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Alice Miel

To understand the origins of the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction it is necessary to go back to events in the early history of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), USA. Every year from 1950 to 1964 that organization had in operation a committee on international understanding. Successive chairs and members had worked valiantly to promote among fellow curriculum workers greater awareness of the world context of their educational problems.

Louise Berman, an associate secretary of ASCD at the time, saw to it that an ad hoc committee would meet in San Francisco at the annual conference of ASCD, spring 1966, to formulate recommendations to the Executive Committee on the future role ASCD should play in furthering international understanding.

International Understanding Broadened to International Cooperation.

The ad hoc committee early in its deliberations agreed that a fresh approach might help to ensure an international dimension in the program of ASCD. It was decided, then, to recommend an ASCD commission on international cooperation in education. Such a commission was to have a longer term and a broader charge than previous committees on international understanding appointed on a one-year basis.

Let’s Have a World Conference

It happened that Alice Miel, chair of the ad hoc committee formed by Berman, had attended a ten-day international conference in Askov, Denmark, just the year before. Sponsored by the World Education Fellowship, the conference was held at a folk high school far from any large city. Conference participants from many countries at their meals together in a large dining hall, heard speakers of different nationalities, held group meetings all over the grounds, and socialized till late hours in the evenings. Miel coveted such experiences for fellow educators in her own country and began to dream of a similar conference in the U.S.A. The invitation to serve on the ad hoc committee provided a chance to test this idea for use by ASCD.

The chair’s proposal of a conference with participants from around the globe appealed to the committee as a dramatic first step in developing world cooperation in education. The committee decided to include the prospect of such a conference in its recommendations to the Executive Committee and even went so far as to suggest that the conference site be Asilomar, a rustic conference center on the Pacific Ocean near Carmel, California, some distance from a large city. The committee also indicated the need for a working conference of ten days to lay the groundwork for future cooperation among world educators.

The Executive Committee approved the recommendations and appointed a Commission on International Cooperation in Education for a three-year term, 1966-69. The names of those originally appointed and of additions to the commission during the six years of its existence are shown in the following chart.

Members of ASCD Commission on International Cooperation in Education, 1966-72¹

PREAMBLE: As individual educators from all over the world, we join together in this person-to-person, non-governmental, nonprofit global organization committed to active participation in efforts to achieve the purposes of the organization. As educators in the world community, we have responsibility to ensure that education contributes to the promotion of equity, peace, and the universal realization of human rights. To this end, all curricular and instructional programs should strive to facilitate in every person the development of (1) a comprehensive sense of respect - of self, others, and the environment and (2) the capacity to participate at all levels of world society from local to global. As individuals, we commit ourselves to strive toward these ideals and fulfill the purposes of the organization within our professional responsibilities and in our organizational relationships.

Article I - NAME: The name of this organization shall be the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction.

Article II - PURPOSES: A. To provide a variety of opportunities for educators of the world community to work together to fulfill the responsibilities stated in the Preamble to this Constitution. To stimulate and facilitate collaboration on cross-cultural and transnational endeavors designed to (1) examine existing curricula, that is, philosophies or sets of assumptions, goals, strategies, and practices found in various educational systems, with the intention of being open to innovation and change as they relate to issues in world community; (2) conduct research into and propose solutions for existing problems, encouraging the raising of new questions; (3) bring new perspective to the evaluation of research and solutions; and 4) develop educational strategies for balancing technology and the human spirit based on new paradigms that encourage more humane, tolerant, and peaceful approaches for ecological sustainability and global unity through diversity. C. To facilitate exchange across national borders of existing and newly created professional knowledge in the realms of both theory and practice relevant to the needs of a multi-cultural world community. D. To cooperate with other initiatives (individual, group, or institutional) and organizations having compatible purposes. 

Article III -STRUCTURE OF THE ORGANIZATION:

A. The officers shall be a President, a Vice President, an Executive Director, a Recording Secretary, and a Treasurer (or some combination of the last three named). The President and the Vice President shall be elected as provided in Article VII. The Executive Board shall select the Executive Director and decide upon the term of office of each person so appointed. The Recording Secretary and the Treasurer shall be appointed by the President with the approval of the Executive Board, to remain in office only during the term of the President. In case a Vice President fills out the term of the President, the Vice President shall appoint a new Recording Secretary and Treasurer (or reappoint one or both who are currently in office) to serve until the term of a new President begins. All officers must be members in good standing.

