Insights From a Transformative Year
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
– Nelson Mandela
One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world.
– Malala Yousafzai
When I talk to colleagues in mathematics education about the reasons behind their choice to pursue this profession I often hear that it is the belief on the transformative power of education, that was a reason for me to select this profession. Teachers certainly impact many lives, and the work of mathematics teacher educators gets amplified as we prepare teachers that in turn will prepare many students. One of the things that I admire about AMTE is the work of many volunteers who contribute to our mission of promoting the improvement of mathematics teacher education K-12. In this last message as AMTE President I will highlight a few new endeavors from AMTE, these are a few examples of what AMTE, through its members and leadership, is doing to better support its members and mathematics teacher education.
One request from members has been about transparency, we have heard from members that it is important to know how decisions are made and how non-elected positions are filled. The AMTE Board acted on this feedback, and we have done more to improve our efforts to be transparent. We have provided more opportunities for feedback from members when major decisions are involved, and we have announced when we are considering someone for non-elected leadership positions. Another new initiative is the development of a Code of Conduct. As we grow as an organization and have more members and activities, it is important to look for the safety and wellbeing of our members. We will be announcing a new Code of Conduct that will be in place prior to our 2025 conference. A third initiative I want to highlight is the creation of a restricted fund category for early-career efforts together with the establishment of a new Fundraising Committee. These new measures aim to provide a structured and sustainable financial foundation to continue our mentoring programs and scholarships, and I provided more details about these efforts in the Fall 2024 issue of Connections. Finally, we have a great program for our 2025 conference this February in Reno. Something new this year that we are testing, and doing in response to requests from our members, is a virtual component. We will have a subset of breakout sessions and some of the general sessions streamed and a special rate for virtual attendance. All these new initiatives are possible thanks to the work and ideas of our members and leadership and show that this has been a transformative year for AMTE. We hope that many of you will join us virtually or in person in February.
During the past two years I benefitted from collaborating with Shari Stockero, Megan Burton, Farshid Safi, and Kim Gill. I had the chance to work with Shari when I started my term as she served as our past Executive Director. I collaborated with Megan for two years when she was AMTE President and then Past-President. I have had the chance to collaborate with Kim, our new Executive Director, and with Farshid our President Elect, during this year. I am grateful to all of them because of the dedication with which they approach their work and I have learned a lot form each of them. I am excited about the future of AMTE in 2025 and beyond as Farshid becomes president and has the support of Kim and our Board, I am sure they all will do a great job.
Looking forward to seeing many of you in Reno for our 2025 conference! Happy Holidays!
Enrique Galindo