Thomas Jefferson Teaching Award: Katherine Barko-Alva, William & Mary assistant professor and director of English as a second language/bilingual education at the School of Education, will be recognized with the 2021 Thomas Jefferson Teaching Award during a virtual Charter Day celebration Feb. 11. Photo by Stephen Salpukas Photo - of - by Jennifer L. Williams | February 11, 2021 Katherine Barko-Alva still remembers being that student in the classroom, learning English at the same time as the other material being covered. That’s the main reason she is so thorough in preparing teachers at William & Mary to work with English-language learners, emergent bilingual and multilingual learners, she said. And why she continues to follow her passion to serve and learn from multilingual K-12 students and their families in our local communities.