FROM THE EDITORS: The Changing of the Guard

Cindy Shellito, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado, and Margaret E. Crowder, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky

Welcome to our issue focused on teaching about weather and climate! As a climate scientist, I am always looking for ways to communicate not only climate change, but the fundamental principles governing weather in a way that is meaningful and memorable for students. In this issue, we offer some ideas and resources to help. On page 2, Janel Hanrahan offers ideas on how she prompts her students to consider how they communicate what they've learned about climate to non-scientists. Starting on page 5, Thomas Kovacs shares how he has integrated weather forecasting into his course in a way that promotes understanding of the scientific method. We also highlight web resources that might be useful in the classroom.

This is my last issue as editor-in-chief. I have truly enjoyed my time serving as editor. I have especially enjoyed getting to know new colleagues across the range of disciplines in the Earth sciences. I've been

inspired working with you all to share some of the exciting things you've been doing in your classroom and resources you've made available to the community. In The Trenches provides a unique opportunity to share cutting edge teaching ideas and resources, and I look forward to continuing my involvement as an associate editor. Now, I am excited to hand over the reins to Dr. Margaret Crowder. Dr. Crowder has an interdisciplinary background, with a B.S. in geology, an M.S.T. (Master of Science in Teaching) in geology, and an Ed.D. in educational leadership. She teaches in the Department of Geography and Geology at Western Kentucky University as a geology instructor. She also contributes to SKyTeach, the middle and high school STEM teacher preparation program at WKU. I look forward to our next issue under her leadership! — Cindy Shellito

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Hello, everyone! I am excited to be named the new editor-in-chief and look forward to working with you over the next three years, as we work to ensure that ITT continues to be an excellent forum for the NAGT community to share short articles, resources, and ideas about real-world teaching and the classroom. I am grateful to the outgoing editor, Cindy Shellito, for all that she has done to grow ITT in her three years and am relieved that she will be assisting me through the transition period (and as long as she would like beyond!).

I entered the teaching profession in large part due to my mother, who was a teacher in the K-12 system. As I was growing up, I was witness to her passion, her struggles, her joys and her tears for her students and her profession. Ultimately, I became a teacher because I wanted to make a difference in the world and, although I can only hope to make the positive differences in the world that I saw (and continue to see) her make, I know from watching her that the right teacher can make all the difference in the world to a student. I want to inspire students to become passionate about learning and engaged in ways that may require them to change their perceptions and develop a meaningful relationship with knowledge that takes it beyond a rote skill. My happiest moments as a teacher come when I have students express to me ways in which their thinking has changed over the semester in my course — ways that make them more informed and considerate citizens of their community and planet.

I am hopeful we can all share our passions for teaching, for our students, and for researching in the geosciences through the platform of ITT. I have some ideas that I will be sharing with you as we move forward, and please don't hesitate to contact me with ideas you may have. I'm interested to find out what makes this publication work for you! I know there is a lot of work ahead, but I am anxious to get to it and to get to know you all better. NAGT is an amazing organization and I am thankful for this opportunity. — Margaret Crowder