NCSM History

Theme: Reaching the Peak of Mathematics Leadership: Guiding Teaching to Support Student Learning

The Year of Leadership:

• Published Great Tasks for Mathematics K-5.
• Published Great Tasks for Mathematics 6-12.
• Published the leadership position paper, “Improving Student Achievement by Infusing Highly Effective Instructional Strategies in RtI Tier I Instruction”.
• Co-published with NCTM and NAGC (National Association for Gifted Children) Common Core Standards for Mathematics with Gifted and Advanced Learners.
• Established the “Kay Gilliland Equity Lecture Series”. Miriam Leiva gave the first lecture at the 2013 annual conference.
• Partnered woth other mathematics education organizations to establish the Committee on Teachers as Professionals (C-TaP).
• Established electronic, subscription, and student memberships.
• Launched the PRIMEd Principal Blog” on the NCSM Website.
• Presented the 5th NCSM Webinar ” Transitioning to the CCSS with the Support of NCSM’s ‘Great Tasks’ for Mathematics”
• Presented the 6th NCSM Webinar “Measuring Math that Matters: the PARCC and Smarter Balanced Approaches to Assessment”
• Held the 15th NCSM Leadership Academy “Mathematics Leadership at Work: Moving the Common Core State Standards from Vision to Action” (June 25-27, 2012 at the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, Homestead, PA and July 31 – August 2, 2012 at the Sonoma County Education Center, Santa Rosa, CA).

• Practices that Support Coaches: The focus is on theoretically-informed and research-based practices that support mathematics coaches of content and pedagogy. Consider what practices teacher leaders and support coaches can use to reach the depths of knowledge for every student through the Common Core Standards and Practices.
• Equity for Each Learner: The focus is on equitable practices that will support administrators, coaches, teachers, and parents to engage and build student mathematical knowledge. Consider how leaders will support teachers to provide each student with relevant and meaningful mathematics experiences and in what ways they can facilitate erasing inequities in student learning.
• Assessing what Counts: The focus is on assessment practices that do more than measure a person’s achievement and then assign new and different pathways to understanding at deeper levels. Consider how mathematics leaders can facilitate every teacher to use student assessments to inform teacher practice and student learning.
• Knowledge for Leaders to Support a Strategic Infrastructure for Student Learning: The focus is on each administrator and mathematics teacher leader (coach) to have full knowledge of how to create an infrastructure that supports high achievement of mathematics learning for all students. Consider steps that administrators and teacher mathematics teacher leaders can take to ensure high quality mathematics instruction and how they will develop their Standards for Mathematical Practice as described in the Common Core Standards.

Theme: Shining the Light on Learning: A Vision for Mathematics Leaders

The Year of Leadership:

• Launched “Jump Start Formative Assessment” on the NCSM Website.
• Participated in the establishment of the “Mathematics Education Strategic Advocacy Summit” along with NCTM, AMTE, and ASSM.
• Held the 17th NCSM Leadership Academy “Mathematics Leadership at Work: Deepening Formative Assessment to Prepare for the Next Generation Summative Assessments” (June 30-July 2, 2014 at the Wyndham Riverfront Hotel, North Little Rock, AR).
• Published the leadership position paper, “Improving Student Achievement by Infusing Highly Effective Instructional Strategies into Multi-Tiered Support Systems (MTSS) – Response to Intervention (RtI) Tier 2 Instruction”.
• Distributed the joint White Paper of NCSM and COSN (Consortium for School Networking), “Mathematics Education in the Digital Age”.
• Established “Policies and Procedures for the NCSM List Serv”.
• Presented the 10th NCSM Leadership Webinar, “Jump Starting Formative Assessment: A Resource for Leaders”.
• Presented the 9th NCSM Webinar, “It’s TIME to Lead – A Call to Action for Mathematics Leaders”.
• Presented the 8th NCSM Webinar, “NCSM Great Tasks with TI Technology”.

