Fourteen years ago I was introduced to the term developmental education; however, unbeknown to me, I had actually already been involved in it for twenty-five years without the descriptor.  The differences between those first twenty-five years and these last fourteen years are the result of becoming involved first in a state chapter and then in the national organization of NADE.

When a small college campus in Fort Wayne, Indiana, was acquired by Taylor University, the need to establish and direct a learning support center was a posted position—an opportunity to help freshmen who are academically at-risk and students who are on academic probation.  Upon becoming the director, I met Billie Manor, director of learning support on Taylor’s main campus—and that meeting has resulted in a wonderful journey in developmental education.  As my mentor, Billie has given me sound advice and wise guidance. 

One of her first suggestions was to become a member of INADE, where I have met many wonderful individuals who are so willing to share their experiences and expertise.  Building a network with them, attending state meetings, becoming involved through attending and presenting sessions, and eventually becoming INADE President were all steps in understanding the value of developmental education—even on a campus where I was the only “official” developmental educator.

Billie also encouraged me to join NADE and to attend my first NADE annual conference in 1993.   Again, building a network with other NADE members, attending and presenting sessions, chairing a SPIN group, attending Leadership Congresses, and being part of the conference team for NADE 1999 have all been part of developing a deeper understanding of the importance of developmental education, even on a small Christian liberal arts campus.

As NADE Vice-President, these two years have been filled with enriching experiences in developmental education--once again building a network of relationships, attending and speaking at state chapter meetings, serving as Board liaison for NADE 2005 (SWADE) and NADE 2006 (PADE), working with LAANE and NCADE for upcoming NADE annual conferences, and being part of the NADE Board.

Thank you, Billie, for beginning this process and for being supportive throughout the years (Enjoy your retirement!)  Thank you to my university administrators, colleagues, and students who have been so patient these two years.  Thank you to members of INADE and NADE for all the experiences.  I look forward to continued involvement both locally and nationally, which brings me to my initial point: being involved.

The influence of developmental educators is important on both the state and the national level. Each NADE member needs to be a member of his or her state/regional chapter; likewise, each state/regional member needs to be a member of NADE.  If each member on both levels brings just one new member, NADE would be 100% greater and stronger.  Also, each member needs to be more involved in furthering the goals of NADE; there’s enough to do to keep us all working locally and nationally.  Getting involved is, afterall, active learning!  

Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you want to make a difference?

• Do you have background in developmental coursework, tutoring, and/or course-based learning assistance programming?

• Are you interested in promoting quality?

• Are you familiar with standards for effective practice?

• Do you apply theory to practice in your program?

• Do you regularly use data from program evaluations to make strategic decisions?

If you can answer "yes" to any of the above, then the NADE Certification Council wants you!!!

That's right! The Certification Council wants you:

• To serve the profession by becoming a certification application reviewer,

• To attend the Philadelphia conference and engage with other reviewers in training sessions, and

• To become an active participant in the certification process.

If you are interested and can attend the all-day Certification Training Institute in Philadelphia from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 15, 2006, and the Reviewer Training from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 16, 2006, then send a one-page summary of your experience to Karen Patty-Graham at kpattyg@siue.edu by January 23, 2006.

We look forward to welcoming you to the community of NADE Certification Reviewers!

Many NADE chapters have established a method of keeping selected materials from each year’s notable activities.  If your chapter has not yet done so, now is the perfect time to begin archiving materials that will help define and showcase your chapter’s character and growth.  When chapter policies have been established and reinforced, archiving up-to-date materials is an ongoing and relatively simple process. 

Initially begun as a required procedure, MADE’s archival practices have developed into a welcomed tradition.  A historian, appointed by the MADE President as a member-at-large of the Executive Board, fulfills three key tasks assigned with the appointment:  (1) the pictorial recording of events of the Chapter’s annual conference; (2) the filing of key materials from the annual conference; and (3) the archiving of any other information of historical value, such as newsletters, minutes, and budget reports, related to the year’s activities.  As part of its archival procedures, MADE also selected a place to store its archives: the Reading and Education Department on the Raymond Campus of Hinds Community College (a natural location, since that Department has also been the workplace of four MADE Presidents).

