At the 2015 Annual Convention, Katie Wright was one of two individuals, nominated by an affiliate and honored for her work to promote and defend intellectual freedom. Marge Ford received the other honorable mention.
The Nebraska English Language Arts Council nominated Katie Wright for being an outstanding educator, a champion of her students’ academic freedom (something NCTE supports in “The Beliefs about Students’ Right to Write“), and a “go to” educator in Nebraska on the topic of academic freedom and secondary level student projects.
Clark Kolterman who submitted the application, notes,
“This longtime English and Journalism educator has championed the academic freedoms of her Journalism and Language Arts students–working to demonstrate a better understanding of sharing a printed message and helping the students realize the power of the written word.”
“Recognized both locally and at the state level, Katie Wright is a wonderful writing and journalism instructor–promoting academic freedom in her classes, as well as in her school, school district and community. This outstanding educator of academic freedom has, time and again, championed the rights of her students and their written works–standing firm on their specific academic freedoms. She often calls upon the research of NCTE and SLATE to assist her with her discussions as to the handling of various situations in question. She is one of the “go to” individuals” in Nebraska regarding academic freedom in working with the various secondary level student projects…and willing to work with a variety of issues and concerns at the same time.”