A Walters State Community College Press Release
A Walters State Community College professor has received top honors from the Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT) for 2024.
Dr. Erika Stevens, professor of Spanish, was named the 2024 Post-Secondary Educator of Excellence. The award recognizes instructors at the college level who have demonstrated excellence in language teaching and have served as advocates for foreign language instruction at the local, state and national levels. Stevens was chosen based on her teaching portfolio and her letters of reference.
“I am humbled and honored to receive this award, with its emphasis on teaching,” said Stevens. “Teaching is my passion. My goal is to expand the knowledge, skills and talents of students as they pursue their studies in Spanish.”
Stevens joined Walters State in 2010 but her passion for languages goes back to elementary school. She began learning Spanish in kindergarten.
“I love the language, the people and the culture,” she said. “As one of the most spoken languages in the world, I feel it is important to share this language with our students. I love teaching and watching the students develop language skills and cultural awareness. Seeing their confidence in speaking another language grow is possibly the best part of my job.”
Stevens developed Walters State’s academic certificate in Spanish, the first one offered by a Tennessee Community College. She has worked to add needed classes for those working in areas such as education, public safety and healthcare.
“The certificate provides a way for students working on degrees in other areas to pursue Spanish in addition to their major. It also opens the door for those who want to learn the language to better serve our community,” Stevens said.
Early this year, Stevens was a finalist in the Tennessee Board of Regents’ Statewide Outstanding Achievement Award Faculty Member of the Year category. She has also been named Community College Teacher of the Year from the American Association of teachers of Spanish and Portuguese. She also leads the Spain program for the Tennessee Consortium of International Studies, teaching two Spanish classes there over the summer.
