CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Proposals due May 15, 2024

 

​Strength in Collaboration:

Innovations to Recruit, Prepare, Mentor, Retain,
and Advance Excellent Educators

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The 2024 NYSATE-NYACTE Annual Conference will focus on how we can work together to bring outstanding, motivated, and committed individuals into our profession and help them continue to grow in excellence and leadership. The theme incorporates the “life journey” of an educator’s career. The focus is extremely critical at the present time of teacher and school leader shortages, as well as the dearth of support personnel such as school nurses, counselors, and advisors. Recent reports estimate there may be at least 55,000 teacher vacancies in school districts nationwide, and an additional 270,000 teaching positions filled by educators without the required qualifications (Annenberg Institute, 2022). The high rate of teacher turnover (14%) witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic years of 2021-2022 has not been fully brought back to earlier levels (NCES, 2023) and additional funding for support personnel through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has ended. The data point to a concerted need for institutions of higher education to partner with school districts, community agencies, and state departments of education to invite individuals into the education profession, support them in their work, and grow leadership for the future.

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Recruit 

According to a 2022 report from the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education, enrollment in teacher education programs dropped by about 33% from 2008 to 2019, with the areas of highest need (Bilingual Education, STEM Education fields, and Special Education) showing the steepest declines. The data are supported by earlier studies from the Learning Policy Institute (2019), leading to what has been described as a “cliff” with serious implications for the availability of educators in nation’s schools. There is also a growing gap in the racial, cultural, and experiential match between teachers and students (Aydin, Ozfidan, & Carothers, 2017). Collaborative efforts by colleges, community agencies, and schools are needed to mitigate the long-term detrimental effects on schools and children.

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Prepare 

Eighty-nine percent of teachers are prepared by institutions of higher education (Preparing And Credentialing The Nation’s Teachers, 2022). Educator preparation programs are the place where innovative research on the needs of students and schools take place, in collaboration with P-12 school district partners, educational policy makers, departments of education, and communities. Future educators need to be adept with not only subject matter expertise, but also advances in technology and artificial intelligence, equity and culturally responsive pedagogies and frameworks, family and community engagement, and a range of instructional and assessment practices. The field is constantly looking for ways to be dynamic, innovative, and responsive to changes in society.

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Mentor 

Combating teacher shortages includes the need to build self-efficacy of junior teachers so that they feel better prepared to work with the diverse populations and new challenges found in the schools. This can only be achieved through a system where experienced, successful teachers engage in support, mentoring, and professional development of their junior colleagues. Experienced educators are also in need of constant learning and support. The Learning Policy Institute (LPI) presented the field with elements for effective professional development (Darling-Hammond et al., 2017): (a) is content focused, (b) incorporates active learning, (c) supports collaboration, (d) uses models of effective practice, (e) provides coaching and expert support, (f) offers feedback and reflection, and (g) is of sustained duration. These and other models are critical as educators deal with unprecedented advancements in technology (e.g., artificial intelligence), student-centered learning approaches, and the need to build critical thinking and resilience in students.

​Retain 

While many individuals join the education profession based on a passion for making a difference in the lives of children and a commitment to creating a better world, many leave because of personal and workplace reasons, including burnout and hostile school environments, a trend that accelerated following the COVID-19 pandemic school closures. The number of teachers in NY is currently 217,398, down from 240,400 in 2012 (NCES, 2019). While insufficient pay is one of the reasons, other factors to be considered when looking for ways to retain excellent educators (NCES, 2024), include collegial supports within schools, support in managing student disciplinary issues, satisfaction with school climate, greater autonomy and creativity, and supports for other family commitments (Lovison & Mo, 2024). 

Advance 

Strong leadership has long been recognized as essential for schools to meet their mission to improve educational outcomes for students and create an environment in which educators can thrive (Jean-Marie, Normore, & Brooks, 2009). We can all learn from innovative leadership preparation programs that include curricula around building community relationships, supporting social justice for all students, challenging traditional structural models of schools, and bringing new learning modalities and technologies to their schools. Dynamic and innovative programs also help leaders balance their organizational responsibilities with additional factors such as increased accountability and scrutiny, and politicization of schools (Perna, 2023).

