project at Kent State University
Colleen A. Ruggieri, 1998 fellow, had "Multigenre, Multiple Intelligences, and Transcendentalism" published in English Journal 92 (2).
Eva Sullivan, 1997 fellow, earned National Board certification in early adolescent English language arts.

Oregon
Oregon Writing Project at Lewis and Clark College
Kim Stafford, director, published The Muses Among Us: Eloquent Listening and Other Pleasures of the Writer's Craft (University of Georgia Press, March 2003).

Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project
Mary Buckelew, associate director, and Judy Jester and Diane Dougherty, co-directors, presented a workshop entitled "Visualizing Our World: Art and the Language Arts" at the 2002 National Council of Teachers of English Conference in Atlanta.

Philadelphia Writing Project
Geraldine Barbour, 2000 fellow, and Donna Sharer, 1994 fellow, earned National Board certification.

AnnMarie Marranzini, 2002 fellow, was recognized in Who's Who Among America's Teachers 2002 (Educational Communications).

Southcentral Pennsylvania Writing Project
Mike Andolina, 1997 fellow, received the Simply the Best Teacher Award from Johnstown's newspaper, The Tribune-Democrat, at a presentation held on the University of Pittsburgh campus.

Rhode Island
Rhode Island Writing Project
Audrey Friedman, 1992 fellow, had her poem "East 96th Street" published in the July 2002 issue of The Newport Review 4x4. Also, Friedman was the featured poet in Concrete Wolf (Fall 2001) with the "Better Than Brooklyn, Fortune-Telling," "It's Time to Get Yourself Born," and "Was Your Kingdom Too Large?"

South Carolina
Lowcountry Writing Project
Laura Graham, 2000 fellow, and Robertretta Brown, 2002 fellow, earned National Board certification.

West Virginia
Marshall University Writing Project
Karen McComas, co-director, had "Professional Renewal in MOO Communities: The Pokey Ping Pong Affair and Other Tales of Collaboration" published in Electronic Collaboration in the Humanities: Issues and Options, edited by James A. Inman, Cheryl Reed, and Peter Sands (Lawrence Erlbaum, 2003).

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