Christine Foster Meloni, former WATESOL President and editor of the WATESOL Journal, remembers Jodi’s strong leadership skills and enthusiasm while on the WATESOL Executive Board

After becoming a member of WATESOL, Jodi rose very rapidly to the top position in the organization. She was elected Member-at-Large in 1979, Vice President in 1980, President in 1981, and President again in 1982. She remained on the Executive Board one more year as Past President.

Jodi and I were on the Board together for five years so we spent a lot of time together in those days. We had frequent Board meetings. From the beginning Jodi was a dynamic member. She suggested many innovations and was very enthusiastic in bringing them to fruition. She would delegate but, more often than not, she would volunteer to do the work herself. She was tireless.

Jodi was one of the major forces behind the introduction of the WATESOL convention. As Vice President, she took on the responsibility of chairing the first convention and lined up a staff of energetic WATESOLers to assist her. Under her leadership, this annual tradition got off to an excellent start.

After leaving the Board, Jodi continued to be very active in WATESOL for many years. She was invited to be the plenary speaker at WATESOL’s 35th anniversary in 2005. In her presentation she traced WATESOL’s history, and, although it was not her intention, she showed how much the organization owes to her dedication and hard work. She certainly deserves the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Susan Bayley, former WATESOL president and former Executive Director of TESOL, remembers Jodi’s amazing energy

Jodi never learned to say no. She would say yes to another invitation to speak at a conference, to serve on a committee, to lead a research team. She always seemed to squeeze in yet another commitment, thus endearing herself to millions of professionals the world over.

Here is an anecdote supporting the above description of Jodi: I remember when Betty Robinett was our WATESOL plenary speaker. Jodi had just arrived from an international trip somewhere. She was on the dais, having just warmly introduced Betty. And, then (understandably) she fell asleep up there!

Jodi was a quick read. We were flying over to Scotland together. She picked up a textbook of some kind and within five minutes was able to give me the gist of its content, along with cogent criticisms that would take anyone else a few hours to produce.

Jodi also has a very big heart. She deeply cares about global issues, probably because she has travelled to almost all corners of the world. And let us not forget her love of animals, small and large.

Mix the above and you have a powerful, enthusiastic, sensitive, brilliant, diplomatic woman. Everyone knows when Jodi walks in the room, right?

Synthia Woodcock-Dang, former WATESOL treasurer, remembers co-chairing the first WATESOL convention with Jodi

Jodi and I were co-chairs of the first WATESOL conference held at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. With all of Jodi's contacts, we had high-powered speakers, Earl Stevick and Russell Campbell.

Jodi also had great input in the field during her tenure at the Center for Applied Linguistics. She chaired the Language and Orientation Resource Center, which developed training materials for people working with adult refugees. She set up cultural and English-language training in refugee centers in five countries in Southeast Asia.

Maryanne Kearney Datesman, former WATESOL President and co-author with Jodi of American Ways, remembers her travels with Jodi

Jodi Crandall is truly one of a kind—a charismatic professional who is “down to earth,” kind, generous with her time and her advice, a creative dynamo, and a genuinely caring person. We’ve worked together, written together, and traveled together.

Jodi is the consummate world traveler. She once convinced a funicular driver to take us up to the top of the Great Wall of China, even though it was closed! We had been scheduled to do a week-long workshop in Japan and Jodi said, “Where else do you think we could go? How about China?” For just $100.00 extra airfare, we got our tickets and were off with my daughter Lisa (who adores Jodi) to Beijing. Thanks to Jodi, I fulfilled my trip fantasy to take Lisa to the top of the Great Wall of China on her 15th birthday. “This is it,” Lisa exclaimed. “I’ll never have another birthday better than this—I’ve peaked!”

Our trip was vintage Jodi—no pre-arranged tour, just guidebooks and a zest for adventure. She would tear out the appropriate pages from her guidebooks and we would plot our course, from the Temple of Heaven to a Mongolian hotpot restaurant. Returning from her early morning run in the park, she reported on the Tai Chi practitioners shrouded in fog. Typical Jodi—always moving.

In fact, finding her in DC has always been a challenge. “Will you be home next week?” I would ask hopefully. “No, I have to go to Kazakhstan,” she would reply, or Tibet, or Saudi Arabia, or Kiribati, or some other exotic place. She had a box of notecards where she kept recommendations for hotels, restaurants, places to visit, foods to try, and experiences not to be missed in her travels around the world.

WATESOL and many other professional organizations have been blessed to have Jodi’s dynamic leadership. Those of us who know her are privileged to count her as a friend. And the world at large could not have a better ambassador for cross-cultural understanding and teacher education than Jodi Crandall!

Destination Siberia

Jodi has definitely not hung up her running shoes yet. She continues to assist English teachers around the globe. She has received an invitation from Larissa Olesova to be the plenary speaker at the 2015 summer conference of Yakut TESOL in Yakutsk, Siberia. She is very well known among the teachers in Siberia and her visit is anticipated with great excitement.

Who knows where else she will be going in the years to come? It may be premature to evaluate her legacy but we were curious to know what she considers her contributions to the field.

Jodi’s Legacy

When asked what she would like to be remembered for, Jodi gave the following response:

“I would like most of all to be remembered for finding ways for more and more members to get involved. The first WATESOL convention was one example. This was an initiative that gave more members opportunities to present and to volunteer.

All of the organizations that I had the privilege to lead grew during my tenure: WATESOL, TESOL, and AAAL.

I would also like everyone to know that being part of WATESOL opened up worlds for me, especially new ideas and new (and lasting) friends. I will always treasure my WATESOL memories.”

A Few Highlights of Jodi’s Remarkable Career (Tip of the Iceberg)

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NOTE: This article first appeared in the WATESOL News. Accordingly, it has been only reviewed but not edited by the Affiliate News Editors.

Christine Foster Meloni is associate professor emerita of English as a foreign language, George Washington University, Washington, DC.

Virginia "Ginny" Lezhnev is a retired senior instructor of English as a foreign language, Georgetown University, Washington, DC and former president of WATESOL.