Kate Vieira

Kate Vieira is a Professor holding the Susan J. Cellmer Distinguished Chair in Literacy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education. She specializes in literacy studies, transnational migration, and writing for peace. Her research spans Colombia, Latvia, Brazil, and the U.S., focusing on how writing mediates social change and human rights.

Vieira has authored multiple books, including American by Paper (2016) and co-edited Paz: Escribiendo un Corazón Común (2019). She has received prestigious honors such as the Fulbright/ICETEX Scholarship, CCCC Outstanding Book Award, and Sustainable Arts Foundation Award.

Her academic work bridges theory and practice, collaborating with communities in Colombia through EncantaPalabras to develop writing-for-peace curricula. She teaches graduate courses on qualitative methods, literacy consequences, and writing’s healing potential.

Notable awards include the Donald Murray Prize for Creative Nonfiction and Postdoctoral Fellowship from the National Academy of Education/Spencer. Vieira advocates for parenting artists and integrates community engagement into her pedagogy, emphasizing writing’s role in fostering empathy and social justice.