Qena Jennings, Rayann Mitchell,
and Tiffany Sears
Are you new to IRA council leadership? Are you an experienced council leader looking to hone your executive vision and strategic planning skills? Are you a council member looking to grow into a future leadership role? If so, don’t miss the special council-focused programs at the IRA Annual Convention in San Antonio.
Council Leadership Institute–Celebrating the Leader in You
Friday, April 19
Who Should Attend: All Council Leaders
Take-away: The session will focus on teambuilding, networking, and strategic planning to help council leaders be more effective in their roles. Included mini-sessions will cover governance and council finance. The attributes of winning executive leadership will be assessed in terms of the current challenges facing nonprofits generally.
Council and Affiliate Awards Ceremony and Reception
Friday, April 19
Who Should Attend: All North American Council and International Affiliate Attendees and their guests
Highlights: This event recognizes international affiliate leaders, as well as state, provincial, local, student, and special interest council leaders for their accomplishments. Honor Council, Award of Excellence, Advocacy Award, Local Council Community Service Award, Exemplary Reading Program Award, and Membership Awards will be presented. A reception will follow.
Strategic Leadership for IRA Coordinators: Building a Bridge Between Councils and IRA
Saturday, April 20
Who Should Attend: All State/Provincial Coordinators
Take-away: Strategies for supporting and strengthening a network of local, student, and special interest councils will be shared. Coordinators will explore ideas for improving connections with councils and IRA. The importance of maintaining vital working ties will be stressed, and the benefits of strong collaboration reviewed.
Exploring the 3R’s of Council Membership Development
Saturday, April 20
Who Should Attend: All State/Provincial Directors of Membership Development as well as all Local/Student/Special Interest Membership Chairs
Take-away: Exploring strategies to develop and promote membership through the lens of the 3R’s: Recruitment, Relevance, and Retention. Networking opportunities will be used to inspire and re-energize council membership efforts. The all-important issue of maintaining relevance in a challenged professional and economic environment will be discussed in detail, along with strategies for ongoing organizational renewal.
Principles of Success for IRA Council Presidents
Sunday, April 21
Who Should Attend: All State/Provincial/Local/Student/Special Interest Council Presidents, Vice Presidents, and President-Elects
Take-away: Ideas and strategies will spark inspiration and highlight ways that leaders can guide members to achieve council goals. Networking opportunities will be used to broaden understanding of the possibilities inherent in council leadership. Success stories will be shared to help colleagues build stronger game plans for future growth and deeper professional development.
International Perspectives
Mingle with convention attendees from around the world at these events coordinated by the IRA Global Operations Unit.
Global Literacy Professional Development Network
Saturday, April 20
The Global Literacy Professional Development Network (GLPDN) is a program that creates a system of professional development solutions that deliver the International Reading Association’s Diagnostic Teaching Model using innovative face-to-face and mobile-based services and methods, and training quality support in Bangladesh and Indonesia. The Global Operations staff will hold an informative session on the GLPDN project that highlights important information on the methodology used to deliver the training and the mentoring process.
IDCC Symposium and Reception
Sunday, April 21
IRA’s International Development Coordinating Committee (IDCC) will be hosting their annual symposium and reception on Sunday, April 21. The theme of the 2013 symposium is “Global Perspective on Literacy for All: Challenges and Opportunities Post 2015.” This discussion will feature panel presentations from various speakers involved in Global Literacy with focus on the millennium development goals for education. This event is open to all IRA members and a reception will follow thereafter.
Reading for All: Global Literacy Projects I and II
Sunday, April 21
IRA’s Global Operations Unit in collaboration with partner agencies will be hosting two sessions on Sunday, April 21 to talk about various literacy projects worldwide.
The IRA 58th Annual Convention runs from April 19 to 22, 2013, in San Antonio, Texas. Visit www.iraconvention.org and the iPlanner Program Grid and Event Search for details.