Scrapbooks are the primary method of recording and showcasing the Chapter’s main events.  Through the years, many MADE historians have been careful to ensure that most, if not all, attendees of each conference are showcased through photographs and appropriate labeling indicating the title of the pictured event and the names of the participants.

At each annual conference, scrapbooks from previous years are displayed, and members enjoy reliving past accomplishments; relishing memories of collegial friendship and professionalism; delightfully scrutinizing subtle (or not so subtle) changes in hair style and fashion through the years; and imagining themselves to be ten to fifteen years younger—but with the wisdom, accomplishments, and knowledge of today!

Procedures and policies which ensure the repetition of good practices are the results of the work of many thoughtful individuals who have contributed notably to their chapter’s legacy.  Those who established the procedures and those who have implemented them through the years know that an informed past can lead a chapter into a very productive future.    

“Happy New Year!” is a routine phrase heard each January, but the dawn of this new year is especially welcome for many of us. The year 2005 brought many great accomplishments and much joy, but it was also a particularly challenging year, especially as our nation felt the various devastating effects – directly and indirectly – of the unprecedented natural disasters Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. In my home state, Mississippi, and the whole Gulf South region, the destruction of lives, livelihoods, and property is overwhelmingly crippling and will continue to be so for years to come.

Our nation is a generous one, though, and this outpouring of aid from all over the country, and from the world, has been gratifying. Still, the ramifications of this great loss will also be felt by our already-challenged higher educations system. Government is being called upon to provide many billions in federal aid – funds which are indeed sorely needed – and this means cutbacks in other areas of the budget. Now, more than ever, developmental educators must join our colleagues throughout higher education in fighting not to lose ground in funding. Political advocacy and positive public relations have never been more important than now.

Remember, we offer an increasingly valuable product, especially in times of economic stress: educated, well-trained citizens, many of whom were written off by some as being incapable of self-sufficiency. Following such tragedy, there is a huge and ever-growing need for workers to build and rebuild, not only for construction-related employees to physically rebuild a region, but for all levels of technically- and academically-prepared workers to meet the needs of a “ripple” effect felt throughout our entire economy.

If you ever wanted to get involved in public policy, this is it for the professionals of NADE. We hope to keep you well-informed about opportunities for political and community-relations advocacy opportunities on the national level, but you can also easily find and pursue such opportunities on your state and local levels – where many of the most important action are being taken. Developmental Education, as all of higher education, has tremendous challenges and multitudes of opportunity now.

Contact and stay in touch with your chapter Political Liaison as well as with NADE. We are working toward some better ways of fostering communication among our members, such as finalizing a long-awaited website and a “call to action” system such as several other educators’ professional organizations have, but we need more volunteers with energy and fresh ideas to join local and national Political Liaison Committees. As for myself, I recently agreed to serve as political liaison for my own chapter, MADE, a really rewarding role. Also, when I relinquish chairperson duties for this the NADE Political liaison Committee, I plan to still be a very active member of the committee. Advocacy is invigorating work, but it can also be a bit draining when we’re not getting all the involvement that we can from other members. So please join us in whatever capacity you feel comfortable. Together, the tasks will not seem so difficult and the investment will be most rewarding!

Update: In November the U. S. House of Representatives, by the thinnest of margins (217-21) passed HR4241, which cut approximately $14.3 billion dollars from the federal student loan program. By the time you read this, the bill should be in conference committee with the Senate. Also, it remains unclear when significant action will be taken on re-authorization of the vital Higher Education Bill. Please let your Congressman know of your interest in these pieces of legislation.

NADE Director, Karen Patty-Graham, attended the semi-annual meeting of the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) October 16-18, 2005, in Washington, D.C. The Council consists of representatives from approximately 37 professional associations that are committed to providing quality services to students in higher education.  Each association’s director serves on committees that develop and review standards; these standards are reviewed by the Council as a whole with approval required by a majority of association members present.  During the October meeting, the Council reviewed four sets of standards (Academic Advising, Orientation Programs, Student Conduct Programs, and Women Student Programs and Services) and approved a new set of standards (Education Abroad Programs and Services). 

