“Learning is a social process that occurs through interpersonal interaction and dialogue." - Lev Vygotsky
I was excited to see all of the interaction and dialogue that happened at our 2024 conference a few weeks ago, a lot of learning took place. There were 582 speakers on this year’s program offering over 200 sessions on a variety of interesting topics. A total of 175 attendees declared that they were first-time conference participants. Both the opening session and the advocacy lunch engaged our members with important topics that we all need to consider. And there were many opportunities to reconnect with colleagues and friends, as well as to make new ones. It takes the work of many AMTE members to make the conference a success. I want to express special thanks to the Conference Committee, led by Julie James; to the Conference Program Committee, led by Jennifer Ward; and to the Local Arrangements Committee Co-led by Eugenia Vomvoridi-Ivanovic and Sarah van Ingen Lauer, for their great work that resulted in a very successful AMTE conference.
Long-Term Goals for 2024-2028
During the past year we engaged members in a process to provide feedback on AMTE’s long-term goals. This was the second time we engaged our members in this process since we started a process to develop 4-year long-term goals in 2019. In a previous Connections issue I summarized (https://amte.net/connections/2023/08/presidents-message) the progress made with the 2020-2024 goals. The feedback received on the 2020-2024 long-term goals reflected the need to continue working on some of the goals we had for the last four years, and the need to bring other important goals to the forefront. During the Fall 2023 the AMTE Board drafted long-term goals for 2024-2028 and feedback on the draft was requested again from AMTE members in December 2023. In February 2024 the Board approved new long-term goas that were announced at the 2024 conference. For 2024-2028 the long-term goals are:
- Challenge and support mathematics teacher educators to engage with and take action on issues of social and racial justice in their work.
- Support and provide guidance on the high-quality preparation, recruitment, retention, and diversification of mathematics teachers across the variety of educational spaces.
- Engage in community building and other efforts to support the recruitment and retention, diversification, and professional learning of mathematics teacher educators and leaders who serve in a variety of educational contexts.
- Strengthen the research and research-based practices of mathematics teacher educators to serve the evolving needs of students, educators, schools, and communities.
Currently the Board is engaging committees across all AMTE divisions in the creation of action items for each of the long-term goals. Many thanks to everyone who provided feedback during this process, it is great to see how dedicated and committed our members are. Engaging in critical reflection and collaboration is a great way to ensure a positive future for our organization.
Transitions and Thanks
During the last two years in my roles of President Elect and then President I had the chance to work with past President Megan Burton and Past Executive Director Shari Stockero. I have learned a lot from each of them and I will miss them greatly as they both have finished their terms. I want to thank Shari for her dedication and professionalism during her term as Executive Director. She has helped AMTE grow, improve procedures, and expand programming. I also want to thank Megan for her guidance and support. The two of them made invaluable contributions to our organization and helped make my first year as president to be a smooth transition. This year I will have the pleasure to work with President Elect Farshad Safi, I am looking forward to this as he is a very thoughtful leader. I am also excited about working with our new Executive Director Kim Gill and about our partnership with Civica Associations Conferences and Exhibitions. I feel that as we update our long-term goals and solidify our organizational structures, we are well positioned for a great future to continue supporting our members for many years to come.
Enrique Galindo