Dear Members of SLWIS,

The 2011 TESOL convention in New Orleans is less than one month away. (Time flies.) The theme is Examining the E in TESOL. If you have not already registered for the convention and booked your hotel room, please do so right away!

In this brief letter, I point out a few high-priority items to help you navigate this year’s convention. More explicit information about SLWIS sessions and events will be made available to you when the convention dates draw closer.

Please attend our Open Business Meeting on Thursday evening, March 17, from 6:15-7:15 PM. At this meeting, we reconnect with each other as well as brainstorm topics for the 2012 convention. You will also meet our newly elected members of the SLWIS leadership team and will join me in congratulating them: Lisya Seloni, Chair-Elect and Nigel Caplan, Steering Committee Member. After the business meeting, please also join us for our annual social event so that you can hang with old and new friends, including prominent figures in the field of Second Language Writing.

Within this newsletter, Ditlev Larsen, 2010-2011 chair-elect, has included information about this year’s special sessions, including our Academic Session and our InterSections. To find more SLWIS sessions, go to the Convention Web Site. The Advance Program book is available by clicking on the link on the left sidebar. You can also access the searchable Online Convention Program and Itinerary Planner in the same manner.

The booths will be located in a more visible place this year, according to our TESOL organizers. Our booth is a highlight for many of us—it continues to serve as a space to include new voices in our group, to reconnect and share ideas with each other, and to represent the interest section to other TESOL members. Specific information about the SLWIS Special Event (see “Special Event: Friends of Second Language Writing to Gather in New Orleans,” this issue) and a complete listing of the SLWIS sessions will be available at the booth. For those attached to SLWIS stickers, we will also continue the tradition of distributing stickers for your convention name badges!

Many of our institutions are continuing to tighten their financial belts, so many people within our group may find that they cannot afford to attend this year’s convention. Let us not view the convention as the only means of participating in SLWIS activities, knowledge, and development. We can send items to the newsletter (see “SLW News: Call for Submissions,” this issue), contribute to the e-list, and submit documents to TESOL’s Resource Center. For those of us who are attending the convention, we can document events and sessions for those who cannot attend this year. If you attend a session that is particularly meaningful to you, consider writing a session report for others to read. Last year, Chris Tardy suggested that people take photos and send them to our webmaster to post to our Web site. Because nearly everyone has a cell phone with a camera, I hope that our group can compile photographs that capture the spirit of SLWIS at the convention.

Finally, I want to thank those who have participated in SLWIS activities over the past several months. I especially thank everyone who ran for a leadership position this year. Not everyone is willing or able to take on a leadership role, and the candidates' willing participation in this process ensured that SLWIS members can continue to look forward to solid leadership.

Additionally, I want to thank the SLWIS leadership team for pulling together various aspects of the program so that we can have strong sessions in the conference program. Thanks also to those who read proposals for the 2011 convention. Over the past few years, I have learned very well what makes SLWIS an effective group at the TESOL conventions—our committed membership.

Looking forward to seeing you in New Orleans!

Danielle