Any member of NCSM is free to submit a nomination. Only an NCSM member may submit a nomination. Nominations will be submitted electronically. The deadline to submit nominations for the NCSM Kay Gilliland Equity Lecture Award is June 1, 2026. To nominate a person, complete the nomination for the Kay Gilliland Equity Lecture Award. Any questions about the application can be sent the NCSM Awards Chair: awardschair@mathedleadership.org

Kay Gilliland

NCSM is an organization whose membership is made up of leaders in the field of mathematics education. One of those members who gave especially of her time and energy was Kay Gilliland. Mills College and EQUALS gave her the courage and the skills to work for equity in mathematics for all students, especially low-income, black, Latino, and indigenous peoples. NCSM enabled her to learn and work locally, nationally, and internationally to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics. Kay Gilliland was a vibrant and service-oriented President of NCSM and served as a conscientious editor of the NCSMs newsletter for more than seven years. In all of her work, Kay promoted a focus on equity in mathematics education.

In 2013 the Kay Gilliland Equity Lecture Award was first established to honor its namesake and to provide a vehicle to annually recognize a person who exhibited the same kind of unique and dedicated contributions to equity in mathematics education. The Lecture series will serve to acknowledge and honor Kay’s service and to promote the cause of equity in mathematics education. The 2013 inaugural Kay Gilliland Equity Lecture Award winner was Miriam Leiva. Miriam’s lecture at the 2013 NCSM conference in Denver, Colorado was entitled: Equity for Each Learner: Equitable Practices to Engage and Build Student Mathematical Knowledge. Miriam Leiva’s passion for equity in mathematics education for all students is well known, and it continues to be the hallmark of her distinguished career. She is the founding president of TODOS: Mathematics for All. Leiva has been highly esteemed for more than 45 years for her professional involvement in mathematics education and issues of educational equity. Leiva is probably best known for her leadership of TODOS. She has been an avid, persuasive spokesperson on issues that affect the mathematics achievement of all students and in particular of Latino/a students in the United States. She is recognized as that rare person who makes everyone consider the disparities that exist in mathematics education for underrepresented, underserved students, and through her leadership, she has provided a call to action and reform of that environment. That mission-the mission of TODOS-still remains at the forefront of her leadership efforts today.