As we enter the final weeks of the submissions period for our 2025 30 Under 30 list, we are taking a look back and reconnecting with some of the inspiring individuals from around the globe who have been recognized on our previous lists. These young visionaries were celebrated for their extraordinary contributions to literacy, and we are thrilled to share their journeys since joining the 30 Under 30 ranks.
In this four-part series, we will share Q&As with past honorees that offer a look into their personal and professional journey. We will explore how being named to the ILA 30 Under 30 list impacted their careers, the paths they have taken in the years since, and the valuable lessons they have learned along the way.
Through these conversations, we aim to not only celebrate their successes but also to gather their insights and advice for other emerging literacy leaders. If you know someone who belongs on our 2025 list, then submit a nomination today.
Kathryn Lett (2016)
ML Teacher, Townline Elementary School
Michigan, U.S.
How did receiving the 30 Under 30 honor from ILA impact you both personally and professionally?
Receiving the 30 Under 30 honor from ILA inspired me to continue to be the best educator for my students. The honor was humbling, as there are many educators who could have also received the award. As a result of the award, I had the opportunity to serve on the board for the Michigan Reading Association as well as speak at their annual conference. I also had the opportunity and honor to speak to incoming education majors at my alma mater at their annual conference. Personally, receiving the award gave me the confidence I needed to use my voice in advocating for all students, especially those in marginalized communities.
Looking back, how has the recognition from ILA motivated you to continue your efforts in advancing literacy, and what future goals do you have in this regard?
In the future, I’d like to combine my passion, dedication, and years of experience in literacy advocacy to begin a more narrowed focus on educational policy. I have started to apply for different fellowships which align to this professional growth goal. I’m excited to see where they may lead.
Have there been any significant challenges you've faced in your work since being recognized by ILA? How have you overcome them?
The most significant challenge I’ve faced in my journey as an educator is burnout. A couple of years ago, I was feeling extremely overwhelmed (during the height of the pandemic) and had lost the passion which had previously elevated me in my career. I decided to take time off to rejuvenate and refocus myself so that I could be the teacher that my students deserve. I traveled the world taking care of people’s animals, including two sheep farms. By expanding my horizons and trusting my needs, I was able to return two years later with a newfound understanding and passion for the career I had worked so hard to build. It is my hope that other educators can be brave enough to take care of themselves, too!
Saurabh Anand (2021)
Assistant Writing Center Director, University of Georgia
Georgia, U.S.
How did receiving the 30 Under 30 honor from ILA impact you both personally and professionally?
The 30 Under 30 honor from ILA was a pivotal moment in my early career as a language scholar. This esteemed recognition not only reaffirmed my fervor for researching the intersection of multilingualism and tutor pedagogy but also catalyzed a profound personal and professional transformation. As a multilingual and a writing tutor, I often found myself in a unique position, with few peers around me who could relate with me, linguistically or rhetorically. ILA’s recognition provided me with the platform to pause, reflect, and research how to reshape the current U.S. educational landscape for collective academic development, particularly for the benefit of multilingual writers and writing faculty/tutors.
Can you share some highlights of your professional journey since being recognized by ILA?
As a recognized researcher by ILA, I have had the extraordinary opportunity to collaborate with a global network of literacy researchers and advocates who value multilingual teaching practices and are committed to creating a socially sustainable world. These connections have inspired me to explore how my literacy research can promote global humanities interaction via education, empowering individuals to express their thoughts beyond an English-only environment, fostering critical thinking across cultures, and recognizing one indigenous practice.
What projects or initiatives have you been involved in since receiving the 30 Under 30 honor?
Since receiving the 30 Under 30 honor, I have been actively involved in conducting ethnographic and interview studies in writing center studies. In 2023, I led an interview-based study with writing faculty, administrators, and tutors at Ashoka University and OP Jindal Global University in India. This research, which was a direct result of ILA’s recognition, led to my appointment as a guest researcher at the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany through the 2024 Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst research grant (often known as the DAAD research grant). This grant provided me with the opportunity to delve into the literacies of multilingual writing center tutors, who are pivotal in helping other multilingual writers express themselves across languages and mediums. My research aims to identify strategies that American writing centers could adopt from multilingual writing centers outside the North American context, thereby contributing to the global advancement of writing center practices.
What advice would you give to current educators or literacy advocates who aspire to make a difference in the field?
I advise my contemporary educators or literacy advocates who aspire to make a difference in the field to collaborate with people outside academia and their colleagues so that those members of society and their experiences can be centered, too. Additionally, ensure your work does not stay limited to the academic community. Instead, it travels in popular media platforms so that people who cannot access formal education can be centered and inspired and learn from your educational motivations and teaching. Write op-eds about your teaching experiences and goals. Such steps allow those who do not have access to formal education to be inspired and learn from your educational insights and teachings.
How do you see the future of literacy education evolving, and what role do you hope to play in that?
Not too long ago, the landscape of research and pedagogical practices, particularly in writing center studies, was devoid of multilingual tutor perspectives and their experiences within institutional spaces. However, we are now witnessing a significant shift in this rhetoric.
My work is driven by a commitment to challenge stereotypes of the communities I am part of. I am not interested in simply marking them down, but in understanding why such stereotypes exist within institutions (and beyond) and how these beliefs can be intimidating and demoralizing. For instance, in my recent piece on my South Asian administrative labor, I shared my reflections on my writing center administration practices from a Decolonial Theory perspective. I engage in such pursuits to ensure that the writing center I work in and represent is a home to multiple languages and other social justice movements, and to contribute to the ongoing shift in writing center studies.
