The Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics (OCTM) has been and will continue to be a coalition of strong, informed, and passionate educators working together for the good of all math stakeholders in our state and beyond. I am proud to be part of such a vibrant professional community of caring adults who have dedicated their careers to understanding and implementing best practices in mathematics pedagogy for the deserving young people of our state, and I look forward to continuing this vital work together with our executive director, board members, and stakeholders. It is an honor to have been elected to this position by my peers and colleagues, and I want to express my sincere gratitude to our members and the amazing leaders who have served before me. I will draw inspiration from the excellent work of past presidents as I look forward to leaving my own mark on our organization by promoting math education that puts people at the center of every decision we make and that is truly open and welcoming for all.

As I hope you can see, I believe strongly in community. OCTM members come from many backgrounds with differing life experiences and perspectives, but we are bonded together by a common passion for mathematics, budding mathematicians, and first-class mathematics instruction. Our mission and impact will be strengthened by continuing to grow our community to include more voices, and especially by amplifying those that have been historically underrepresented. The young people of Ohio deserve to see themselves in both the membership and the leadership of our organization and as teachers of mathematics. We will not achieve our highest purpose, nor realize our greatest potential without the brilliant contributions of all who share the goal of elevating math instruction for Ohio’s young people. I hope that each of you will join me in embracing and promoting practices that purposefully and vigorously pursue these ends.

Since being elected, I have been reflecting on what legacy I hope to leave at the end of my tenure as OCTM president. In addition to the goals stated above, I hope to be remembered as a fierce advocate for practices that foster mathematical agency in young people. I hope to help usher out the days when teachers encouraged their students to mimic rehearsed procedures without engaging in deep mathematical thinking. The research is clear that if we want to create the conditions in our classrooms for students to invent mathematics and create novel solutions to problems, we must abandon these outdated practices. Mathematics has played an integral role in the solution of every problem our world has faced in past decades. I invite you to join me in the pursuit of discovering and implementing those pedagogical practices that will best prepare Ohio’s young people to rise and meet the unprecedented challenges our world will face in the future!

Please consider joining us for our Annual Conference as a presenter, participant, volunteer, or ALL of these! The annual conference is our biggest and most recognized event, but there are other ways to get more involved. OCTM has a DEI Task Force, Summer Book Studies (Math-ish was summer 2024), Connector Events (online discussion groups), and Ins(pi)reUP. Check out the Current and Upcoming Activities on our website (https://www.ohioctm.org/) to keep UpToDate! We are always looking for new folks to join our leadership teams. If you are interested, please click this link to see some opportunities.

I cannot express enough how honored and lucky I feel to be able to do this work alongside all of you! Thank you for this privilege!

Mike Lipnos, President
Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics

Stay connected to the Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics through X (former Twitter) @ohioctm, Facebook @ohioctm, & Instagram ohioctm!  We are always looking for new and creative ways to continue to connect with one another, and you can contact me at mikelipnos@ohioctm.org