Spanish professor named Indiana teacher of the year by AATSP | News | Notre Dame News | University of Notre Dame Skip To Content Skip To Navigation Skip To Search University of Notre Dame Notre Dame News Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Home Contact Search Menu Home › News › Spanish professor named Indiana teacher of the year by AATSP Spanish professor named Indiana teacher of the year by AATSP Published: May 14, 2018 Author: Amanda Skofstad Tatiana Botero Tatiana Botero, associate teaching professor of Spanish at the University of Notre Dame, has been named 2018 Indiana teacher of the year for university-level instruction by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP). The award will be conferred at a ceremony on Nov. 2. Israel Fernando Herrera, vice president of AATSP Indiana, said: “Botero’s dedication and passion for teaching Spanish and art, her motivation to engage students with community service, her cultural field trips with students to Chicago and her involvement with students’ success and advancement were evident in her dossier.” Botero teaches a community-based learning course called “Immigration and the Construction of Memory” in which undergraduate students work with South Bend-based Latino immigrant families to document and preserve their histories, enhancing the students’ language skills and civic engagement — and fostering kinship with this growing population. When Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical “In the Heights” came to the South Bend Civic Theatre, Botero raised funds to secure tickets so her students and the South Bend Latino families with whom they were working could attend together. Additionally, she curated four art exhibits at the theater related to the themes of the musical and Latino identity in the United States, including photographs by sophomore Natalie Behling, who worked with Botero to document the performance from auditions to opening night. The students and their Latino families also participated in a Q&A with the cast members after the performance. “It is my belief that to teach a foreign language effectively, one must also teach the culture of the people that speak that language,” Botero said. “Beyond that, I want my students to be aware of and appreciate the cultural differences not only between Spanish-speaking countries and much of the U.S., but also between various Spanish-speaking countries themselves.   “I am very honored and humbled by this recognition of my work, which I share with my students and colleagues who inspire me to do more and dream big. Si se puede!”  In collaboration with the Institute for Latino Studies, Botero is planning a study trip during the 2018-19 academic year to the National Immigrant Justice Center in Chicago to give students firsthand exposure to the center’s complex, important work and its impact on the American Latino community. Contact: Amanda Skofstad, assistant director of media relations, 574-631-4313, skofstad@nd.edu   Posted In: Faculty and Staff Home Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Related October 04, 2022 NIH awards $4 million grant to psychologists researching suicide prevention September 09, 2022 Karrie Koesel to testify before Congressional-Executive Commission on China August 18, 2022 Two faculty win NEH grants to research history of red hair, philosophy of revelation August 16, 2022 NSF names Center for Computer-Assisted Synthesis a Phase II Center for Chemical Innovation August 15, 2022 Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., on Russian atrocities against clergy in Ukraine For the Media Contact Office of Public Affairs and Communications Notre Dame News 500 Grace Hall Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Pinterest © 2022 University of Notre Dame Search Mobile App News Events Visit Accessibility Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn