NJCTE Announces the Winners of Our NJCTE 2020 Teacher Awards!

The recipient of the 2020 NJCTE Educator of the Year award is Dr. Darlene Russell, who is a Fulbright Scholar and Full Professor at William Paterson University. She was nominated for this award by Dr. Kabba E. Colley, professor in the Department of Secondary and Middle School Education, who believed Dr. Russell was a worthy candidate due to her “enterprising work in the profession, indelible work as a servant leader, distinguished record of research and scholarship, teaching performance, and vision for the future of education.”  In addition, Tonya Perry, Executive Director of Secondary English Education at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, who has worked extensively with Dr. Russell, says, “Her ability to create space for collaborative, critical dialogue and work is unparalleled, especially for marginalized peoples.” Because of the cancellation of the NJCTE Spring 2020 Conference, we hope Dr. Russell will receive her award at the NJCTE Fall Conference on October 24, 2020, at Lawrenceville Township High School.

Ms. Angela Lengner, an undergraduate at The College of New Jersey, is the recipient of the 2020 Marcia Holtzman Preservice Teacher Scholarship Award. Dr. Emily Meixner, Coordinator of the English Secondary Education program at TCNJ, nominated Angela, describing her as “an intuitive, talented, hard-working novice teacher.” What makes Angela a particularly worthy candidate is her desire to pursue professional learning as an undergraduate. At the 2018 conference, Angela participated in a session on independent reading with educators from the School District of the Chathams. She regularly attends professional workshops to inform her preservice instruction. Because of the cancellation of the NJCTE Spring 2020 Conference, we hope Ms. Lengner will receive her award at the NJCTE Fall Conference on October 24, 2020, at Lawrenceville Township High School.

We encourage English educators in New Jersey to nominate their colleagues for the Educator of the Year, the M. Jerry Weiss Early Career Teacher Award, and the Marcia Holtzman Pre-Service Teacher Award. (Click on the award name to see the Google nomination form and information.) Help us honor the excellent work of our colleagues in the field! Nominations are typically due December 31 each year.

NJCTE Cocktails in Crisis!

Calling all ELA educators, K-16! Let’s come together virtually, with your favorite cocktail or mocktail.

Join us on April 2 and/or April 22 from 4-5pm on Zoom for a teacher social hour. We’ll share ideas, frustrations, and triumphs and be there for each other.

Time: Apr 2, 2020 04:00 PM Eastern Time

Join Zoom Meeting
https://NJCU.zoom.us/j/545112779

Meeting ID: 545 112 779

Dial by your location
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US
Meeting ID: 545 112 779

Time: Apr 22, 2020 04:00 PM Eastern Time

Join Zoom Meeting
https://NJCU.zoom.us/j/545112779

Meeting ID: 545 112 779

Dial by your location
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US
Meeting ID: 545 112 779

NJCTE Spring Conference Is Cancelled

After thoughtful consideration and with an abundance of caution regarding the health of our membership and the greater community, the NJCTE Conference Chairs and Executive Board have made the decision to cancel the NJCTE Spring Conference at Pascack Valley High School on March 28, 2020. 

Despite the cancellation, we still want to offer professional learning opportunities to our members so that we can keep the positive momentum of the Spring Conference moving forward and give our wonderful presenters the opportunity to share their expertise via a recorded webinar this Spring and/or a session at the NJCTE Fall Conference.

If you have already registered for the NJCTE Spring Conference, here is some critical information.

Registration includes annual membership fees of $25 ($15 for student memberships).  In the Cancellation Form, you will find options for a partial refund of your conference registration fee (but not your 2020-2021 NJCTE membership) or for a full refund (both conference registration and membership). We are hopeful that you still wish to maintain your NJCTE membership this year and benefit from all that our organization offers to members throughout the year.

Please complete this Cancellation Form so that we may process your refund(s) AND gain valuable insight about what you’d like to see and do with NJCTE going forward!

Also, please see here our Call for Proposals–Fall Conference and submit your proposal here for the NJCTE Fall Conference Call for Proposals–Google Form.

Finally, please keep an eye on your inbox in the next few weeks for digital access to our 2020 issue of New Jersey English Journal!

Please also send good thoughts to our 2020 Spring Conference Co-chairs, Kate Baker and Valerie Mattessich, who put so much wonderful work into planning a fantastic conference for NJCTE. We are very sad that their efforts have been waylaid by the virus and so grateful for their good work.