President's Message

Service is at the very heart of any professional association. Getting involved with NSELA serves all of us in the science education community and provides an opportunity for our members to “give back” and further develop their leadership pathways. Consider the myriad ways you can actively serve NSELA to support science teaching and learning for all:

 1. It’s nominations time! have you considered getting actively involved with NSELA by running for an NSELA Board position? Volunteering your time by giving back to the science education community can be one of the greatest rewards of leadership. It is an opportunity to work with others who deeply care about science education and enjoy collectively working together to support science leaders through NSELA’s programs, networks, and publications. Three Board positions are open for the 2022-23 election. Consider joining our dynamic and dedicated group of leaders by running for NSELA President-Elect (must be an NSELA member for at least three years), Region E Director (representing NE, KS, MO, ND, SD, MN, IA, WI, IL), or Region F Director (representing CA, NV, HI, OR, WA, AK, ID, MT, WY). Serving on the NSELA Board provides not only a personally rewarding experience to be at the forefront of supporting science education leadership; it also provides an opportunity to work with and learn from a dedicated, community of experienced leaders working collectively to move NSELAforward. Visit nsela.org to learn more about these positions and how to apply. Nominations close November 8, 2022.

 2. Committees are the workhorses of NSELA. Committees provide an opportunity for our members to share their expertise and knowledge and improve our Board’s effectiveness. Besides the satisfaction of working on something you deeply care about, serving on a committee is also an opportunity to build collegial relationships with your peers and learn from each other. Committees include Affiliates, Awards, Communications and Marketing, Diversity and Equity, Informal Science, Membership, Nominations, and Professional Development. Please contact me at [email protected] if you are interested in serving on one of our committees.

 3. Networking and learning from each other is one of the benefits of NSELA membership. There are several opportunities for you to share your knowledge and expertise. Consider presenting at an NSELA-sponsored session at the NSTA Conferences. A one-day NSELA Leadership Summit (LS) preceding the NSTA national conference features professional learning sessions presented by researchers and practitioners. This year’s LS will be held March 22, 2023 in Atlanta, GA. Our flagship event is the 2.5 day Summer Leadership Institute (SLI). This year’s SLI will be held in Providence, Rhode Island the last week of June 2023. Consider submitting a proposal to present at this year’s LS or the SLI. NSELA also offers webinars throughout the year. Do you have a program, practice, or idea you would like to share during one of our monthly webinars? If you are interested in presenting at any of these events, please contact our Professional Development Chair, Dr. Andrew Weatherhead.

 4. Do you like to share your ideas with others through writing? Consider publishing through NSELA. The Science Educator is NSELA’s peer-reviewed journal which seeks manuscripts dealing with topics and issues of interest to professionals involved in science education leadership. You can learn more about publishing in our bi-annual, electronic journal here. We are also seeking short articles for elementary science leaders through our collaboration with NSTA’s Science and Children journal for a new column titled, Leadership Matters- Tools, Strategies, and Resources to Support Leaders. If you are an elementary teacher leader, district science coordinator, elementary pre-service science educator, or work in any role that supports elementary science, please consider sharing your ideas for supporting elementary science leaders. Contact Kathy Renfrew or information on submitting an article. Consider writing for our monthly newsletter. Our Marketing and Communications Committee welcomes short articles such as leadership spotlights, tips and tools, book reviews, events you participated in, white papers, and other information that would be useful and interesting to science education leaders.

 5. Are you part of a company that supports science education? Our partners play an important role in supporting NSELA’s programs. They give back to NSELA not only by contributing financial support, they also share their knowledge and expertise with our members and become active participants in our events. Our partners are science education leaders who share NSELA’s vision and proactively and meaningfully engage with our membership. We appreciate the commitment and participation of our present partners such as Vernier, Flynn, and Legends of Learning and our past partners. Are you a company that would like to partner with NSELA? We welcome new partners. Please contact me at [email protected] to discuss ways you can become involved with NSELA as a partner.

 These are just some of the ways you can become actively involved as an NSELA member. You may have ideas of your own on ways to “pay it forward” to NSELA as well as enrich your own leadership. Feel free to reach out to your regional director or to me to propose your ideas. We are always looking for new and innovative ways to support our members. Your service to our organization makes us all stronger. Thanks in advance for your contributions!

Respectfully,

Page Keeley, NSELA President 2022-23