Highlights from the AMTE 2020 Annual Conference in Phoenix

On February 6-8, 2020, AMTE hosted our Twenty-Fourth Annual Conference in Phoenix, AZ that was attended by more than 650 people. More than 430 presenters provided 184 sessions! The poster session was held right after lunch on Friday; there was plenty of space to view 23 posters and visit with the presenters. There were opportunities to visit and catch up with colleagues and meet new ones during meals, receptions and breaks.  

At 8:15 a.m. on Thursday, Dorothy White, University of Georgia, gave a touching remembrance of Karen D. King. Mike Steele, AMTE President, on behalf of the AMTE Board of Directors announced the Dr. Karen D. King Advocacy Award being established in her honor.  The opening session of the conference was titled, “Looking Down the AMTE Road.” Presenters included Kathryn Chval, University of Missouri; Carlos Nicolas Gomez, Clemson University; Mike Steele, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. On Friday, Paola Sztajn, North Carolina State University, gave this year’s Judith E. Jacobs Lecture. We thank all of these keynote speakers for sharing their time and their expertise with those attending this year’s conference.

During the conference, exhibitors provided materials and information of interest to members. Gold Sponsors included CPM Educational Program, Mathematics Learning Center, Information Age Publishing. Silver Sponsors included National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Other Exhibitors included NCSM: Leadership in Mathematics Education, Casio America Inc., Great Minds - Eureka Math, TODOS: Mathematics for ALL! We thank each of these exhibitors for contributing to the success of this conference.

At a Thursday evening reception, more than 300 graduate students, early career faculty, and AMTE leaders had an opportunity to meet and talk with each other. Thank you to Information Age Publishing and NCTM for supporting the reception.

On Friday morning, the Advocacy and Emerging Issues Breakfast was led by a panel that included Julia Aguirre, University of Washington, Tacoma; Cynthia Anhalt, University of Arizona; Toya Frank, George Mason University; Erin Turner, University of Arizona, and Amy Roth McDuffie, Washington State University. The Advocacy and Emerging Issues Committee, chaired by Zandra de Araujo, University of Missouri, led the organization of the panel presentation.

At the Business Meeting on Saturday, members were encouraged to make plans to attend the Twenty-Fifth AMTE Conference, which will be held at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, FL on February 11-13, 2021. Please see an announcement about the Call for Proposals on the AMTE website.

Thanks to all who attended this year’s conference and to all who helped deliver the conference. The planning and on-site logistical details were for the first time handled by the Conference Committee led by Trena Wilkerson as AVP of Conferences from Baylor University. The 2020 Program Committee was led by AnnaMarie Conner from the University of Georgia.

 Many thanks go to the local arrangement co-chairs for registration, Mi Yeon Lee and Terri Kurz, Arizona State University, as well as colleagues and students in Arizona and elsewhere in the country for their tremendous support with so many aspects of preparing and delivering this largest ever conference. 

See you in Orlando, Florida in February 2021!