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Â¥·ïÌìÌà Outstanding Elementary Educator in the English Language Arts Award

2026 Recipient

Tracey T. Flores, PhD, is an associate professor of language and literacy studies in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at The University of Texas at Austin. She holds a BA in multilingual/multicultural elementary education and journalism, an MAE in language and literacy studies, and a PhD in English education, all from Arizona State University. A former English language development and English language arts teacher, she spent eight years working alongside culturally and linguistically diverse students, families, and communities in K–8 schools throughout Phoenix and Glendale, Arizona. Her community engaged teaching, research, and service are rooted in her experiences as a second-generation Chicana, educator, teacher educator, and mother to her daughter, Milagros. Drawing on these experiences, her workÌýseeksÌýto honor, sustain, and amplify the voices, stories, languages, literacies, and lived experiences of children, youth, families, and communities.Ìý

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Dr. Flores’s scholarship centers the voices, stories, and lived experiences of Latina/o/x youth and families. In her research, she explores the ways that writing, storytelling, art, and community literacies can foster positive identity development, build community, challenge deficit narratives, and create new futures. Her work highlights writing as a tool for self-expression, healing, resistance, and transformation. As a teacher educator, she works alongside future teachers, literacy educators, families, and doctoral students to cultivate culturally sustaining and community-centered approaches to teaching writers and designing learning communities rooted in multilingualism, joy, and healing. Her work has been published in journals includingÌýResearch in the Teaching of English,ÌýUrban Education,ÌýBilingual Research Journal,ÌýLanguage Arts,ÌýJournal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy,ÌýandÌýThe Reading Teacher. She is also the coauthor ofÌýCultivating Young Multilingual Writers: Nurturing Voices and StoriesÌýinÌýandÌýbeyondÌýthe Classroom WallsÌý(2023).

Dr. Flores is the founder of SomosÌýEscritoras/We Are Writers, a community-based creative writing, art, and storytelling space for Latina girls (grades 6–8). Rooted in the belief that our stories matter, Somos Escritoras invites Latina girls to write, create, share, and perform stories from their lived experiences while building community, strengthening their voices as writers and storytellers, and authoring new futures. She is also the creator of Youth Voices Rising, a GEAR UP-supported initiative that uses creative and academic writing to support college readiness, cultivate academic identities, and help youth envision themselves not only as future college students but also as scholars, artists, authors, and leaders. She currently serves on the Â¥·ïÌìÌà Orbis Pictus Award Committee, is Co-Chair of the Â¥·ïÌìÌà Latinx Caucus, serves on the Educator Advisory Council for the LatinxÌýKidLitÌýBook Festival, and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Assembly on Literature for AdolescentsÌý(ALAN)Ìýof Â¥·ïÌìÌÃ. She previously served as Chair of the Â¥·ïÌìÌà Assembly for Research (Â¥·ïÌìÌÃAR) and Chair of the Â¥·ïÌìÌà Elementary Section Steering Committee. Dr. Flores was a member of the 2016–2018 Cultivating New Voices Among Scholars of Color (CNV) cohort. Her work as both a classroom teacher and scholar has been recognized through numerous honors, including Teacher of the Year atÌýGlendale Landmark School, the Â¥·ïÌìÌà Promising Researcher Award, the NCRLL Early Career Distinguished Scholar Award, the TCTELA Mercedes Bonner Leadership Award, and the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center Award of Excellence in Arts Education.

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 Â¥·ïÌìÌÃ.

Eligibility:

Recipients of this award should be elementary educators (e.g., preK–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:Ìý

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 Â¥·ïÌìÌÃ:

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

Development of our professional community:Ìý

• 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 Â¥·ïÌìÌÃ:

• The recipient’s teaching, service and/or scholarship is compatible with the mission and vision of Â¥·ïÌìÌÃ.
  • Deepen every student’s consciousness and widen possibilities for all students’ access, power, agency, affiliation, and impact, across a lifetime.

Selection Committee:

The Elementary Section Steering Committee will elicit nominations for this award from Â¥·ïÌìÌà 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.