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Message
from John Wakefield, TAA President
Reflections
on our 20th anniversary
by
John Wakefield, TAA President
"An organization
of textbook authors was formed in the spring of 1987." Thus rather modestly
began our first newsletter, the TAA Report, 20 years ago. The first
issue, as well as all subsequent issues, can today be accessed by members
through our archive on the TAA website. That first year, only two issues
were put out to describe the formation and direction of the infant association,
but they provide some insight into both the origins and development
of TAA. The first steps of what was then called Textbook Authors Association
were uncertain. "We are newly formed and growing," the lead article
in the first issue stated. "The directions in which the organization
goes will be determined by the membership." Early topics of interest
that emerged were the distribution and resale of complimentary copies
of textbooks, the purchase price of textbooks, contractual relations
with textbook publishers, and enforcement of copyright laws. By the
second issue, new members had already responded by suggesting another
topic of interest—the used textbook market. Early interests were
essentially financial.
Membership grew.
"Getting a new organization off the ground is rather like moving a large
rock," said Mike Keedy, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at Purdue
and first TAA Executive Director. "At first it seems as though you can't
budge it, and then it moves with a surge." To keep the rock rolling,
Keedy and his assistants minimized expenses by operating TAA out of
his home in Orange Springs, Florida and politically engaged a proposed
tax reform that would have tied authoring expense deductions to royalties.
He garnered support from New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who
sided with Keedy in a letter published in the second issue of the TAA
Report. The proposal, which Moynihan called "absurd," was never
enacted by Congress. Chalk one up for TAA, the new kid on the block
willing to fight for textbook authors' financial interests.
Norma Hood was on
the staff of TAA from the beginning. When Mike Keedy stepped down as
Executive Director in 1992, she moved from Office Manager to Acting
Executive Director. Growth had peaked, and money to support author initiatives
was often scarce. Due to financial constraints, a search for a replacement
for Mike Keedy was never undertaken. During this time, the office ran
out of a trailer on Norma's property, and she referred member questions
that she could not answer to the officers and Council members for reply.
Tragically, she died from lung cancer in 1995. With the approval of
Council, the Norma L. Hood Award was established in her honor and memory.
Each year it is given in recognition of the efforts of a member who,
because they are away from the limelight, doesn't receive the recognition
they deserve. By 1993, identity issues had not resulted in a crisis,
but they had led to a reformulation of our mission and our name to Text
and Academic Authors Association (sometimes informally shortened to
"Text and Academic Authors" to accord with the TAA acronym). The change
in name reflected an expansion of the mission to support different kinds
of professional writing by educators. By 1994, TAA was offering workshops
on how to write journal articles, how to develop a book proposal, how
to negotiate a contract, and how to self-publish, among other topics.
Interests had clearly broadened beyond the financial to include writing
and publishing. The newsletter was renamed The Academic Author
to reflect the broadened mission of the Association.
In 1995, Ron Pynn,
Professor of Political Science and Public Administration at the University
of North Dakota, became Executive Director of TAA. Ron was a charter
member of TAA. He had served as Assistant Vice President for Academic
Affairs at UND, and twice he served as TAA's President (1992-93, 1996-97).
He carefully mentored us through our transformational period. When our
treasury was almost empty, and a candidate for treasurer did not step
forward, he asked me to run. Over the next few years, the leadership
and headquarters cut some expenses and deferred others (including Ron's
salary) until revenue from membership dues picked up and other sources
of revenue could be found. As an authors' association, we sought and
received funding from the International Federation of Reproduction Rights
Organizations, known as IFFRO. By 2002, the combined sources of revenue
put us on a financial foundation that continues to allow us to offer
many services today. In my opinion, the
year 2005 marked the end of our transitional period. When Ron let it
be known that he was going to step down as Executive Director, a national
search was undertaken for his replacement. In June, 2005 Richard T.
Hull, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at SUNY—Buffalo was selected
as the new Executive Director. Richard brought with him several ideas
that have since been implemented by our staff. We now offer a developmental
sequence of workshops; communicate with our membership through multiple
channels; provide annual awards for outstanding authors through an efficiently
run competition; and with special thanks to Kim Pawlak, our new Associate
Director, we have planned an outstanding conference in June. In the
last two years, our staff has taken our workshops, member communications,
awards, and annual meetings to a new level. We have entered our adulthood
as an association. Happy 20th, TAA! |
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