• Teacher Evaluation and Teacher Quality: The focus is on approaches and tools that collect data and support sustained growth in teacher performance and quality. Consider how leaders can utilize instruments and evaluation practices to produce informative data and support areas to build on teacher skills to maximize student achievement.
• Formative Assessment Driving Instruction: The focus is on shifting teacher planning and daily instruction in ways that allow teachers to collect evidence of student thinking and then inform practice working both individually and collaboratively. This strand also includes a focus on strategies and techniques for helping students monitor and adjust their own learning.
• STEM and Career/College Readiness: The focus is on the increased attention to career and college readiness in the common core standards as related to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Consider the responsibilities of administrators and teachers in their efforts to work collaboratively with the school community to increase support for STEM-related courses and preparation for the future of today’s learners.
• Teaching and Learning in the Era of the Common Core State Standards and Assessments: The focus is on leveraging the CCSS to help teachers make the adjustments in lesson planning and instruction to improve student learning and thinking skills.
• Understanding and Teaching CCSS Standards Progressions: The focus of this strand is on helping teachers make sense of and build student’s mathematical understandings based on the progressions of the CCSS for whole number, fractions, measurement, algebra, geometry, data analysis, and statistics with examples for specific grade levels and implications for the surrounding grades. Sessions will also take-up implications for college/university placement and coursework, implications for professional development, research, curriculum development, and teacher preparation.

Theme: Leading Mathematics into the Future: Inspiring Monumental Change

The Year of Leadership:

• Presented at NCTM Annual Meeting in San Antonio (April 7, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Academy, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Bangor, ME, July 24-26, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Seminars, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Established the Teacher-Leader Professional Learning Grant (PreK-12)
• Five new NCSM affiliates including: North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Colorado Mathematics Leaders, New Hampshire Teachers of Mathematics, Nevada Mathematics Education Leadership Council, and Mississippi Mathematics Specialists
• Network
• Attended TASSM and presented about NCSM with RD Paul Gray (Austin, TX, October 17, 2018)
• Presented at NCTM’s Regional Conference Florida (Orlando, FL, October 18-20, 2017)
• Presented at CCSSO/SCASS with NCTM -Dave Barnes (Dallas, TX, October 23-25, 2017)
• Presented at School Science and Mathematics Association, SSMA (Lexington, KY, November 2-4, 2017)
• Presented at American Mathematical Association of Two Year Colleges, AMATYC ( San Diego, CA, November 8-11, 2017)
• Attended the Equity and Social Justice Fall Leadership Conference (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Presentation at NCTM Regional Conference and work at NCSM booth (Chicago, IL, November 30 -Dec.1, 2017)
• Represented NCSM at Conference Board of Mathematical Sciences, CBMS (Washington DC, December 8, 2017)
• Presented at the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators, AMTE (Houston, TX, February 8-10, 2018)
• Attended CCSSO/SCASS (Miami, FL February 20-22, 2018)
• Presented at the Texas Instruments T3TM International Conference (San Antonio, TX, March 1- 4, 2018)
• Participated in the Social Justice and Equity Webinar with John Staley (March 14, 2018)
• Presented at American Educational Research Association Annual meeting, AERA, with Shawn Towle (New York City, NY, April 13-15, 2018)
• Publication of the 50th Anniversary Program Booklet and facilitated the celebration at the 2018 Annual NCSM Conference
• Published the NCSM and NCTM joint leadership position paper, “Building STEM Education on a Sound Mathematical Foundation” (Spring 2018)
• Published the NCSM leadership position paper, “Computer Science and K-12 Mathematics” (Spring 2018)
• Led the revision of the NCSM Mission and Vision
• Presented at the 2018 NCSM Annual Conference: NCSM: Framing the future of mathematics education on a 50-year foundation of leadership.

• Leading instruction to leverage the Mathematics Practices for increased achievement – The focus will be on how leaders can help increase student achievement by facilitating teachers’ implementation of the mathematical practices in their classrooms.
• Examining the opportunities and challenges of using technology to support teaching and learning mathematics – The focus will be on examples and suggestions of technology uses that successfully support student learning and/or challenges that accompany technology use and how they might be overcome: more than simply how to use the technological tool.
• Advancing formative assessment as an integral tool for understanding student thinking and guiding instruction – This strand will focus on how to use assessment as an integral tool for improved instruction.
• Exploring strategies and tools for mathematics leaders and coaches to support mathematics learning – This strand will focus on successful approaches to help new and veteran leaders increase student learning and understanding.
• Shifting practices to effectively implement the Common Core State Standards: Equity for all learners with focus, rigor, and depth – This strand will include equity topics with a specific interest in the shifts suggested by the Common Core State Standards. Even if your state is not participating in CCSS, there are components of the shifts that are important for improving student learning.

