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About UsThe Arkansas Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts (ACTELA) is a nonprofit organization whose aim is the improvement of the teaching and learning of English and language arts in the state of Arkansas. We provide a variety of services to teachers in our state, including participating in local events and conferences, offering mini-grants for teacher-led projects, recognizing outstanding language arts teachers throughout the state, and producing the yearly Arkansas Anthology.
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Who We Are |
ACTELA is made up of ELA teachers from across the state. The organization is led by the members of the executive board.
Executive Board President: Jessica Herring Watson (University of Central Arkansas) Vice President: Aaron Hall (Oak Grove Middle School) Secretary: Donna Wake (University of Central Arkansas) Treasurer: Janine Chitty (University of Arkansas, Fort Smith) Immediate Past President: Sunny Styles-Foster (University of Central Arkansas) Past Presidents: Dixie Keyes (Arkansas State University), Donna Wake (University of Central Arkansas), Jeff Wittingham (University of Central Arkansas), Cindy Green (Virtual Arkansas) Arkansas Department of Education Liaison: Sherri Thorne (ELA Specialist, Arkansas Department of Education) Northeast Regional Representatives: Rob Lamm (Arkansas State University), Grover Welch (Gosnell Junior High School / NCTE Policy Analyst), Britney Andrews (Marion Junior High), Aaron Hall (Riverview High School) Northwest Regional Representatives: Tyler McBride (Lincoln Middle School), Janine Chitty (University of Arkansas, Fort Smith) Southeast Regional Representatives: Brycial Williams (Forrest City Central Elementary), Kay Walter (University of Arkansas at Monticello) Southwest Regional Representatives: Cindy Green (Virtual Arkansas) Central Regional Representatives: Corey Oliver (Bob Courtway Middle School), Conrad Shumaker (University of Central Arkansas), Nykela Jackson (University of Central Arkansas), At-Large Representatives: Liza Vannem (Marion Junior High) NCTE Liaison Officer: Dawn Bessee (Crowley's Ridge Educational Cooperative) |
Board Appointments |
SLATE Representative (Advocacy and Intellectual Freedom): Grover Welch
Arkansas English Journal Editor: Janine Chitty Membership Committee: Jeff Whittingham, Cindy Green, Sunny Styles-Foster Publications Committee: Kay Walter, Janine Chitty,Sunny Styles-Foster, Jessica Herring Watson, Cindy Green, Dawn Bessee Social Media, Website, and Publicity: Donna Wake, Cindy Green, Tyler McBride, Nykela Jackson Arkansas Anthology: Aaron Hall Finance Committee: Sunny Styles-Foster, Janine Chitty, Kay Walter, Donna Wake Teacher Initiatives Committee: Corey Oliver, Grover Welch, Tyler McBride, Brycial Williams |
NCTE |
ACTELA is an affiliate of NCTE - the National Council for Teachers of English. NCTE"s mission statement is "The Council promotes the development of literacy, the use of language to construct personal and public worlds and to achieve full participation in society, through the learning and teaching of English and the related arts and sciences of language." For more information about NCTE, including how to join, visit NCTE's website at ncte.org.
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History of ACTELA |
For decades, ACTELA has been supporting English and Language Arts teachers in the state of Arkansas. ACTELA is an award-winning NCTE affiliate. Past awards include: NCTE Affiliate of Excellence (2014 & 2016), NCTE Teacher of the Dream Grant Award (2015 & 2016), NCTE Affiliate Newsletter of Excellence Award (2017), NCTE Affiliate Website of Excellence Award (2017), and Kent D. Williamson Membership Award (2017).
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