April 2015

Information for Affiliate Leaders: Awards, Summer Meeting, and much more!

The Professional Home of the English Language Arts Community

SCOA NEWS

April 2015
NCTE Standing Committee on Affiliates

May 1 Is Deadline for Most SCOA Awards: Affiliates hoping to win SCOA awards for their newsletters, websites, and/or journals must complete the application forms by May 1. Applications for the Multicultural Program Award and several other awards are also due May 1.

• Newsletter: Contact Steve Hubbard if you have questions. Last year’s winning newsletter was Texas Voices (Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts). Honorable mention went to NDCTE Newsletter (North Dakota Council of Teachers of English).

• Website: Contact Nancy Himel if you have questions.
The Oregon Council of Teachers of English won the award in 2014. Honorable mention went to the websites of the North Dakota Council of Teachers of Englishand the Virginia Association of Teachers of English.

• Journal: Contact Carol Revelle if you have questions. Last year’s winner was Statement from the Colorado Language Arts Society. Honorable Mentions went to OJELA from the Ohio Council of Teachers of English Language Arts and English in Texas from the Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts.

See the full list of awards on NCTE’s Affiliate Awards page.

Hear Ye! Watch Ye! Ernest Morrell’s Presidential Speech: The
December SCOA News mentioned “the importance of heeding Ernest.” NCTE Past President Ernest Morrell’s speech at the closing session of the 2014 Convention in Washington, DC, is now available online. He calls for doing our part to help all students develop as powerful readers and critical writers. The NCTE site hosts the address itself. A slightly longer versionincludes Morrell’s thanks to outgoing president Sandy Hayes and his welcome of incoming president Kathy Short.

Speaking of NCTE Resources: The relatively new NCTE on Air broadcasts (#NCTEonAir) feature up-to-the-minute videos of broad interest. NCTE’s YouTube Channel includes an index of available clips from one minute to one hour in length. Millie Davis recommends “From History to Homonyms” about (and with) winners of the Orbis Pictus and Charlotte Huck awards for children’s

books. It is the first NCTE on Air broadcast.

The NCTE web site also includes archives of the monthly Twitter chats dating back to September 2013. Topics such as “Teacher as Writer” (July 2014), “Comics and Graphic Novels in the Classroom” (September 2014), and “How Should Literacy Learning Be Assessed?” (February 2015) include insights and interactions with guest hosts such as Ernest Morrell, Zanetta Robinson, and Kelly Gallagher.

Luxurious Leadership in San Jose, July 10-12: Affiliate leaders can still register for thesummer leadership meeting at the San Jose Hilton (open until June 5). NCTE and SCOA welcome affiliate leaders from all regions, yet cost-sharing in 2015 applies only to regions 1, 3, 7, and 8. Participants need to complete two steps:

• Register for the meeting by completing the online registration form. • Reserve a room at the San Jose Hilton.

Featured Affiliate: The Milwaukee-Area Student Affiliate

A Giant Leap for English Education (by Jenn Fishman, Faculty Sponsor)
In July 1969, NASA launched the space shuttle that carried Neil Armstrong to the moon. This spring it was NCTE that helped make history by approvingMASA, the Milwaukee-Area Student Affiliate.

Uniquely, MASA draws members from not one but seven campuses in and around the city of Milwaukee. A kind of inter-institutional space station, MASA serves a diverse membership through a four-part mission:

  1. To complement students’ formal academic training;
  2. To build community among students, faculty, staff, and alumni involved in English

    education at participating colleges and universities;

  3. To establish and strengthen community among preservice and inservice English

    educators in the Milwaukee area and throughout Wisconsin;

  4. To familiarize members with professional resources, starting with the Wisconsin

    Council of Teachers of English (WCTE) and NCTE.

To date 90 people have joined the group, including undergraduates and graduate students preparing to be English educators; faculty and staff involved in English education, whether teacher training, education policy and leadership, or college English; alumni from participating programs; and local educators.

MASA’s first year has been an auspicious and busy one. WCTE invited MASA students to participate as volunteers and speakers at their October convention. In December, Bedford/St. Martin’s sponsored a meet-up for MASA members involved in college composition, and in January the Director of Marketing and Outreach from Rethinking Schools was a guest at the first monthly MASA Chat. Now, while waiting to learn if MASA will be on the 2015 NCTE convention program, the group is working with WCTE to organize aNew Teacher Job Readiness Fair, complete with resume workshops and mock interviews.

Looking ahead, there are both opportunities and challenges on the horizon. In Wisconsin, as across the country, teachers face changing budgets and educational policies. But there is strength in numbers and hope in community. Too, for educators dedicated to reading, writing, and, above

all else, students, there is MASA. So rest assured, SCOA. Milwaukee Base here. MASA has landed.

The Standing Committee on Affiliates sends this monthly newsletter to leaders of NCTE affiliates. The representatives of the eight regions welcome content for and comments about previous and forthcoming issues.

Region 1: Meredith Potter Region 2: Debbie Thomas Region 3: Steve Hubbard Region 4: Kathy Nelson Region 5: Dixie Keyes Region 6: Carol Revelle Region 7: Curtis Bobbitt Region 8: Nancy Himel
Chair: Jean Boreen
The SCOA Newsletter is a member of NCTE’s Information Exchange.

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