Students who grow up speaking Spanish in their home or community sometimes lose confidence in their language when they get to school.  

“For a lot of students there’s a linguistic trauma they have experienced,” said Kelley Howarth, a Senior Instructor II who teaches in the Spanish Heritage Language Program. “Often they’re told not to speak Spanish in school, or they are told they are not speaking the right Spanish.” 

As one of the leaders of teaching Spanish to heritage language students at the UO, Howarth said she works to help students get back in touch with the language they learned growing up.  

“Our program focuses on valuing the Spanish the student brings to the classroom even if it’s not a standardized form and doing a lot of work to empower students to reconnect with their language,” she said.  

In recognition of her work teaching and designing courses for Spanish heritage language students, Howarth received a Herman Award for Specialized Pedagogy in 2024. 

“Students laud her ability to create a welcoming, inclusive environment, and to provide course materials that are highly relevant to their experience,” David Wacks, former head of the Department of Romance Languages and professor of Spanish, said in his nomination letter.  

Students also cite her strength in engaging in research-based practices such as providing opportunities for active learning in the classroom, the rigorous coursework, and the high level of instructor support. 

Howarth is involved in pedagogical workshops on and off campus, has received grants to design innovative new courses serving Spanish heritage learners, and received the Tykeson Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2017. 

She came to the UO in 2000 as a master’s student in Romance Languages, studying literature in French and Spanish, and was hired in 2002 as a Spanish instructor. Around 2011, her department decided to start offering Spanish heritage language classes.  

“Most of our SHL faculty trained as second-language teachers, not heritage language teachers,” she said. “The pedagogy needed to be an effective teacher to students who grew up learning language with their families is very different.” 

She got involved in developing the new SHL program and served as its coordinator for three years. She tries to create a collaborative environment in her classrooms, encouraging students to learn from each other.  

“I love teaching, I love learning, and I find collaborative learning is what I enjoy most,” she said.  “A big key to inclusive teaching is designing classes, activities and opportunities for all students to participate using their Spanish language skills, cultural knowledge, historical knowledge, and life experiences,” she said.  

Howarth said she was “surprised and overwhelmed” to receive a Herman award.  

“It felt really amazing to be recognized for the hard work and dedication that I and all my colleagues have put in the last few years,” she said. “I felt a lot of gratitude for the recognition of the success of our SHL classes and programs.” “I’ve been teaching a long time, so it felt great to get an award in the classroom, presented in front of the students. It’s definitely a highlight of my career at the UO.”  

— Tim Christie, Office of the Provost Communications