03 Nov2021
By Michael Dantley
I have had the pleasure of serving in several leadership positions within AACTE and, beginning in March 2022, will serve as chair of the AACTE Board of Directors. These have been busy and challenging times for all of us, and AACTE’s volunteer leaders have been working hard with President & CEO Lynn M. Gangone and the entire National Office team to ensure that AACTE is well positioned to advance its vision of revolutionizing education for all learners. A sample of the board’s recent activities include the following:
- Establishing a new strategic plan for the Association, including new strategic priorities on advocacy, DEI, and educator preparation policy, practice, and research
- Completing a successful sale of AACTE’s office building in Washington, DC and investing a portion of the proceeds in new technology platforms to better serve members
- Updating AACTE’s governance structure to reflect best practices in non-profit management
- Advising the National Office team on AACTE’s response to COVID-19
03 Dec2019
By Michael Dantley
Why are schools still segregated in 2019? The answer to this question is a complicated one. One with roots deep in the history of our educational system. The surface answer has to do with the fact that racist curricula and prejudice within our society still exist. Where you live determines where you go to school. Many times, the poorer, minority students live in lower income neighborhoods. And as children become racially isolated, it then trickles into our schools, resulting in segregation.
In fact, segregation is even evident in schools that are racially diverse. You’ll notice that most students in advanced placement classes are Caucasian or Asian. Who do we see in remedial classes? We see African American students, particularly African American males. Even with a diverse student population, the evidence of systemic segregation is scarily rampant. The deep vestiges of racism and segregation subtly permeate through our schools and it sets dangerous precedents.
19 Mar2019
By Michael Dantley
Greetings! It has been several months since the last update on AACTE’s strategic planning process, and there is plenty to report. First, if you have been following these blogs you will note that I am not writing with my friend and colleague, Kim Metcalf. Kim is now the chair of the AACTE Board of Directors, and he has asked me to assume the solo chairmanship of the Strategic Planning Task Force since he will have a lot on his plate. I know he will stay close to the work and will be a huge help as we work to complete he plan.
Along with Kim’s departure from the Task Force, there have been additional changes. We have bid a fond farewell to Dean Alberto Ruiz of Texas A & M University Kingsville, who has rotated off the AACTE Board of Directors, and have welcomed Chair-elect of the Board Ann Larson, dean of the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Louisville and new board member Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson, who is president of Clarion University of Pennsylvania and a former college of education dean. These new Task Force members join Laurie Mullen, dean of the College of Education at Towson University, and members of the National Office staff (see the full Task Force roster).
14 Dec2018
By Kim Metcalf and Michael Dantley
In our last blog, we invited you to contribute to the strategic planning process by reacting to a draft of the plan that outlined the vision, mission, strategic priorities and core values of our Association. Thanks to all of you who provided your insights. In today’s update, we’ll share some of what we heard and how we plan to incorporate your ideas going forward.
In addition to providing concrete feedback on the draft text, many of you also asked for a plan that is more forward-thinking and that outlines how AACTE can help shape the future as well as navigate the challenges and opportunities that it presents. For example, how will trends such as competency-based and technology-enabled instruction influence both the daily work of the educators we prepare and our own programs? How can we best confront the teacher shortage in partnership with PK-12 leaders and state policy makers, while also ensuring the quality of the education workforce? What more can we and the same partners do to ensure that the profession is diverse and that educators are prepared to effectively instruct all learners?
09 Oct2018
By Kim Metcalf and Michael Dantley
Greetings, colleagues. In our first blog on the strategic planning process, we noted that a Task Force would be meeting to draft revisions to the organization’s vision and mission and to outline strategic priorities for 2019 to 2022. That meeting just concluded and we are pleased to report that the Task Force is on track to deliver a draft to the full membership for review next month.
Over two days, the Task Force, which is composed of terrific members of the AACTE Board of Directors and National Office staff, wrestled with the challenges and opportunities confronting AACTE and its members and reached consensus on a set of strategic priorities that can guide the association’s work during the next 3 years. These priorities, with their associated objectives and progress metrics, will guide the staff as they experiment with new member programs and services and will help the board to track the association’s progress.
17 Sep2018
By Michael Dantley and Kim Metcalf
Greetings, colleagues. We are honored and excited to be co-chairing AACTE’s Strategic Planning Task Force. The task force is charged with creating a plan to guide AACTE’s activities through 2022. We had our first meeting on September 12, and we will be working hard over the next several months to produce a final plan in time for the 2019 Annual Meeting in Louisville.
We are embarking on this effort at a pivotal moment in the Association’s history. Colleges, schools, and departments of education have fewer resources to spend on representation and professional development, and there are more competitors for those scarce resources. AACTE has to constantly demonstrate its value and rapidly evolve to meet the changing needs of our profession.
