Members come to us often to ask how they can
get more involved with the International Literacy
Association (ILA). They want to maximize their
membership and make a difference by contributing
to our shared mission of advancing literacy
worldwide.
We encourage your involvement because
we are your professional organization. We are
here to help you serve as a literacy leader in your
community—whether that community is your
classroom, your school, or your country.
Here we’d like to highlight a few opportunities
for member involvement, ways that you can
engage with the organization and help us work
together to make this the Age of Literacy.
Get Involved With ILA
ILA UPDATE
A call for nominations for ILA’s Board of
Directors was sent out in October, and although
the deadline for the current election cycle
closes January 13, we recently began accepting
nominations year round. So even if you’re
reading this after the cutoff date, I encourage
you to visit literacyworldwide.org/serve and
consider a self-nomination or recommending a
peer to lead the organization’s continued efforts
to transform lives through literacy.
Professional organizations rely on members like
you to guide their direction—and it’s important to
note that leadership opportunities with ILA extend
beyond the Board.
We also have a network of nearly 30 active
special interest groups that focus on topics
ranging from balanced reading to social
responsibility. This is a good route for members
looking to connect with like-minded peers to
drive conversations around specific topics they’re
passionate about that might not be getting
enough attention.
There are also leadership roles within the
larger ILA network of chapters and affiliates across
the globe, whether it’s serving as an officer or a
committee chair. Your contributions at the local
level play a large part in making ILA a vibrant
community of literacy leaders.
Visit literacyworldwide.org/get-involved/
ila-network to find out more about how to get
involved in our vast network.
2. Become a leader in the organization
6
literacyworldwide.org | January/February 2017 | LITERACY TODAY
1. Shape the professional knowledge base
We welcome reviewers for our three academic journals—The Reading Teacher, Journal of Adolescent &
Adult Literacy, and Reading Research Quarterly—as well as our annual conference. When you provide your
perspective on potential publications or conference presentations, you help shape critical knowledge that
is then disseminated worldwide to advance the field.
Peer review is an important part of the professional literature base, and authors and presenters rely
on quality reviews to improve their work. If you have time to contribute in this way, please let us know.
For information on reviewing for a journal, visit literacyworldwide.org/get-involved/be-a-reviewer. To
volunteer as a reviewer for conference, e-mail conventionproposals@reading.org.