Upcoming CAS activities will include the following:

• Sixth edition of The Book of Professional Standards for Higher Education, due in August 2006.  Although the Learning Assistance Programs standards will not be revised for this edition, the contextual statement will be revised by NADE and CRLA constituencies for inclusion in the new edition. 
• CAS-sponsored national symposium, “CAS Standards, Self-Assessment, and Student Learning in Higher Education,” October/November 2006.  Keynote speaker, invited workshops, and cross-association discussions in four theme tracks are anticipated. 

If you or someone from your institution has used CAS Standards and Guidelines for program self-evaluation, please contact Karen so that information can be included in an anticipated database of such program efforts.  If you would like to recommend additional professional standards that should be considered by CAS, pass that information along to Karen.  For additional information about CAS, go to the NADE web site at www.nade.net or go directly to the CAS web site at www.CAS.edu.

Greetings from the Minnesota Association of Developmental Education (MNADE).  We have a number of updates to share.  Our annual conference, held in early October in north central Minnesota, was attended by more than 70 individuals, including several faculty members from North Dakota and Wisconsin.  Plans are well under way for next fall’s annual conference scheduled for September 28^th-29^th in northern Minnesota.  Regional meetings will take place in three locations on April 6^th.

Our organization is also involved in a number of exciting initiatives.  A subgroup of members developed a college readiness brochure which has been enthusiastically utilized in both post-secondary and high school settings.  At the moment, the brochure is being translated into Spanish, Hmong and Somali so that it will reach a multilingual audience.  During the November national College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA) conference in California, a team from MNADE presented an extremely well-received session on the brochure and its many uses.  Finally, several MNADE members are putting together an oral history of developmental education in Minnesota by conducting research and interviews of past MNADE presidents and key members. 

As an organization, MNADE continues to explore ways to reflect on and to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population of developmental education students throughout the state.

The Executive Board is issuing a call for nominations for officers who will serve on the Board beginning in March 2007.  The positions to be filled are President-Elect (one year in that position and one year as President) and Treasurer (two-year term).  Individuals elected to the positions will be installed at the Spring 2007 NADE conference.  The deadline for nominations is August 15, 2006.

The Executive Board welcomes and is actively soliciting nominations from NADE chapters and from individual NADE members.  Nominees should be aware of and willing to pursue nomination.  The Election Committee will submit all suggested nominees and recommendations regarding them to the Executive Board.  The Board will then review the names submitted, review the Election Committee recommendations, and determine the slate for the ballot.  The Election Committee will present to the membership the final list of nominees in ballot form by mail.

A suggested nomination does not automatically constitute a place on the slate.  In the interest of diversity, the following factors of the suggested nominee will be considered in relation to recent and current board members: geographical location of the nominee, gender of the nominee, ethnicity of the nominee, and type of institution (e.g., two year, four year; public, private).  Factors to be considered will include interest level of the nominee, résumé of the suggested nominee, developmental education/learning assistance experience, presentations and publications, nominee’s references, length of membership in NADE at the chapter and national level, and description of previous NADE leadership activities (e.g., chapter leader, national committee chair or member, SPIN groups chair).  Leadership in other associations may be considered as well.

Nominees should have the time and institutional support for the activities necessary to carry out the duties of the respective positions.  Institutional support may be demonstrated in a variety of ways (e.g., secretarial help; costs for telephone calls, mailing, copying and travel.)  Institutional support of the suggested nominee’s institution must be provided in written form (e.g., promise that the nominee will receive additional leave to attend executive board meetings and NADE conferences, time to respond to telephone calls during work hours, time to conduct some association business during work hours).

In addition to meeting the specific qualifications for each position, Board officers are also expected to fulfill more general but essential roles as team members who take an active role in running the Association.  The Election Committee will send each nominee a copy of the appropriate job description.

OPEN POSITIONS FOR THE 2007-2008 NADE EXECUTIVE BOARD

The President-Elect shall act as presiding officer of the Association in the absence of the Vice-President and shall assume primary responsibility for the development and coordination of the Association’s local chapters. In this capacity, the President-Elect shall maintain regular communication and act as primary Board liaison with state and regional chapters; participate actively in all Executive Board meetings and provide report of all activities; review and recommend action regarding chapter grant applications in collaboration with the Treasurer; participate on the Journal of Developmental Education Advisory Council; plan and facilitate the annual workshop for chapter officers in collaboration with them; update regularly the leadership notebook in collaboration with the chapter officers and the Secretary; collaborate with the Elections Committee Chair to coordinate the process of amending the Constitution and Bylaws; collaborate with the conference planners; maintain and disseminate appropriate listings of all chapter meeting dates; provide articles on a regular basis to the NADE Newsletter; perform additional duties at the discretion of the President and Executive Board; provide timely transition to the incoming President-Elect.

