Julie Barbee

Senior Program Specialist

As a senior program specialist for NIET, Julie is part of the LA BOLD team supporting schools and districts within Louisiana. Her work centers on supporting Rapides Parish schools and district personnel to impact instructional practices and grow students.

Julie comes to NIET after spending 25 years in Louisiana's DeSoto Parish school system, where she served as a TAP master teacher for eight of those years. In this role, she helped lead a school serving pre-K through 12th grade to substantial growth.

Before becoming a TAP master teacher, Julie taught English Language Arts at the middle school level for more than 15 years. Her career began as a special education teacher. Julie earned her Bachelor of Arts in education and special education certification from Louisiana State University at Shreveport.

Julie Barbee

Who is your favorite teacher?

Although U.S. History wasn't my favorite subject in school, my favorite teacher had to have been my high school U.S. History teacher, Mr. Head.  Besides being an engaging storyteller (which I have found most social studies teachers are), he showed me that the study of history was more than the memorization of facts and dates. He allowed me to see that to understand U.S. History, you had to understand its role in the world at large and that it was OK to question those facts and dates. Mr. Head facilitated my understanding that in order to be a citizen of that world, you must have a more global view than what is printed in the textbooks.

What do you do in your free time?

I spend as much of my free time as possible with my family, who includes my husband of 40 years, three grown daughters along with their husbands, four grandchildren, and a 60-pound white Labrador retriever. We enjoy traveling together, boating, and gathering around the table with a good meal. In my rare time alone, I can be found with a good book in my hand.

Why are you passionate about working at NIET?

I am most passionate about working at NIET because its core belief is that every child deserves a quality education provided by excellent teachers. That belief is what drives the work with educators in the field daily.  The empowerment of district leaders and educators through the support they receive from NIET transfers to student growth. I have seen the impact of NIET's work firsthand on partner schools, and am proud to be part of this team.