Strategic planning for professional engagement

L. J. Randolph Jr. As I compose my final president's message for Foreign Language Annals, I am reminded of the many ways that I have connected with the ACTFL membership throughout the year. This has included attending each of the five in-person regional conferences (Central States, Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Pacific Northwest Council for Languages, Southern Conference on Language Teaching, and Southwest Conference on Language Teaching); presiding over the “Language as Liberation” virtual town hall series; and connecting in various other ways (both in person and virtually). Although there were moments of exhaustion, connecting with so many of ACTFL's members across the nation has been the source of much joy, inspiration, admiration, and rejuvenation. Serving as ACTFL President has been the honor of a lifetime, and I look forward to our continued work together during the remainder of my term in 2024 and my role as Past President in 2025. Throughout my presidency, I have used the theme of “Language as Liberation” to apply a lens of hope, optimism, resistance, empowerment, and joy not only to language teaching and programming but also to how we imagine professional engagement. Here, I use “professional engagement” to include how we bring people into the profession (recruitment), how we keep them in the profession (retention), and how we consistently provide opportunities for sustained engagement and growth (professional development). The Teacher Recruitment and Retention pillar of the strategic plan calls for ACTFL to constantly reassess its role in teacher recruitment and retention to allocate the appropriate resources, explore new opportunities, and increase overall impact toward this endeavor. This work is ongoing and involves many initiatives and programs. Below, I highlight just one of ACTFL's recent efforts to address the recruitment and retention of a diverse teaching force. It is well known that there is a nationwide teacher shortage in PK-12 public education and that the racial and gender demographics of PK-12 educators do not reflect the demographics of the PK-12 student population. Demographics for world language educators are especially disproportionate across certain identities. For example, data from the National Center for Education Statistics (2022) show that world language education in particular has one of the highest percentages of female teachers (70.9%) and one of the lowest percentages of Black teachers (4.2%) when compared to other disciplines in secondary public schools. In response to this professional landscape, earlier this year, ACTFL established the ACTFL Black Language Educators (ABLE) Institute. The institute held its inaugural event at Howard University in early August. With the aim of recruiting, connecting, retaining, supporting, and celebrating Black language teachers, the institute brought together undergraduate students, practicing educators, and other language professionals for a 4-day professional development event. The undergraduate students who participated in the program were pursuing majors or minors in world languages, education, or related fields and indicated at least some interest in learning about or pursuing language education as a career path. During the institute, student participants learned about the language teaching profession and networked with various language professionals. Upon conclusion of the event, one student participant reflected, “The program influenced my decision to pursue language teaching by showing the power of language education as a tool for social change. Seeing how language can bridge gaps and empower communities, I felt inspired to potentially [become] a language educator myself. Maybe this is my calling!” I am pleased with the momentum and interest that this institute has generated, and I look forward to the continued work of the ABLE collective. In addition to recruiting and retaining a talented and diverse teacher workforce, ACTFL is committed to the continued professional growth and engagement of its current and future members. As articulated in the Professional Development pillar of the strategic plan, ACTFL remains dedicated to accessible, innovative, and highly valued opportunities for professional learning and development. Of course, our largest stand-alone professional development event is the annual convention and expo. This year's convention will take place at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia on November 22−24. The ACTFL Convention Committee and staff have worked tirelessly to create a wonderful program featuring hundreds of high-quality, engaging sessions. The opening keynote speaker will be Emmy Award-winning actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, who can currently be seen starring in the award-winning series “Abbott Elementary.” Blessing Offor, a Grammy-nominated musical artist and reality TV star, will be the closing keynote speaker. In addition to their pursuits in the entertainment industry, both Ralph and Offor are passionate, outspoken advocates for many social issues. Their keynote presentations will surely captivate, encourage, and inspire us all. Along with the keynotes, there will be a special virtual appearance from Puerto Rican poet Roque Salas Rivera, who was named a poet laureate of Philadelphia in 2018. Rivera will join us virtually to recite passages from his award-winning poetry collections. Finally, I will be hosting two featured presidential sessions—“Language As Liberation: Intersections of Race and Identity in WLE” (featuring a series of research paper presentations from renowned experts and emerging scholars) and “Language As Liberation: A Panel Discussion with the ACTFL President” (featuring a diverse panel of language educators and researchers as we collectively imagine liberatory futures in the profession). As wonderful as the convention is, it represents only one of many ways that members can remain engaged. ACTFL's many special interest groups (SIGs) provide additional opportunities for engagement. The SIGs host webinars and other professional development events throughout the year, and each SIG also has its own virtual community space through ACTFL Central. ACTFL members are able to join as many SIGs as they wish at no additional cost. As professional needs evolve, ACTFL continues to adapt and innovate. Our members are currently in the process of proposing additional SIGs for Artificial Intelligence, Sign Language, and Neurodiversity. Yet another way that ACTFL members can engage is through our many volunteer opportunities, including but not limited to the following: ACTFL board member, SIG officer, webinar facilitator, convention presenter, proposal or materials reviewer, committee member, or even just a well-informed supporter/ambassador of ACTFL's initiatives. If you would like to become more involved with ACTFL, learn more about volunteer opportunities, or submit your name for consideration for current volunteer opportunities, please visit the volunteer portal of ACTFL Central. As we approach the end of 2024, I encourage you to set aside some time to reflect and consider taking the next step to deepen your professional engagement with ACTFL, in whatever form that may take. In the meantime, I look forward to seeing you soon in Philly!