Hello all,

I hope you’re doing well mid-semester, and mid-way through the time between TESOL conventions and our reunion in Seattle. I’d like to begin my letter by thanking all of those who participated in our first webinar on October 5. The webinar leaders, Anne Politz and Alexis Finger from Drexel University, presented “Forming Your Teaching Identity as an International Teaching Assistant,” and it sparked some very engaging digital discussion. For those of you who were not able to participate, you can access a video of the webinar on TESOL’s YouTube channel. We’re considering hosting a second webinar in January or February, so if any members have a well-developed idea they would like to propose, please get in touch with me.

Also this month, TESOL communicated responses to convention proposal submissions. It seems they had some trouble with their new system for managing proposals, as many of us received multiple emails about the same proposal with conflicting information. If at this point you are still uncertain about the status of any of your submissions, I recommend you reach out to Lisa Dyson directly at ldyson@tesol.org. I apologize on behalf of TESOL for any frustration the email errors may have caused.

Looking ahead to next month, the polls will be open not only for the U.S. national election, but also for officer positions within our Interest Section. On Monday, November 21, you should receive an email from TESOL inviting you to elect a new board of leaders. I encourage all of our members to participate.

Finally, I encourage you to explore the new online TESOL community, called myTESOL, when it is launched. While much of our discussion will continue to take place on our original email list, myTESOL will be a good resource for sharing curriculum and professional development materials.

I look forward to seeing everyone in Seattle. In the meantime, if anyone has any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me via email.

All the best,

Elizabeth