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“MEC courses have made me excited about mathematics and sharing strategies and methods with my students. Students’ understanding of the fifth grade curriculum is rapidly increasing!”  - 5th Grade Teacher

 

“MEC has helped the district in the beginning stages of establishing a shared vision for what it means to educate students who are mathematically powerful and what classroom practices will best lead us there.”  - Elementary Teacher
 
 
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Board of Directors

Members of MEC Board of Directors bring a wide range of expertise and experience to their role of advising and enhancing MEC work.

James Howe. As president of the MEC Board, Jim brings broad expertise in the areas of the workings of government and directing successful non-profit endeavors. He is a former member of the Policy Planning Council of the U.S. State Department with a concentration on relations between the U.S. and the Third World, a former President of the International Renewable Energy Service, and a former Director of the Program Offices of the U.S. Foreign Assistance Programs to Vietnam and Brazil and Director of the American aid program to the East African Union consisting of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Jim was a founding member and President of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and chairman of the NAMI Board at the state level in Maryland and Washington.

Marta Civil. Marta is a professor in the mathematics department at the University of Arizona. She is an expert in mathematics, the cultural and social aspects in the teaching and learning of mathematics, equity, and parental engagement in mathematics, primarily in working-class, Latino communities. Marta is currently the Principal Investigator of NSF-funded CEMELA (Center for the Mathematics Education of Latinos/as), a Center for Learning and Teaching. CEMELA is an interdisciplinary, multi-university consortium focused on research and practice on the connections between the teaching and learning of mathematics and the cultural, social, and linguistic contexts of Latino/a students.

Joan Akers Mitchell. As a leader in mathematics education for more than 35 years, Joan has considerable experience in working with teachers, writing curriculum, and developing a number of guidelines and frameworks. Starting as a classroom teacher, Joan worked as a Mathematics Education Consultant at the district, county and state levels, retiring several years ago from the California State Department of Education. She is a past member of the Board of Directors of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Tom Richardson. As vice-president of the MEC Board, Tom brings his expertise in management and development of non-profit organizations. Previously CEO and later Chair of a large non-profit organization developed during the War on Poverty era, he is retired and currently on the Board of Directors of four not-for-profit organizations focused on public policy and practices surrounding either public education or the treatment of people with mental illnesses.

Joanne Walmsly. As treasurer of the MEC Board, Jody brings broad experiences both nationally and internationally in the area of mathematics education. Currently an elementary teacher in the Edmonds School District (WA), she has dedicated her entire career to being a classroom teacher and a mathematics teacher-leader.