Fwd: SIG news

From: Bill Barowy (wbarowy@attbi.com)
Date: Mon Apr 28 2003 - 10:36:12 PDT


I think you will find this information helpful. The need to develop sig
bylaws is in the air, but I find no mention of it here.

bb
---------- Forwarded Message ----------

Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2003 11:41:44 -0500
Reply-To: Bruce Thompson <bruce-thompson@TAMU.EDU>
Sender: aera-sc <AERA-SC@LISTSERVER.AERA.NET>
From: Bruce Thompson <bruce-thompson@TAMU.EDU>
Subject: SIG news

Dear SIG Chairs:

     Here is the promised recap of some of our discussions during the
Thursday AERA meeting of the SIG Executive Committee, SIG Chairs and other
interested SIG leaders, and the AERA Deputy Executive Director, Phoebe
Stevenson.
     ***FEEL FREE TO FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO MEMBERS OF YOUR SIGs***, if
you think they will find this information helpful.

1. MEMBERSHIP RECORDS
     As discussed in previous e-mails from me last summer, after the AERA
Council met, and in October, after the "Coordinated Committees" meeting in
Chicago, AERA put out for bid a contract for software to keep and analyze
membership records. Phoebe Stevenson updated us on this process, and
answered questions.
     The new contracted system is called NOAH. Upon implementation over the
next 2 or 3 months, we will see major changes in how AERA members can
access and update their own membership information. For example, members
can join AERA or SIGs on-line using credit cards. They can look at all
their data in the database, to make sure it is correct. They will see
EXACTLY the same record that AERA staff will see. Each member will have
this access based on a personal password. They will be able to change
selected fields themselves (e.g., update an e-mail address or other mailing
address).
     SIG leaders will have broader capabilities to access the system on a
password-protected basis. For example, a SIG Chair can himself/herself
create and immediately download a membership roster or a list of member
e-mails that are accurate at any given moment of time, without any
involvement of AERA staff.
     That's the GOOD news. That's also the BAD news. This means in the near
future program space will be allocated based on number of AERA members who
are active in a given SIG (i.e., no more "hold harmless" in allocating
program space). And, any SIG that in two contiguous years, once records are
accurate, has fewer than 30 members, WILL BE SUNSET.
     [However, SIGs can, upon the joint request of the involved SIGs, ask
the SIG Executive Committee to approve mergers. Or SIGs can request name
changes to facilitate a broader appeal.]

2. 2004 AERA PROGRAM SOFTWARE
     On Monday, AERA Council voted to terminate the TIGER proposal
processing system. Proposals for the 2004 meeting will be submitted using
software developed by All Academic, a company that has created such
software for other professional associations.
     There will be on-line training for SIG Program Chairs by mid-summer.
This will be widely available. I encourage several leaders in a given SIG
to access this training. The company will also provide some phone-in
support in using the system this year.
     The software will create e-mails warning of approaching deadlines.
Also, SIG leaders can "back stop" SIG Program Chairs to insure that
deadlines are being met, via accessing web-based summaries of progress in
doing program tasks.
     Last year some SIG Program Chairs did not perform tasks, unbeknownst
to other SIG leaders. Because this year SIGs will loose their program space
if deadlines are not met, it is important to have back-up mechanisms so
that the system is not "single point of failure."

3. 2004 SIG SCHEDULES
     We asked, and Phoebe Stevenson agreed, that (1) NO SIG BUSINESS
MEETINGS would be scheduled anywhere except evening "off hours", and (2)
nothing else would be scheduled in these hours, UNLESS the SIG Program
Chair overrides these requests by filing in "Special Request" boxes for the
involved sessions.
     You can also use the "Special Request" boxes to ask that your Business
meeting not be scheduled against that of a particular SIG, or, conversely,
you can make a "Special Request" that named SIGs do have their business
meetings all at the same time.
     We also asked, and Phoebe agreed, that NO TWO sessions of a given SIG
would EVER be scheduled against each other, unless there is a "Special
Request" to do so.

4. 2004 THEME
     The 2004 Program theme will be something like "Enhancing the
Visibility and Credibility of Educational Research," with subthemes
focusing on (a) Brown vs Board at age 50, (b) justifying evidence-based
claims, and (c) research on understanding the processes on teacher change
and support mechanisms.
     Each year the AERA President and the general Program Chair create
about 30 theme-related sessions. This year divisions and SIGs can propose
some of these sessions directly to the Program Chair, Ralph Putnam
(ralphp@msu.edu). If accepted, the sessions would then be co-sponsored by
both AERA and the division or SIG. This is an exciting way to increase your
program space and visibility, if you can come up with dynamite ideas
related to areas of the program theme.

Bruce Thompson

"What Future Quant Soc Science Could Look Like..."
http://www.aera.net/pubs/er/pdf/vol31_03/aera310309.pdf

http://www.coe.tamu.edu/~bthompson

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