The Dance Teacher Awards are back, and for a second year, they’re going virtual.

On October 6, we’ll be celebrating a group of outstanding educators for their contributions to our field. After reviewing thousands of nominations, the DT Awards selection committee has chosen to honor the largest group of awardees in the event’s history:

• Eva Encinias, the creator of The University of New Mexico’s flamenco program, the only BA program of its kind in the U.S.
• Antoine Hunter, the artistic director of Urban Jazz Dance Company who teaches dance and American Sign Language in both Hearing and Deaf communities, and has produced the Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival since 2013
• Karisma Jay, whose Brooklyn, New York–based AbunDance Academy of the Arts takes a holistic approach to dancer development
• Dr. Nyama McCarthy-Brown, an author and assistant professor of community engagement through dance at The Ohio State University whose research centers on equity in dance education
• Dr. Doug Risner, the director of the MA in Dance Teaching Artistry program in the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance at Wayne State University, as well as a prolific author on the intersection of pedagogy, dance and gender
• Alice Teirstein, the founder of New York City’s Young Dancemakers Company and a longtime champion for dance in K–12 curriculums
• Florida State University professor and Urban Bush Women founder Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, who will receive our Award of Distinction

We’re also thrilled to announce that for a second year, we’re partnering with MOVE|NYC|. All proceeds from tickets sold to this year’s DT Awards will go to fund the Dance Teacher Scholarship.

Stay tuned for further details on the virtual ceremony—everyone’s invited!—as our community comes together to salute and celebrate these leaders.