It’s hard to believe that we are almost at the end of the fall semester! However, my students have reminded me that it’s been a long semester for them, as they review the progress they have made and prepare for their final assessments in class! I feel that it is just as important for us as ITA course instructors and program developers to stop and reflect on the progress we have made with our students! Remember that it is an important role we play in our students’ careers and we need to take a moment to recognize the contributions we make to our institutions – Great job!

As we approach Thanksgiving, I am thankful for this wonderful community that I have through the ITA-IS. Though there have been questions posed about our future as an Interest Section with TESOL, we can be certain that the connections we make through this community will continue to be strong!

I am excited to announce that there are several ITA-related sessions that were accepted for the 2019 TESOL Convention in Atlanta and I look forward to seeing many of you there! The proposal review process has been very different but TESOL is working with us to identify how we can improve things for next year. I will be sure to send out emails with updates as I obtain more information.

In the meantime, I would like to encourage all of you to think about getting more involved with the leadership of our IS as our voices do matter at TESOL! If you are interested and/or have questions about what any of these roles entail, please do email Stephen Looney or me, Derina Samuel, as we would be glad to talk with you!

Good luck with the end of this semester and wish you a wonderful holiday season ahead!

Best wishes,

Derina