Theme: Building Bridges Between Leadership and Learning Mathematics: Leveraging Education Innovation and Research to Inspire and Engage

The Year of Leadership:

• Launched the NCSM 2016 – 2018 strategic initiatives to focus our work on growing and supporting mathematics education leaders at all levels: Connecting Leaders, Leadership Learning, and Equity and Social Justice in Mathematics Education
• Launched the leadership professional learning series for seminars and academies, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Seminar, It’s TIME: Using Imperatives to Support and Motivate Leaders in Mathematics Education: Shifting Beliefs and Mindsets (Atlantic City, NJ – October 21, 2015 and Nashville, TN – November 18, 2015)
• Held the 18th NCSM Leadership Academy “Mathematics Leadership in a Time of change: Building Leaders at all Levels – Social Justice, Systemic Thoughts and Actions, and Leadership” (June 13-15, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza, Billings, MT)
• Distributed the joint leadership position paper of NCSM and TODOS, “Mathematics Education Through the Lens of Social Justice: Acknowledgment, Actions, and Accountability”
• Launched the NCSM PLC APP prototype
• Participated in the establishment of “A Call for Collective Action to Develop Awareness: Equity & Social Justice in Mathematics Education”, a collaboration between mathematics education organizations that involved a yearlong series of readings and monthly webinars to establish a common awareness of issues related to equity and social justice in mathematics education

• Cultivating Leadership In a Time of Change – The focus will be on leader actions and thought processes that help improve teaching and learning at the building, district, region and state/province levels.
• Coaching That Matters – The focus will be on the coach’s role in supporting all aspects of the teaching and learning of mathematics.
• Advancing the Social Justice Conversation – This strand will focus on the unique interactions of mathematics education and student learners within their racial, cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic communities.
• Enhancing Mathematics Education in the Digital Age – This strand will focus on technological innovations that promote deep student learning of mathematical concepts as well as models of professional learning experiences that take advantage of affordances of technology.
• Sharing Research that Informs Mathematics Education – This strand will focus on research found to impact practice in the mathematics classroom and in professional learning for teachers.

Theme: Engaging in the Mission of Mathematics Education Leadership: High Quality, Meaningful and Relevant Mathematics for All

The Year of Leadership:

• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Seminar, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Level – Curriculum Leadership (Phoenix, AZ, October 25, 2016)
• Held the 19th NCSM Leadership Academy “Mathematics Leadership in a Time of change: Building Leaders at all Levels – Curriculum Leadership” (July 18-20, 2016 at Adlai Stevenson High School, Lincolnshire, IL)
• Held the 20th NCSM Leadership Academy “Mathematics Leadership in a Time of change: Teaching and Learning Leadership” (December 2-4, 2016 at the Georgia Tech Hotel Conference Center, Atlanta, GA)
• Established new grant, “Teacher-Leader Professional Learning” for PreK-12 educators to support professional learning focused on one of NCSM’s signature initiatives, Formative Assessment, Digital Learning or Access-Equity-Empowerment
• Developed an NCSM Onboarding program for newly elected and appointed board members
• Updated NCSM Roles and Responsibilities manual
• Participated in the establishment of year two for “A Collective Call to Action Equity & Social Justice in Mathematics Education: From Awareness to Action”, November 2017 – January 2019, a continued collaboration between mathematics education organizations that involved a series of readings, online discussion board, and quarterly webinars to support participants as they begin taking action to address equity and social justice issues
• Released the full version of the NCSM PLC APP and first two modules of the Digital Learning: Imperatives for change series – “A Connected Professional Culture” and “Selecting Hardware for Learning”
• Held the first Annual preconference sessions – “Fostering Effective Teaching and Learning: How to Achieve Your Mathematics Vision” and “Leading Mathematics Education in the Digital Age”
• Participated in the White House Symposium on “Advancing Active STEM Education for Our Youngest Learners” to promote active science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) learning for our youngest children.
• Conducted two elementary school visits in Atlanta, GA and Orlando, Fl to promote the use of STEM problem-based high-cognitive demand tasks with a mathematics foundation
• Established a NCSM-NCTM joint committee to select sites for future annual and regional conferences

• Powerful Mathematics Education Leadership – Presentations in this strand will focus on research-affirmed leadership actions and thought processes to improve teaching and learning at the building, district, region and state/province levels.
• Visionary Coaching Practices – Presentations in this strand will focus on the coach’s role in supporting all aspects of the teaching and learning of mathematics.
• Motivational Mathematics Teaching and Learning – Presentations in this strand will focus on engaging students in mathematics, sparking interest through meaningful tasks, dynamic technology, and strong curriculum that address the rigor, depth, and conceptual understanding of mathematical standards.
• Empowering Equity and Social Justice Leadership – Presentations in this strand will focus on equitable practices to support building, district, region and state/province level leaders that build all students’ mathematical knowledge.
• Exemplary Assessment Leadership – Presentations in this strand will focus on research-affirmed assessment practices that support student and teacher engagement in reflective practices.