My piece on decolonizing writing center administrative labor can be accessed here.
My piece on defining and contextualizing metalingual writing center labor can be accessed here.
Colin Bloom (2023)
Cofounder, Libraries for Literacy
New York, U.S., and South Africa
Have there been any unexpected benefits or outcomes as a result of receiving the honor?
As part of our work establishing libraries in South Africa, we have applied for grants to help fund the library buildings. Grant providers were sometimes skeptical of a teenager-led organization but having been honored as an ILA 30 Under 30 provided credibility and made other organizations take us more seriously. ILA is recognized throughout the community as a leader in international literacy and having your backing has been extremely helpful and beneficial to our work. In addition, ILA resources and the ILA network have been enormously valuable.
How do you continue to stay inspired and motivated in your work in literacy?
Seeing the impact of the libraries on teachers, students, and broader communities is what inspires us and keeps us motivated. Each year we return to volunteer at the school libraries where we see first-hand the progress of students’ literacy. It is incredibly rewarding to work with a student who is struggling with basic words, and then a year later they are reading you a book! At one of our libraries, a student’s mother worked as the cook. She was observing us work one-on-one with her daughter and started crying as her daughter read her first words. We often think of that mother as we plan a library or return to South Africa to work with the students.
What advice would you give to current educators or literacy advocates who aspire to make a difference in the field?
The South African human rights activist Desmond Tutu once said that “there is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.” Literacy is a huge challenge that can seem overwhelming, but we have tried to tackle it “a bite at a time.” I would encourage my peers to take this approach. We can’t change South African literacy overnight, but every school library we establish has the potential to change the lives of the hundreds of students at that school. It also impacts the lives of the surrounding community as the libraries are also used for adult literacy classes. We have seen students learning to read at the library and then teaching their parents to read. Every person who learns to read will in turn also read to their siblings and eventually, their children. Together, this helps to break the cycle of illiteracy.
Bhawana Shrestha (2015)
Cofounder, My Emotions Matter
Kathmandu, Nepal
How did receiving the 30 Under 30 honor from ILA impact you both personally and professionally?
The award not only recognized my past achievements but also shaped my future endeavors, driving me to contribute significantly to the realm of emotional literacy in education. At 25, I was at a crossroads, figuring out my path forward. The recognition motivated me immensely, affirming that my efforts in education were valuable and appreciated. Being acknowledged for my work as a teacher bolstered my confidence. It was a powerful validation that encouraged me to continue my efforts in the field of education. Most of all, the honor inspired me to delve deeper into a specific area that I was passionate about—emotional literacy in education. It provided the impetus to dedicate my career to this cause, aiming to make a meaningful impact on students’ and teachers’ emotional and social well-being through emotional literacy.
Can you share some highlights of your professional journey since being recognized by ILA?
Since being recognized by ILA, my professional journey has been marked by several key highlights which have collectively shaped my journey, driving me to continue advocating for emotional literacy in education:
- Mentoring adolescents: I started focusing on mentoring adolescents, emphasizing their well-being and recognizing the crucial role of emotional literacy in their development. This mentoring experience highlighted the significant need for emotional literacy in education, prompting me to explore this field more deeply.
- Establishing My Emotions Matter: I founded a social enterprise, My Emotions Matter, dedicated to promoting social-emotional learning in Nepal. The organization aims to help the education sector understand and nurture emotional literacy skills.
- Echidna Global Scholar: In 2022, I was honored as an Echidna Global Scholar by the Brookings Institution for my contributions to emotional literacy.
- WOW Women to Watch: In 2023, I was recognized as one of the WOW Women to Watch by a renowned national magazine in Nepal for my impact work in education.
- Completing PhD in Education: I completed my PhD in 2023, developing a model to help educators nurture emotional literacy among students. This model focuses on supporting educators in enhancing their emotional literacy skills.
- Ongoing efforts: Based on our research and experience so far, we are now focused on an emotional literacy campaign that supports public school teachers of Nepal, particularly women, in enhancing their literacy skills in their personal and professional lives.
How do you continue to stay inspired and motivated in your work in literacy?
A key strategy that has helped me is building strong empathetic connections with others in my field and those I mentor keep me inspired. Understanding their needs and seeing the impact of emotional literacy in their lives fuels my motivation. Similarly, continuously learning and developing new skills in emotional intelligence helps me stay engaged and enthusiastic about my work, as nurturing these skills has been beneficial in my own life as well. Most of all, having a supportive network of colleagues, mentors, and peers who share similar values and goals helps me stay motivated and inspired.
How do you see the future of literacy education evolving, and what role do you hope to play in that?
The future of literacy education is poised to evolve significantly by integrating emotional literacy alongside traditional literacy skills. Emotional literacy, which involves understanding, managing, and effectively using emotions, is becoming increasingly recognized for its crucial role in comprehensive education. These are essential skills that help students navigate personal and academic challenges effectively. As emotional literacy becomes more integral to education, there will be a greater focus on systematic approaches to monitor and support the emotional development of students. This will involve continuous professional development for educators to enhance their emotional literacy skills.
I hope to play a pivotal role in this evolution by advocating for emotional literacy in educational settings and helping integrate it into curricula, creating and implementing programs that support emotional literacy, and offering training and resources for educators to enhance their emotional intelligence and teaching skills.
