Thursday, May 12, 2011
NCTM President-Elect Gojak and Four Board Members Begin Terms Reston, Va., May 12, 2011—Linda M. Gojak began her term as president-elect of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) at the conclusion of the Council's annual meeting in Indianapolis on April 16. She will work alongside current president J. Michael Shaughnessy until assuming the presidency in April 2012 for a two-year term (2012–2014).
Beginning three-year terms (2011–2014) on the NCTM Board of Directors are Robert Q. Berry III, Dane R. Camp, Mark W. Ellis, and Latrenda Knighten. The new directors fill out the 14-member board that serves as the chief policymaking body for the world's largest professional organization dedicated to the teaching and learning of mathematics. With 100,000 members, NCTM supports mathematics educators in all 50 states and Canada. In addition, the Council provides information and services to members in 104 countries around the globe. The president-elect and four new board members will attend their first board meeting in July.
Linda M. Gojak currently serves as director of the Center of Mathematics and Science Education, Teaching, and Technology, at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. She brings to her NCTM leadership nearly 40 years of experience in teaching mathematics at all levels in the United States, as well as considerable work with teachers, students, and professional organizations throughout the country.
Gojak earned her master's and bachelor's degrees in education from Kent State University and Miami University in Ohio, respectively. She has served as president of the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics, the Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics, and the Greater Cleveland Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
"We should strengthen our network of Affiliates—our members at the local level, who will make excellence in mathematics education happen—so that everyone takes on this mission."
Gojak's previous service to the Council includes membership on the Board of Directors and the Arithmetic Teacher Editorial Panel. She also served as co-chair of the Cleveland regional conferences, as a program committee member for the Indianapolis Annual Meeting, and as program chair for the Minneapolis Annual Meeting. Most recently, she was a reviewer for Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten through Grade 8 Mathematics: A Quest for Coherence.
In 1990, Gojak received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
Robert Q. Berry III is an associate professor of mathematics education at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia. In 2011, Berry received the William C. Lowry Mathematics Educator of the Year Award from the Virginia Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the All-University Teaching Award from the University of Virginia. Berry earned a bachelor's degree from Old Dominion University (Virginia), a master of arts in teaching from Christopher Newport University (Virginia), and a doctoral degree in mathematics education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Berry's most recent involvement with the Council is his work on this year's Indianapolis Annual Meeting program committee.
Dane R. Camp is a mathematics teacher at New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois. Camp has been a mathematics teacher at both the high school and college levels for more than 30 years. He has served on the board of directors for the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics. In 2008, he received the Edyth May Sliffe Award from the Mathematical Association of America. Camp earned his bachelor's degree from Elmhurst College (Illinois), a master's degree from Northern Illinois University, and a doctoral degree from Loyola University (Illinois). He served as a member and then chair of the Mathematics Teacher Editorial Panel, and he also coauthored an article for the NCTM 71st Yearbook, Understanding Geometry for a Changing World.
Mark W. Ellis is an associate professor of secondary education at California State University, Fullerton, California. His teaching experience spans grades 6 through college level over a period of nearly 20 years. Ellis earned a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz, a master's degree from Stanford University, and a doctoral degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He became a National Board Certified Teacher in 1999 and renewed in 2009. His recent work with the Council includes service as a member of the 2010 San Diego Annual Meeting program committee; as coeditor of the Problems Solvers department in Teaching Children Mathematics, and as volume editor of Mathematics for Every Student: Responding to Diversity, Grades 6–8.
Latrenda Knighten is an elementary mathematics coach at Melrose Elementary School in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System, Louisiana. Her past leadership roles include her service as president of the Baton Rouge Area Council of Teachers of Mathematics and Louisiana Association of Teachers of Mathematics. Knighten earned a bachelor's degree from Newcomb College of Tulane University (Louisiana). Her most recent work with the Council includes serving as an E-Workshop presenter in spring 2009 and spring 2010 and membership on the Professional Development Focus Task Force, the Professional Development Services Committee, Illuminations Advisory Group, and the program committee for the 2011 Atlantic City Regional Conference.
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics is a public voice of mathematics education, supporting teachers to ensure equitable mathematics learning of the highest quality for all students through vision, leadership, professional development, and research. With more than 100,000 members and 230 Affiliates, NCTM is the world's largest organization dedicated to improving mathematics education in prekindergarten through grade 12. The Council's Principles and Standards for School Mathematics includes guidelines for excellence in mathematics education and issues a call for all students to engage in more challenging mathematics. Its Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten through Grade 8 Mathematics identifies the most important mathematical topics for each grade level. Focus in High School Mathematics: Reasoning and Sense Making advocates practical changes to the high school mathematics curriculum to refocus learning on reasoning and sense making. NCTM is dedicated to ongoing dialogue and constructive discussion with all stakeholders about what is best for our nation's students.
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