This has been a very busy month for TIRF! We have been working on the ratings of the 2017 Doctoral Dissertation Grant proposals and publicizing the 2018 TIRF James E. Alatis Prize competition. We have also been finalizing the manuscript of the fifth volume in the TIRF-Routledge series, Global Research on Teaching and Learning English.

I am very excited to tell the TIRF Today readers about this latest co-publishing effort. Along with my co-editor, TIRF Trustee Jodi Crandall, I’ve been really happy to have the chance to work with several young researchers in the production of what we hope will be an excellent addition to many professional and personal scholarly libraries.

The title of the book is Global Perspectives on Language Education Policy. It contains 16 chapters based on empirical research about language planning and policy – two of which were written by our Alatis Prize recipients, Shondel Nero (2016) and Katherine Mortimer (2017). The other 14 empirical project reports were written by TIRF Doctoral Dissertation Grantees: Sarah Braden (co-authoring with TIRF Trustee, MaryAnn Christison), Ron Darvin, Angelica Galante, Laura Hamman, Aziz Khan, Duc Manh (“Mike”) Le, Trent Newman, Tomoyo Okuda, Nicole Pettitt, Bal Krishna Sharma, Crissa Stephens, Nic Subtirelu, Yu-Chi Wang, and Takahiro Yokoyama. The research reported by these authors took place in Brazil, Canada, Jamaica, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, Paraguay, Timor-Leste, Vietnam, and the United States. I would also like to note that TIRF Trustees Joe Lo Bianco and Dick Tucker contributed to the volume. Joe wrote the Foreword and Dick wrote the Epilogue.

I see this volume as both showcasing the work of TIRF grantees and prize winners and demonstrating how these researchers are giving back to the profession and to the Foundation. Not only have they contributed wonderful chapters to this new book, but they have also agreed to forego any royalties or honoraria, in order that all the proceeds realized from the sale of the book may be channeled towards TIRF’s ongoing expenses for programs and administration. We expect the volume to be available by March of 2018.

This edited collection, along with the four previous volumes in the series, clearly demonstrates how TIRF grantees fulfill the investment the Foundation and its donors have made in supporting their research. As mentioned above, we are just finishing the adjudication of the most recent competition for Doctoral Dissertation Grants. The good news is that we have had more submissions than ever before, and the quality of the proposals was quite strong. The bad news is that we do not have the resources to support all the deserving studies documented in the proposals.

Won’t you please help? We are in the midst of TIRF’s mid-year appeal and would greatly appreciate any contribution you can make, to assist the Foundation and the researchers whose work we hope to support. Your gift to TIRF will help fund the 2018 Alatis Prize and/or the next round of DDG awards. Whether you can manage a $20 gift or a $2,000 donation, your contribution will not only further our work, but will also make a meaningful difference in the lives of those we serve. Click here to learn more about giving to TIRF, and thank you!

Best wishes,