RIMLE Executive Director, Bill Fasano and President, Dr. Michael Almeida met with Senator Reed. On July 26th the executive directors and presidents of RIMLE, RIASP, and RIASCD met the Senator at his Cranston office. This meeting was scheduled by the RIMLE leadership as a part of an ongoing effort to advocate for Rhode Island educational needs through collaborative ventures. The professional development and other resource needs of the Rhode Island educational community were a focus of the conversations. RIMLE, RIASP, and RIASCD have also been regularly meeting with Commissioner Deborah Gist through this collaborative undertaking. NMSA Announces Dr. Drew Allbritten as Next Executive Director Westerville, OH – National Middle School Association (NMSA) is pleased to announce the hiring of the Honorable Dr. Drew Allbritten as its new executive director. From a field of sixty candidates, Allbritten was the unanimous decision of the search committee. Allbritten, currently president and chief executive officer of Transformation Strategy Consulting, LLC, brings to NMSA more than 35 years of leadership in education, government, and non-profit organizations. Beginning his professional life as a middle school mathematics and science teacher, his career has included serving as executive director for the Council for Exceptional Children, the Georgia Association of Educators, the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education, and the Iowa Association of Community College Trustees. During that time, he held roles in the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, Committee for Education Funding, Coalition of Lifelong Learning Organizations, and the National Coalition for Technology in Education and Training (NCTET). Allbritten also served as a United States presidential appointee and as an elected member of the Michigan House of Representatives where he championed reform in middle schools. "To be the new executive director of the internationally-respected NMSA is an honor, and I am looking forward to working with middle school professionals to better prepare young adolescents," said Dr. Allbritten. "I will help foster the development, implementation, and evaluation of curriculum, pedagogy, and programs to improve the developmental readiness, needs, and interests of middle school students. As we know, middle schools, in many cases, are the last best chance for millions of students to develop the academic foundation needed for their future success." Additionally, Allbritten was the originator of the nation's first child seatbelt legislation, which has now saved more than 125,000 lives, and co-founded NCTET which has created funding for K–12 classroom technology totaling more than $30 billion. NMSA President Cathie Thibodeau stated, "With Drew Allbritten's extensive background and experience in organization transformation, strategic planning, team building, public and media relations, branding and image development, and middle school educational issues, NMSA can now better serve its members." The president and executive director also will focus on member and affiliate relations, professional development and conference planning, fiscal accountability and legal compliance, staff responsibilities, and NMSA Foundation initiatives. Allbritten began his work on July 1,2010
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