At its July 2009 meeting, ASCD's Board of Directors voted to send ASCD members a ballot on a series of proposed constitution changes recommended by ASCD's Constitutional Review Committee. These proposed changes include revisions related to the use of the brand "ASCD," a balance between Leadership Council-elected and general membership–elected Board of Directors positions, and the appointment of the Nominations Committee, among other technical revisions. The ballot, along with a copy of the current constitution and rationales for the changes, will be mailed in December 2009.

The 2009 General Membership Election

Eligible ASCD members will receive a 2009 ballot in the September issue of Education Update. Voters will elect the President-Elect as well as members of the Board of Directors and members-at-large of the Leadership Council. You must sign and date your ballot for compliance with Virginia code. Unsigned, undated ballots are not valid. Mail your completed ballot (postage-paid) by November 16, 2009. You may also vote online by going to http://my.ascd.org and entering your member ID and password. For additional information on the President-Elect candidates, go to www.ascd.org/candidatesforum.

Resources

Books

Catching Up or Leading the Way: American Education in the Age of Globalization. (2009). By Yong Zhao. Stock No. 109076. Price: $20.95 (member); $26.95 (nonmember).

Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works. (2007). By Howard Pitler, Elizabeth R. Hubbell, Matt Kuhn, and Kim Malenoski. Stock No. 107025. Price: $21.95 (member); $27.95 (nonmember).

DVD

21st Century Skills: Promoting Creativity and Innovation in the Classroom DVD. (2009). One 15-minute video and accompanying professional development tools. Stock No. 609096. Price: $29 (member); $39 (nonmember).

Learning to Think. . .Thinking to Learn: The Pathway to Achievement DVD. (2007). One 90-minute DVD with a comprehensive 215-page User Guide. Stock No. 607087. Price: $429 (member); $539 (nonmember).

And the Winners Are. . .

Several ASCD publications recently earned recognition from well-known publishing competitions.

The 21st Annual Awards for Publication Excellence (APEX) honored ASCD Express, ASCD's monthly e-mail newsletter, with an APEX Grand Award, the highest recognition in the competition. APEX conferred only 100 Grand Awards from almost 4,000 entries.

The following four publications won APEX's Award of Excellence:

• In the category Magazines and Journals, Overall Excellence: Educational Leadership's December 2008/January 2009 issue ("Data: Now What?")
• In the category Books, Outstanding Cover Design: Habits of Mind Across the Curriculum.
• In the category Annual Reports, Web and Electronic: ASCD's 2008 Annual Report and Timeline.
• In the category Meeting and Event Materials: the 2009 Annual Conference Program Book.

ASCD also won three awards from the former Society of National Association Publications (SNAP), now known as Association Media and Publishing (AMP):

• In the category of special publications: ASCD's 2007 Annual Report the EXCEL gold medal as well as the EXTRA Award for outstanding innovation in association media and publishing.
• In the online publishing category: ASCD's blog Inservice received the EXCEL silver medal.

In addition, two ASCD videos took home prizes at the 30th Annual Telly Awards:

• In the education category: the series The Art and Science of Teaching: A Framework for Effective Instruction.
• In the education and training categories: ASCD's DVD, 21st Century Skills: Promoting Creativity and Innovation in the Classroom.

The Association of Education Publishers (AEP) awarded the 2009 Finalist Distinguished Achievement Award to the following ASCD entries:

• In the category Editorial, Department/Column Adult: Perspectives, written by Educational Leadership's Editor in Chief Marge Scherer.
• In the category Design, Cover, Adult: Educational Leadership's May 2008 cover ("Reshaping High Schools") and December 2008/January 2009 cover ("Data: Now What?").
• In the category Editorial, Newsletter/E-Newsletter, Adult: ASCD Express.

Finally, Graphic Design USA awarded American Inhouse Design Awards to the following publications:

• In the category Publication Cover Design: the May 2008 issue of Educational Leadership ("Reshaping High Schools").
• In the category Multimedia and Interactive Design: The ASCD 65th Anniversary Timeline.
• In the category Book Cover Design: How to Help Your School Thrive and The Differentiated School.
• In the category Special Publications Design: the 2009 Annual Conference Program Book.

We Need Your Voice!

To create a responsive education system, we must support innovation and ensure that 21st century learning takes place at all levels of schooling. Recently, ASCD educator advocates and whole child supporters sent more than 1,000 letters to members of Congress supporting the Secondary School Education Innovation Fund Act (formerly the GRADUATES Act). Introduced in May 2009, the bill will help promote creative policies and effective programs that will improve the secondary school experience, reduce dropout rates, and promote 21st century skills. You can help by urging your senators and representatives to support this bill. To learn more about ASCD's legislative agenda, go to www.ascd.org/legislativeagenda.