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From the Editor
ith this issue (90-1), The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin begins its 90th year of
Wpublication! Edited and managed by Founder Annie Webb Blanton, Volume
1– Number 1 was published in November 1934 and featured 16 pages of news from
the then-national organization. What was essentially a newsletter format continued
until 1945, when executive director and editor M. Margaret Stroh, recognizing
the Bulletin’s “high potential as a medium for promoting professional growth, …
invited stimulating writers to contribute articles” (Our Heritage, 1960, p. 122). The
focus on members’ writing has continued through various physical iterations of
the Bulletin, which now publishes in two formats: an academic journal subtitled
International Journal of Professional Educators and a magazine subtitled Collegial
Exchange. Guided by an appointed editorial board, the publication supports the
DKG mission of “promoting personal and professional growth of women educators
and excellence in education” through publication of members’ writings.
Leading this issue, Tångring and Öhman link theory and practice in considering
teachers’ professional leadership as it applies to classroom management. Readers
will find the reflective questions included in the article both personally and
professionally enriching. A similar mix of personal and professional is captured
in Godwin et al.’s article on the “3R’s”: reflection, relationships, and resiliency.
Their focus is on ways to support students in a dimensional way, but the framework
they provide for considering one’s perspectives and practices has broader application.
Authors of the next two articles recognize and address the key issue of attrition
and shortages among teachers. Focused on retention of current educators, Hopkins
advocates specifically for prioritizing time for collaboration by general and
special education educators as a way to improve their working conditions
while supporting an inclusive model for students. Considering ways to ensure
long-term retention of those entering the field, Jakopovic et al. suggest the use of
microteach experiences to promote self-efficacy among preservice teachers.
Hinman’s review of ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence app with potential as
a tool for educators, the final juried article of this issue, precedes an overview of
the three main avenues available to members who wish to share their talents
and insights with others: the Bulletin, the DKG Art Gallery, and the Leadership
Discovery Centre. These three powerful avenues are both means and ends for
the key women educators of DKG to promote professional and personal growth and
excellence in education worldwide.
Judith R. Merz, EdD
Editor
Promoting Professional and Personal Growth of Educators and Excellence in Education 5