The Treasurer is responsible for all the financial transactions of the Association; records the receipts of all dues and other income as well as expenditures approved by the Executive Board; develops, maintains, and communicates the annual budget to the Executive Board, membership, and other affected entities; works with outside entities concerning, negotiating, and developing contractual services; maintains and communicates insurance needs; develops and maintains all credit services and responsibilities; develops and maintains all investments; writes and signs all checks for all expenditures authorized by the Executive Board; prepares and delivers documentation and financial statements to audit annually; communicates and consults regularly with the NADE auditor concerning policies and procedures related to legal and tax issues; develops and delivers a financial report for each NADE Newsletter at each general and special meeting of the membership and each meeting of the Executive Board; concurrently works with the past, present and future NADE Conference Treasurers to communicate financial policies and procedures related to all income and expenses of the NADE Conference; and works with the incoming Treasurer to ensure a smooth transition of all responsibilities for the financial aspects of the Association’s business.  Although not required, a notable background or experience working with accounting software such as Quicken,  Microsoft Money, or Peachtree Accounting is preferred.

Please submit names of persons who you believe would serve the organization well in these positions.  Contact the individuals prior to submitting their names to make certain they are willing to place their names in nomination.  Self-nominations are welcome.

Click here for the Nominations Form (which is a Word Document).

ANNOUNCEMENTS

WANT TO NETWORK WITH LIKE-MINDED PROFESSIONALS?
JOIN THE LRNASST LISTSERVE!

To subscribe, send an email to LISTSERV@LISTS.UFL.EDU but leave the subject header blank. In the body of the email, put this message: "SUBSCRIBE LRNASST-L [your name here]." You will be emailed shortly by the LRNASST moderator.

For more information on LRNASST,
visit the NADE web site:
http://www.nade.net/

For more information on Corporate Relations,
visit the NADE web site:
http://www.nade.net/

Hilda P. Barrow

President-Elect

Pitt Community College

P. O. Drawer 7007
Greenville, NC 27835
(P) 252-493-7416
(F) 252-493-7800
(E) hbarrow@email.pittcc.edu

Rural Valley, PA 16249

(P) 724-357-4081
(F) 724-357-6940
(E) paulhrab@iup.edu

Gettysburg, PA 17325

(P) 717-337-3855 Ext. 3013
(F)
(E) rdcasper@hacc.edu

NADE GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION

When are the deadlines for submission?

• The deadline for Late Spring/Early Summer edition is April 15th.

• The deadline for Fall edition is September 15th.

• The deadline for Winter edition is January 15th, except when the annual conference falls in February, in which case the deadline is December 15th.

When and how is the NADE Newsletter published?

• Late Spring/Early Summer edition is published by June 15th.  It is published in hard copy and online.

• Fall edition is published by October 15th.  It is published online only.

• Winter edition is published by February 15th, except when the annual conference falls in February, in which case it is published one month prior to the conference.  It is published online only.

What can I submit to the NADE Newsletter?

• Original articles 1000 words or less.  Reprints of articles from chapter newsletters are acceptable.

• Articles are usually focused on NADE news: articles from officers; reports from committees, councils, and SPINs; blurbs from chapters; articles from sister organizations with which NADE has reciprocal agreements; short informative articles of interest to our members (such as how-to articles, book reviews, etc.).

• Research-oriented articles are best steered elsewhere.

How do I submit my article?

• Article must be typed and submitted electronically.  Microsoft Word documents attached to emails are preferred.  Plain text in the body of an email is okay.  Article must be PC-compatible.

• If you have documentation, use APA or MLA style.

• Don’t worry about special formatting.  I will have to change the formatting of what you submit anyway.

• If you have pictures, send them separately from your article.  Make sure that they are in .jpg format. 

Where do I send my article?