Urtubey, Juliana, 1986-

Born into a tumultuous Colombia, Juliana was about five years old when her parents relocated Juliana and her two older sisters to the United States. For a time, they settled in Chicago, then Arizona. She describes an upbringing that was safe and privileged. Education and preservation of bilingual speaking skills were held in high regard.

Juliana Urtubey has made Las Vegas home since 2013 and has become a highly regarded educator, an elementary teacher of special education. While at Crestwood Elementary School, she became known as Ms. Earth for leading the way to raising money and creating a garden program.

More recently she is the bilingual special education teacher at Kermit Booker Sr. Innovative Elementary School. She is also an instructional strategist, developing supports to meet students’ differing academic, social-economic and behavioral needs.

In May 2021 she was selected as the National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Chief State School Officers and honored by a presentation from Dr. Jill Biden. She is the first teacher from Nevada to receive this distinction.