Theme: Leading Mathematics into the Future: Inspiring Monumental Change

The Year of Leadership:

• Presented at NCTM Annual Meeting in San Antonio (April 7, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Academy, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Bangor, ME, July 24-26, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Seminars, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Established the Teacher-Leader Professional Learning Grant (PreK-12)
• Five new NCSM affiliates including: North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Colorado Mathematics Leaders, New Hampshire Teachers of Mathematics, Nevada Mathematics Education Leadership Council, and Mississippi Mathematics Specialists
• Network
• Attended TASSM and presented about NCSM with RD Paul Gray (Austin, TX, October 17, 2018)
• Presented at NCTM’s Regional Conference Florida (Orlando, FL, October 18-20, 2017)
• Presented at CCSSO/SCASS with NCTM -Dave Barnes (Dallas, TX, October 23-25, 2017)
• Presented at School Science and Mathematics Association, SSMA (Lexington, KY, November 2-4, 2017)
• Presented at American Mathematical Association of Two Year Colleges, AMATYC ( San Diego, CA, November 8-11, 2017)
• Attended the Equity and Social Justice Fall Leadership Conference (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Presentation at NCTM Regional Conference and work at NCSM booth (Chicago, IL, November 30 -Dec.1, 2017)
• Represented NCSM at Conference Board of Mathematical Sciences, CBMS (Washington DC, December 8, 2017)
• Presented at the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators, AMTE (Houston, TX, February 8-10, 2018)
• Attended CCSSO/SCASS (Miami, FL February 20-22, 2018)
• Presented at the Texas Instruments T3TM International Conference (San Antonio, TX, March 1- 4, 2018)
• Participated in the Social Justice and Equity Webinar with John Staley (March 14, 2018)
• Presented at American Educational Research Association Annual meeting, AERA, with Shawn Towle (New York City, NY, April 13-15, 2018)
• Publication of the 50th Anniversary Program Booklet and facilitated the celebration at the 2018 Annual NCSM Conference
• Published the NCSM and NCTM joint leadership position paper, “Building STEM Education on a Sound Mathematical Foundation” (Spring 2018)
• Published the NCSM leadership position paper, “Computer Science and K-12 Mathematics” (Spring 2018)
• Led the revision of the NCSM Mission and Vision
• Presented at the 2018 NCSM Annual Conference: NCSM: Framing the future of mathematics education on a 50-year foundation of leadership.

• Equity in Practice: Presentations in this strand will address active efforts toward cultural change in every classroom, school, and district to combat systemic challenges such as access, tracking, and deficit thinking.
• Cultivating a Mathematics Coaching Practice: Presentations in this strand will share the latest research and reports on successful coaching practices that support the mathematical learning of teachers and their students.
• Evidence and Experiences from the Field: Presentations in this strand will consider the impact of assessments grounded in evidence of student thinking, action research projects, lesson study, studio teaching, coaching acts that show results, or innovative school-level programs that make a difference in students’ mathematical learning.
• Developing Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching: Presentations in this strand share recent research findings and explore the implications for assessment, curriculum planning, and task design.
• Leading Mathematics into the Future: The 50th Anniversary strand presenters will reflect on the past accomplishments of NCSM members and look ahead to the most innovative plans and goals for the future of mathematics education.

Theme: Leading Mathematics into the Future: Inspiring Monumental Change

The Year of Leadership:

• Presented at NCTM Annual Meeting in San Antonio (April 7, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Academy, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Bangor, ME, July 24-26, 2017)
• Held the NCSM Fall Leadership Seminars, Mathematics Leadership in a Time of Change: Building Leaders at all Levels (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Established the Teacher-Leader Professional Learning Grant (PreK-12)
• Five new NCSM affiliates including: North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Colorado Mathematics Leaders, New Hampshire Teachers of Mathematics, Nevada Mathematics Education Leadership Council, and Mississippi Mathematics Specialists
• Network
• Attended TASSM and presented about NCSM with RD Paul Gray (Austin, TX, October 17, 2018)
• Presented at NCTM’s Regional Conference Florida (Orlando, FL, October 18-20, 2017)
• Presented at CCSSO/SCASS with NCTM -Dave Barnes (Dallas, TX, October 23-25, 2017)
• Presented at School Science and Mathematics Association, SSMA (Lexington, KY, November 2-4, 2017)
• Presented at American Mathematical Association of Two Year Colleges, AMATYC ( San Diego, CA, November 8-11, 2017)
• Attended the Equity and Social Justice Fall Leadership Conference (Chicago, IL, November 29, 2017)
• Presentation at NCTM Regional Conference and work at NCSM booth (Chicago, IL, November 30 -Dec.1, 2017)
• Represented NCSM at Conference Board of Mathematical Sciences, CBMS (Washington DC, December 8, 2017)
• Presented at the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators, AMTE (Houston, TX, February 8-10, 2018)
• Attended CCSSO/SCASS (Miami, FL February 20-22, 2018)
• Presented at the Texas Instruments T3TM International Conference (San Antonio, TX, March 1- 4, 2018)
• Participated in the Social Justice and Equity Webinar with John Staley (March 14, 2018)
• Presented at American Educational Research Association Annual meeting, AERA, with Shawn Towle (New York City, NY, April 13-15, 2018)
• Publication of the 50th Anniversary Program Booklet and facilitated the celebration at the 2018 Annual NCSM Conference
• Published the NCSM and NCTM joint leadership position paper, “Building STEM Education on a Sound Mathematical Foundation” (Spring 2018)
• Published the NCSM leadership position paper, “Computer Science and K-12 Mathematics” (Spring 2018)
• Led the revision of the NCSM Mission and Vision
• Presented at the 2018 NCSM Annual Conference: NCSM: Framing the future of mathematics education on a 50-year foundation of leadership.

• Visionary Coaching Practices
  Presentations in this strand will address the latest research and reports on successful coaching practices that support the mathematical learning of teachers and their students.
• Empowering Equity and Social Justice Leadership
  Presentations in this strand will focus on equitable practices to support building-, district-, region- and state/province-level leaders that build all students’ mathematical knowledge.
• Engaging Leadership Communities
  Presentations in this strand will focus on how communities of reflective practitioners, both school-based and district- or state/province-level, leverage the power of collaboration to improve mathematics education.
• Innovative Engagement
  Presentations in this strand will share how to engage leaders in professional learning experiences using face-to-face, blended, and fully online models.
• Exemplary Experiences from the Field
  Presentations in this strand will consider the impact of assessments grounded in evidence of student thinking, action research projects, lesson study, studio teaching, coaching acts that show results, or innovative school-level programs that make a difference in students’ mathematical learning.
• Developing Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching
  Presentations in this strand share recent research findings and explore the implications for assessment, curriculum planning, and task design.

Theme: Connect. Collaborate. Commit. Moving Mathematics Leadership into the New Decade

The Year of Leadership:

• Build Mathematical Capacity How do we advocate for high quality and equitable mathematics teaching and learning? How do we build mathematical literacy? How do we leverage technology to enhance mathematics instruction? Proposals in this strand include such topics as: access and equity; support for diverse learners (emergent bilinguals, special needs, gifted and talented, etc); STEM/STEAM; recent research findings; engaging students in mathematics; sparking interest through meaningful tasks; and strong curriculum that address the rigor, depth, and conceptual understanding of mathematical standards.
• Construct Impactful Mathematics Coaching How do we sustain equitable learning experiences? Proposals in this strand focus on the coach’s role in supporting all aspects of the teaching and learning of mathematics. Coaching imperatives to be addressed in these sessions include sustainable coaching practices, coaching mathematical content, coaching teaching and learning, and producing a culture of lifelong learning.
• Design Systemic Structures within the Mathematics Education Community How do we design and implement structures that support high quality mathematics teaching and learning? How do we empower a shared culture of professionalism and productive engagement? How do we ensure bold leadership actions impact each and every learner? Proposals in this strand address developing leadership; being a change agent; engaging with community partnerships and higher-education; providing district-level, administrator, and collaborative teams/teacher supports; and developing job-embedded professional learning.
• Monitor Evidence of Equitable Mathematics Learning How do we monitor and follow-up on evidence of student learning? How do we ensure that each and every learner is engaged in a high-quality assessment process? Proposals in this strand feature formative assessments, evaluation supports for leaders, data dialogue structures, research informed reflection on evidence of student learning, intensification, intervention, differentiation, and multiple assessment approaches.