Juliana Urtubey was born in Bogota, Colombia, and moved to the United States with her family when she was five. As a first-generation Hispanic and a bilingual special-education teacher in Las Vegas, Urtubey takes immense pride in being a role model for her students. She has a deep commitment to ensuring that students of color as well as those with disabilities have increased access to opportunities.

Her commitment to providing an equitable education for all students is one of the reasons Urtubey was recently named the 2021 National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Chief State School Officers. She was chosen for the honor from among 57 state teachers of the year. According to the CCSO, Urtubey is the first Nevada teacher to win the award and the first Latinx recipient since 2005.

Urtubey was announced as Teacher of the Year May 6 on television’s CBS This Morning and was surprised with a visit and flowers from First Lady Jill Biden, a college professor, who called Juliana “the epitome of a great teacher, a great educator.”

An educator for 11 years, Urtubey is a co-teacher in pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade special-education settings at Kermit R. Booker Sr. Innovative Elementary School in the Clark County School District. She is also an instructional strategist, developing supports to meet students’ differing academic, social-emotional and behavioral needs.

Previously, she taught special education at Crestwood Elementary School, where her desire to build a culture where all felt welcomed and valued led her to create a garden program. Urtubey was able to secure more than $800,000 in grants to transform 13,000 square-feet of unused grass areas into four gardens, two outdoor classrooms, 15 commissioned murals and two Garden Summer Camps. She became known as “Ms. Earth,” and students in the garden program were called Garden Gnomies. They met every Friday for an hour before school to help maintain the garden. In addition, each month the garden program hosted a Farmer’s Market at the school to share its fresh and healthy produce with the local community.

As leader of the Garden Team, Urtubey witnessed how the program increased students’ pride and stewardship for the school, and also provided an opportunity for students to learn with a hands-on approach. 

As a special-education teacher, she has assumed a leadership role to improve outcomes for students with disabilities. Urtubey designed a co-taught resource classroom to provide students with additional academic support, as well as social and emotional (SEL) support. Once implemented, the endeavor helped many students achieve 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 years of growth within one year. It also enabled several students with intensive behavioral needs who had been assigned to self-contained classrooms to be re-assigned to inclusive classrooms.

The 2020-2021 Nevada State Teacher of the Year said she strongly believes schools should be designed for equity by welcoming the strengths and assets of all students, families, and community members. Her beliefs are rooted in her experiences as an immigrant student from Colombia. Her father was born in the United States, so she and her sisters had the privilege of dual citizenship. But when the family arrived in Chicago, her parents struggled to find a school that they felt was safe and would respect their language and cultural differences. Her parents eventually enrolled them in a bilingual magnet school, and that experience has propelled the educator to become the kind of teacher that always focuses on families and the strengths of their cultural identities.

Although she never had teachers of color in the public schools she attended, Urtubey knows the importance of teachers of color like herself, who embrace diverse communities and believe they have the power to change and transform lives.

A National Board-Certified Teacher, Urtubey is a member of the Nevada Department of Education Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Cabinet, where she advocates for students with special needs, emerging bilinguals, and families that face access barriers. She also is a founding board member for the National Board Network of Accomplished Minoritized Educators and was the 2019 Hispanic Education Association’s Nevada Teacher of the Year.

Established in 1952, the National Teacher of the Year Program identifies exceptional teachers across the nation, celebrates their effective work in and out of the classroom, amplifies their voices, and empowers them to participate in policy discussions at the state and national levels.

As the nation’s 2021 Teacher of Year, Urtubey will spend the year traveling the country as a spokesperson and advocate for the teaching profession and for students. During her interview on CBS This Morning, she said her focus would be “advocating for students to have a joyous and just education, where they experience joy in every part of their school.”

Headshot photo: Melissa Esparza
Inside photo: Clark County School District