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When I retired from the Pittsburgh Public Schools Mathematics Department as a Mathematics Supervisor/ Curriculum Specialist, it was difficult to completely divorce myself from the mathematics community and its many opportunities and issues. I felt the need to maintain a level of involvement and remain current in my field. NCSM has provided the vehicle for my renewed engagement. Involvement in NCSM has provided me with a network of colleagues to discuss leadership issues, to share ideas, and to keep current on research and legislation. I appreciate and look forward to receiving the many resources, position papers, e-mail listserv messages, and newsletters. At the Annual Conference in DC this year I gathered many new ideas and strategies to use in my curricular work and in my work with pre-service teachers.

I began my career as a mathematics teacher and my NCTM membership was a valuable resource for teaching ideas and lessons. When I became a district curriculum specialist I needed more specialized knowledge and skills regarding leadership issues and interactions with the mathematics teaching staff district-wide and at all levels K-12. I needed outreach ideas for parents, the community at large and district and school administrators. I needed to help create a coherent systemic professional development system that focused on not only motivational and engaging classroom lessons, but also best practices in instruction and in assessment. At my first NCSM conference, I found a wealth of knowledge to use in all of these endeavors. At each annual conference, I would return home with new and effective action plans created from the strands focused by that year's planning committee. That yearly renewal gave me the energy and creative juices to tackle another year.