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The AOTP – American Organization of Teachers of Portuguese is a professional association for Portuguese instructors in the United States. It is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization created by Florida teachers and registered with the Florida State Department. The organization was founded in 2007 in Miami, Florida. The organization has now more than 200 members in the United States and 16 other countries.

Mission statement
According to the mission statement in the by-laws, AOTP: … advocates the study of the Portuguese language and the cultures of the Portuguese-speaking countries in the United States […] promotes the Portuguese language as a tool for communication in the United States and globally […] represents Portuguese language teachers in k-12 school, higher education institutions and community schools […] supports the establishment and sustainability of quality Portuguese programs, the education and professional development of teachers of Portuguese, and promotes research relating to all aspects of teaching and learning the Portuguese language and about Portuguese-speaking cultures.

History and organization
The Association was founded in 1917 largely through the efforts of Lawrence A. Wilkins, its first President, who worked with a number of individuals teaching in colleges, universities, and high schools along the Eastern Seaboard. Aurelio M. Espinosa, later the first editor of Hispania, helped Wilkins to unite the previously existing east and west coast Spanish teachers’ initiatives to form the national association. The AATSP was the first association in the United States devoted to the study of a specific modern foreign language, pre-dating the AATI (1923), the AATF (1927), and the AATG (1927).

Membership has always been open to teachers of Portuguese and all others interested in the language.

Board of Directors
The governing body of AATSP is an Executive Council (EC) which consists of an executive director, a president, a president-elect, and the past president. There is an elected representative from the college or university and high school levels. In addition, there is a rotating body of elected members every three years of three members, one from a community college, one from Foreign Language in the Elementary Schools (FLES), and one from Portuguese.

The Executive Council meets once a year face-to-face at the annual conference, through numerous conference calls, and regularly through online meetings via email. There is a business meeting at the annual conference through which all members can express their concerns to the EC. There are also standing committees for Portuguese, FLES, award selection, scholarship selection, and nominations.

Annual Conference EMEP - Encontro Mundial sobre o Ensino de Português
An annual conference has been held each year since 1917 with the exception of two years during World War II when government restrictions prohibited such gatherings. Each annual conference consists of a wide range of sessions, numerous workshops for members, and many social activities designed to augment the camaraderie of members. Recent meetings have been held in Albuquerque, San José, Costa Rica, San Diego, Salamanca, Spain, New York City, Chicago, and Rio de Janeiro.

Annual Symposium on Portuguese as Heritage Language
The 92nd annual conference will be held on July 10–13, 2010 in Guadalajara, Mexico. It features professional development, networking, exhibits, and immersion experiences in beautiful Guadalajara. There will be more than 200 sessions and workshops, the president’s reception, an awards banquet, and optional cultural and historical excursions. For more information or to register, you can visit the AATSP conference page.

Webminar Series
With the sponsorship of FLAD

Travel Grants
For participating in the EMEP

Digital Library
With eBooks on the teaching of Portuguese

Mapping of Portuguese Programs
Community Schools Secondary Schools University Programs Summer Programs Exchange Programs Masters and Ph.D. programs

Advocacy
How to defend a program

Publications
Portuguese Language Journal is the official journal of the AATSP. From its inception, it was envisioned as a scholarly publication and also as a source of practical advice for classroom teachers. It features articles on literature, language, theoretical and applied linguistics, cultural studies, and book and media reviews. It has steadily grown in prestige and has had 12 editors through the years; the present editor is Dr. Sheri Spaine Long of University of Alabama at Birmingham. Publications are in March, June, September, and December. Hispania is a member of the Council of Editors of Learned Journals.

Boletim AOTP is the AATSP’s online newsletter that contains timely articles of interest to members. The Portuguese Newsletter features items of interest about the Luso-Brazilian world. They are both published in the spring and fall.

Annual AOTP Awards
The AATSP accepts nominations from its members for individuals who have done outstanding work in the promotion of foreign language education in Spanish and Portuguese. Awards include Outstanding Teacher of the Year, Outstanding Service, Chapter Incentive, Robert G. Mead, Jr. Distinguished Leadership, Maria Isabel Abreu, and ISE Language Matters. More information is available on the official AATSP website.

Past Winers
2017 Winners 2016 Winners 2015 Winners 2014 Winners 2013 Winners 2012 Winners 2011 Winners 2010 Winners 2009 Winners

Partnerships

 * National Council for Less Commonly Taught Languages (NCOLCTL)
 * Joint National Committee for Languages (JNCL)- National Council for Languages and International Studies (NCLIS)
 * Sociedade Internacional de Português como Língua Estrangeira (SIPLE)
 * Focus Brasil