There is so much going on within the TESOL International Association these days that it’s hard to know where to start, but I was happy to receive an email from Ilka and Margi asking me to put together a brief update for members of the SLWIS.

First, governance is not a word or an idea that most TESOL members get terribly excited about. However, creating a new governance model for the association has been one of our biggest tasks this year, which completes a major undertaking that was started in 2011 when the Governance Review Task Force (GRTF) was struck. After 3 years of thorough and detailed data gathering and study, the GRTF report was released in March 2014. Since then, the association has engaged in several rounds of gathering feedback from members about the changes to the governance structure of the association.

As many SLWIS readers may also recall, in 2011 the association completed its change-of-name process and became the TESOL International Association. As then–TESOL President Christine Coombe wrote in her blog:

I can assure you that the decision to change the association’s name was not taken lightly. The Board and TESOL staff discussed the change at length, and given the ubiquity of the acronym “TESOL,” all agreed that a new name would better communicate what the association does and who it serves.

Based on all of that feedback, members will soon be receiving details of the new model, which represents many years of work by many people. Our goal is to flatten the organization by removing the multiple layers of administration that build up over time in any organization that has been growing for 50 years, so the association can be in good shape to go for at least another five decades!

And speaking of 50, there is a great deal of activity happening as part of our celebration of 50 years as an association. Two examples are the “50 at 50” and the “30 at 30” events, in which “TESOL will recognize two groups of professionals: 50 who have made significant contributions to the profession within the past 50 years (50 at 50), and 30 who are emerging as leaders in the profession (30 Up and Coming).”

As part of the commitment to being increasingly international, the association has had a number of important firsts in its 50th year, including its first event, a TESOL Academy, in India, in April. And in July, the association held its first event, a TESOL Symposium, in Vietnam. Details of those events, and others, can be found on my blog. As I wrote in my blog about the association’s first event in India:

Realizing that many of the ELT professionals in the world cannot attend annual conventions and conferences in person, the association has committed to an international scope. Therefore, through its face-to-face, on-site academies, symposia, and regional conferences all over the world, as well as its online courses and programs, the association is taking TESOL to the world.

As there is so much happening at the TESOL International Association these days, there is a lot more that I could write about, but I hope the examples above give you some indication of what and how much is happening. I know we’re information-overloaded already, but I would recommend taking at least a few minutes twice a week to look at TESOL’s English Language Bulletin, which is emailed automatically to all TESOL members, as it’s one of the best and quickest ways of keeping up to date with what’s happening.

Please feel to contact me, or any other member of TESOL’s Board of Directors, if you have ideas for how we can keep growing to meet the ever-changing needs and wants of our members. We look forward to hearing from you.

Andy Curtis

50th President, TESOL International Association