CHARLES (CHARLIE) JORDAN, CLASS of 1984

2010 Recipient, Charlie Jordan

Charlie Jordan, long-time teacher of Spanish at Columbia Heights High School in MN, received the 2010 Ricardo A. Narváez Award as the outstanding teacher of Spanish or Portuguese in Minnesota.  The award was given to him at the Mexican Consulate in St. Paul on November 12, 2010, as part of the annual meeting of the state association of teachers of Spanish and Portuguese.  Charlie has distinguished himself as a teacher who encourages learning both within and outside the classroom.  He has held several positions in state organizations for the teaching of foreign languages, the most recent being his service for six years as the Treasurer of the MN chapter of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese.

2011 Recipient, Maggie Broner

St. Olaf Associate Professor of Spanish Maggie Broner recently received the 2011 Ricardo A. Narváez Award, an honor the AATSP bestows annually upon an outstanding Spanish teacher in Minnesota. A native of Argentina, she grew up in both Venezuela and Canada, influencing her specialization in linguistics and second language acquisition and pedagogy. She served as the director of linguistic studies at St. Olaf from 2005 to 2011. Outside of St. Olaf, Broner has served as president of the Minnesota AATSP and published several articles on language acquisition and teaching. "She has demonstrated professional excellence over a period of many years. She has distinguished herself as a teacher, as a researcher, and for her service within professional organizations," says St. Olaf Professor of Spanish León Narváez, who earned the award himself in 1987. St. Olaf Professor of Spanish Gwendolyn Barnes-Karol also received the award in 1997.