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CALL FOR PROPOSALS

For our 2024 conference, we welcome proposals that illustrate the many ways in which partnerships, collaborations and systems within education can help support professionals at all stages in their journeys. How can we invite the next generation of education professionals to our field? How can we support, enrich, and celebrate them as they continue to serve our diverse students and their families? How can schools, colleges, and governmental entities collaborate to build a strong educator workforce?

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Suggested topics include:

• Growing the education profession – outreach, communication, and ongoing support to attract candidates from both traditional and new communities.

• Innovative  models of educator preparation – residencies, internship models, alternate pathways, individual pathways, fully online programming, micro-credentials, etc.

• Enriching educator preparation programs – preparing educators to implement multilingual education, restorative justice , children’s expression through the arts, STEM education, technology for education, inclusive education, etc. 

• Encouraging collaboration within schools – creating professional communities, structures, and mechanisms that support educators working together with all professionals within schools.

• Retaining excellence – mentoring and supporting educators to keep them in the profession through collaborations across EPPs and P12 districts.

• Supporting professional growth – implanting innovative approaches to building and celebrating educator leadership.

 

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INFORMATION

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TYPES OF PROPOSALS

Individual Paper Presentation: An individual paper presentation provides an opportunity to share research and/or practice focused on the conference theme. Please note that presenters can expect to be grouped with at least one other paper for individual paper sessions (45 minute sessions/20 minutes per paper).

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Panel Presentation: A panel presentation allows multiple individuals (2-3) who have already linked their work to present together (45 minute session). Please note that presenters may only present as part of one panel presentation in order to ensure there is access to this format for as many different presenters as possible (45 minute session).

 

Roundtable Presentation: A roundtable offers opportunities to obtain insights and suggestions from colleagues in an informal, interactive format. Please note that the conference program will include Roundtable-only time slots in order to increase attendance at Roundtable sessions. There will be two presenters at each roundtable (20-25 minutes per presentation).

 

Special AV Note: Please note that all presenters must provide their own computers and projectors. The conference planners can provide screens and a cart with cables. The hotel rents AV equipment to individuals as well as to the organizations who plan the conference, though the cost of renting this equipment is high. Please let us know in advance if you require assistance with AV equipment.

 

PROPOSAL FORMAT
 

Please fill out 2024 NYSATE-NYACTE Conference Proposal to propose your session. Your proposal will include the following elements (please note the character limits for some sections):

1. Names of presenter(s);

2. Name of school/college affiliation, preferred address, preferred telephone number, and e-mail address of each presenter;

3. Presentation title;

4. Proposed format for the presentation;

5. Brief summary of the presentation suitable for inclusion in the conference program (350 character limit); and

6. Submit a structured abstract according to the following prompts: 

• Title

• Purpose and focus: What was your research question or problem of practice (900 character limit)? 

• Research and/or theoretical foundation: How does your work connect to literature in the field (900 character limit)? 

• Design/methodology/approach:  How did you explore your research question or problem of practice (900 character limit)?

• Findings/results/implications:  What did you learn (900 character limit)? 

• Relevance to the conference theme and significance to the field: How does your work connect to the conference theme and conversations in the field (900 character limit)? 

• Reference list (most recent APA format)
   

**Please note that each proposal will be blind reviewed by two individuals and is rated based on its connection to the theme of the conference and on the relevance and rigor of the work and research. Due to space limitations, conference organizers may request an individual paper or panel presentation shift to a roundtable format. The presentation format will be indicated in the acceptance letter.

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL

Proposals must be submitted electronically using the following link:

 2024 NYSATE-NYACTE Conference Proposal 

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The deadline for submitting proposals is May 15, 2024.

Authors will be notified by email by July 2024.

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Direct inquiries to:

Dr. Gina Riley                                        Dr. Rene S. Parmar

E-mail: griley@hunter.cuny.edu          E-mail: rene.parmar@lehman.cuny.edu   

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Check the NYSATE (www.nys-ate.org) and NYACTE (www.nyacte.org) websites for the most current information about scheduled keynotes and conference sessions.