2020 FREEDOM THROUGH LITERACY AWARD
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Shantel Patt, Mesquite, TX – 2026
Ms. Shantel Patt, author and teacher with 14 years of classroom experience from Mesquite, Texas is awarded $1,000 for supporting teacher learning and development. Ms. Patt’s book, Class Is In Session: Teaching Through the Chaos encourages preservice teachers and educators to read by offering experience-based stories from the classroom. Untold thousands of children across school districts in Texas will benefit from her book. Patt wrote, “I wanted to send a huge thank you to the team at Judith’s Reading Room for selecting me for the award! It means a lot to be supported by an organization that cares so deeply about literacy and the freedom to read. This is such an amazing boost for both my work in the classroom and my own creative projects.”
Barbara Miller, Fleetwood, PA – 2026
Ms. Barbara Miller, kindergarten teacher at Willow Creek Elementary School in the Fleetwood Area School District of Pennsylvania is awarded $500 for her passion to create meaningful opportunities for students to engage with letters, sounds and text every day. The judges were struck by the wonderful things the kindergarten parents had to say about her impact on the lives of their children. “My goal is to empower every child with the foundational skills, confidence and love of learning that will support their academic journey for years to come,” said Miller.
The Judith’s Award 2026 Recipients
March 30, 2026 — Judith’s Reading Room, a 501 (c) 3 literacy organization founded in 2010 announced the first recipients of the 2026 “The Judith’s Award” that today specifically honors teachers, authors and librarians in the United States. “The Judith’s Award” — the organization’s signature award was established in 2019 when the first recipient, Vicky Xanthopoulous, an elementary school teacher from Potamia, North Greece won.
The Judith’s Award News Release
January 26, 2026 — Judith’s Reading Room, a 501 (c) 3 literacy nonprofit organization founded in 2010 in the memory of Judith F. Krug, a distinguished librarian and first-cousin to the organization’s founders, announced that “The Judith’s Award” — established in 2019 — has been re-focused to recognize literacy champions in America.
Navajo Authors, Illustrators to be Showcased – Chinle, AZ
November 1, 2025 — Blandon, Pa. Judith’s Reading Room announced that its 116th Judith’s Reading Room library will be formally opened on April 9, 2026 in Chinle, Arizona, a community within the Navajo Nation, the largest reservation in America. The announcement is made today to recognize National Native American and Alaska Native Heritage Month which is celebrated each November.
First-ever Tribal Community Library on Navajo Reservation, Chinle, AZ
June 12, 2025 — Judith’s Reading Room announced today that it will establish a curated library of exceptional literature written or illustrated by Indigenous people — mainly Navajo but also including dozens of enrolled citizens from tribes across the United States. The inauguration of the Judith’s Reading Room library to serve the 128,000 Navajo people will establish its first-ever Tribal Community Library in Chinle, AZ.
Chinle Planting Hope (CPH), a local Arizona nonprofit, was selected as one of 15 libraries to be dedicated as a part of the organization’s “15 Libraries to Celebrate Our 15th Anniversary in 2025.” Judith’s Reading Room has supported CHP since 2020 by donating 500 children’s books for its READ in Beauty Bookmobile.
