NCTE LGBTQ+ Advocacy & Leadership Award
2020 Recipient:Roxanne Henkin,
The University of Texas at San Antonio
Dr. Roxanne Henkin is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Interdisciplinary Learning & Teaching at The University of Texas at San Antonio and earned her doctorate from Northern Illinois University. Dr. Henkin’s research interests include confronting bullying through literacy, inclusive classrooms, supporting LGBTQ+ students, critical literacy for social justice, and writing process and instruction. She has published many articles and two books, Who’s Invited to Share: Using Literacy to Teach for Equity and Social Justice and Confronting Bullying.
The award committee noted that Roxanne was “one of the first individuals to take risks toward the development of the LGBTQ+ professional community, taking action when necessary. She has worked for decades to advance members of the “LGBTQ+ community, especially during a time when most people who identified as LGBTQ+ felt unsafe.” The committee also wrote that her “work with the LGBTQ+ community created opportunities for scholars and academics to follow.”
Dr. Henkin is Past-President of Literacies and Languages for All. She also co-chaired the committees that are now the NCTE Gender and Sexualities Equality Alliance and the NCTE LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee. Dr. Henkin was also a co-editor of the NCTE journal Voices from the Middle (2006-2011) and has served on both the NCTE Elementary & Middle Section Steering Committees. She has received many awards including the 2020 LLA Lifetime Membership Award, the 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award from Niles North High School in Skokie, Illinois, the 2015 Outstanding Literacy Alumni Award from Northern Illinois University, and NCTE’s 2009 Halle Award.
Learn more about Dr. Henkin.
Award Details
Members of the LGBTQ+ community have always been active in literacy teaching and learning; they also have been active members of NCTE. This award demonstrates NCTE’s vision to strengthen an increasingly inclusive organization that provides more access to diverse voices. This award also helps promote cross-community connections and values and supports the agency of diverse leaders in the field.
Purpose:
To recognize a member of the LGBTQ+ community who has made a significant contribution to NCTE and to the development of our professional community.
Frequency and Number of Awards:
This award will be bestowed only when the Award Selection Committee decides a nomination warrants presentation of the award. This award may not be given each year. This award may be given posthumously. Only one recipient will be selected each year.
Eligibility:
Any member of the LGBTQ+ community can nominate themselves or be nominated for this award. By LGBTQ+ we mean lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning; the plus indicates the inclusiveness of others who don’t identify as L, G, B, T, or Q, such as two spirit, pansexual, or others. Nominations will be sent to the Award Selection Committee, with the selected candidate forwarded to the Executive Committee. (Given the problematic history of labeling members of the LGBTQ+ community, NCTE wishes to clarify that specific titles are not required for this award.) The Executive Committee will approve the committee’s selection. All applicants, submitters, and nominees must be NCTE members at the time of submission. We remind nominators, nominees, and selection committee members that members of NCTE Conferences—CCCC, CEL, ELATE, LLA, and TYCA—are members, by definition, of NCTE.
Current NCTE Executive Committee members are not eligible for this award. Recipients for this award are not eligible to receive any other Executive Committee approved awards in the same year, nor in the following year.
Application/Submission/Nomination Requirements:
Required materials for submission are a cover letter or letter of nomination and a resume/CV.
Award Criteria:
The bold statements are the award criteria. The remaining statements are intended to describe some of the possibilities suggested in the criteria and are not intended to be rated individually. Please remember that individuals have different levels of access to various opportunities (for example, rural vs. urban instructors). In other words, what is the level of the nominee’s contribution based on the level of opportunity, resources, and support?
Significant contribution to NCTE
- Service to NCTE (national, regional, local, and campus levels as well as conferences, affiliates, assemblies, caucuses, etc.)
- Committees
- Elected roles
- Service “work” (serve at registration table, read proposals, etc.)
- Write for/present at NCTE-affiliated conferences/publication venues
- Publish
- Present
- Edit or review
Development of our professional community
Professional communities focused on literacy learning can be varied (e.g., global, national, regional, and local/campus).
- Teaching
- Innovate classroom curriculum
- Develop district/state/national curriculum
- Scholarship
- Attend conferences
- Produce and share research or other scholarly activities
- Service
- Participate in and/or lead scholarly organizations
- Participate in and/or lead social justice–oriented organizations
- Professional development
- Design and/or deliver profession learning engagements for community members
Advancing members of the LGBTQ+ community
- Activities/work/processes that promote and support the advancement of the LGBTQ+community in the profession, in literacy-related activities, and in public engagement
- Creating a culture of change in their school, community, and/or professional organization
Strong candidates tend to show strength in all three areas.
Selection Committee:
The NCTE President appoints one Executive Committee member to serve as Chair and four NCTE members-at-large from relevant NCTE groups.
Nature of the Award:
- A plaque is given to the recipient during an awards ceremony at the NCTE Annual Convention.
- The recipient will also receive:
- A complimentary NCTE Annual Convention registration
- Domestic round-trip coach airfare to the NCTE Annual Convention
- One night lodging (Friday) with meals
Deadline May 1
The nomination period will open in the spring of 2021. Please contact NCTEawards@ncte.org with any questions.
Previous Recipients
2019 Molly Blackburn, Ohio State University