I am often told by colleagues in other disciplines that I am lucky to teach a subject that never changes. In their view there are always new discoveries in science, new pieces of great literature, new historical events, but mathematics has been the same for hundreds of years. After teaching math for thirty-five years I always tell them how wrong they are. The way my students learn has changed, the way I teach has changed, and the resources available to both my students and me have changed.

AMATYC is here to help us cope with change. I attended my first AMATYC conference in Calgary in 1988. I have attended twenty AMATYC conferences since then and have always found something new that I could take back to my classroom. In between conferences, I have participated in other professional development activities supported by AMATYC and its affiliates. Each one has given me the information I needed to cope with change.

If you are already a member, then you know the professional development opportunities offered by the organization and are probably looking forward to seeing your AMATYC friends at the next annual conference, November 8-11, 2012, in Jacksonville, FL. If you are not a member, please take a moment to review some of the many professional benefits to having an AMATYC membership. I hope you will see that we are here to help you become the professional educator that your students need.

• AMATYC offers quality professional development opportunities including Traveling Workshops, Summer and Winter Institutes, webinars, and a great annual conference each fall. 
• Our journal, MathAMATYC Educator, provides you with peer-reviewed articles. Our newsletter, AMATYC News, provides news and information about the organization and its members.
• Through its second standards document, Beyond Crossroads, AMATYC presents a vision for quality mathematics instruction in the first two years of college, as well as strategies for implementation of messages in AMATYC's 1995 Crossroads document.
• AMATYC’s nine academic committees keep members in touch between conferences. They provide a forum on a specific area of interest that allows you to discuss important issues such as assessment, dual enrollment, placement, and access for all.
• AMATYC provides a voice in the mathematics community through participation by the President or other members in the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences, the Mathematical Science Education Board and other national mathematics organizations and initiatives.
• The AMATYC Delegate Assembly provides a forum where position statements are discussed and approved. Position statements illuminate the beliefs of AMATYC and provide you with support and direction as you make changes at your college.
• AMATYC’s 44 affiliates throughout the country provide you with additional opportunities to discuss issues impacting your state or region.
• The benefits for you, your students, and your colleagues of membership in AMATYC are many.

Please consider this your personal invitation to become part of AMATYC. I look forward to meeting you at our national conference next November or at one of the many activities throughout the year.

Jim Roznowski
AMATYC President