B. The President, as the chief executive officer of the organization, shall preside over the meetings of the Executive Board and the membership. With the help of the Executive Director, the President shall prepare an agenda for each of these meetings, to be circulated in advance. The President, or a substitute designated by the President, shall represent the organization at meetings to which the World Council has been invited to send a representative, whenever desirable and feasible. Whenever desirable and feasible, the President, or a substitute designated by the President, shall represent the organization at meetings to which the World Council has been invited to send a representative. The President shall communicate regularly to the Executive Board via the Executive Director and with the membership via the Newsletter to make reports of progress and solicit suggestions for action. The President oversees the execution of all policy decisions of the Executive Board as operationalized and implemented through the Executive Director. The President shall allow reasonable time for an exchange of communications with the Executive Board before asking for a vote on the matter under consultation. In the event that a majority vote on an action item is not reached because of unreasonable delay in response to a call for a vote, or in the case of a tie vote, the President may make the decision for the organization. The President as head of the Executive Board takes the major responsibility of monitoring the performance of the Standing Committees and other committees and task forces that may be established. A presidential fund may be included in the organization budget to expedite the work of the organization. The President may delegate any tasks necessary in the operation and financial viability of the organization.

C. The Vice President shall preside at any meetings at which the President is unable to preside and shall undertake such other duties as the President or the Executive Board assigns from time to time. Should the President be unable to serve a full term, the Vice President shall serve until the next election. If the position of Vice President becomes vacant, the Executive Board member who garnered the highest number of votes in the election at which the retiring President was elected shall become the Vice President to fill the remainder of the term. The Vice President shall coordinate and facilitate projects and activities of the organization and its recognized affiliates as feasible.

D. The Executive Director shall maintain the headquarters and files of the organization, manage the day-to-day operations of the organization, serve as conduit for publications, serve as mailing point for notices and ballots, collaborate with the Treasurer in collecting dues and other payments, prepare updated membership rosters, coordinate the various administrative functions of the Executive Board, including securing votes as required by post/e-mail from Board members absent from meetings and execute the policies approved and designated by the Board. Decisions of the Executive Director shall be in accord with approved Board policies.

E. The Recording Secretary or substitute shall be responsible for recording the proceedings and decisions at all meetings of the Executive Board and the membership. The Recording Secretary shall be responsible for sending the minutes of meetings of the Executive Board to the Executive Director for dissemination to the Board. The Recording Secretary shall also maintain a book of policies and procedures based on the minutes of all meetings of the Executive Board, which will serve as the operation guide, and by-laws of the organization.

F. The Treasurer shall maintain the financial and investment records of the organization and be responsible for the collection and disbursement of Board-approved funds and/or fees. The treasurer shall provide an audited report to be reported to the Executive Board at the biennial board meeting. The financial advisor shall prepare a report for the Executive Board at its biennial board meeting.

Article IV - THE MEMBERSHIP:

A. The membership shall consist of all members in good standing in the organization. A member in good standing is one who has paid dues for the current membership year or is a lifetime member. A member is expected to participate in the activities of the organization and to uphold the ideals of the organization.

B. The members are the supreme authority of WCCI; as such, their main decision-making responsibilities shall be the election of officers and amendment of the Constitution of the organization.

C. The members are responsible for carrying out the purposes of the organization through individual endeavors and through support of activities, programs, and projects of the organization and its affiliated chapters.

D. The membership at large is co-responsible with the Officers, and the Executive Board for carrying out the purposes of the World Council. Members may exercise these responsibilities in part by attending membership meetings at the world conferences. The membership may serve in an advisory capacity to the Executive Board and committees of the organization through personal interactions with members of the Executive Board or committees.

E. Membership is open to individuals and educational institutions subscribing to the purposes of the organization as set forth in the Preamble and in Article II. Since the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction is a non-governmental organization, governmental bodies, such as ministries of education, are not eligible for membership. However, persons, employed by such bodies are eligible for membership as individuals. Departments and institutes of education and similar groups in colleges and universities are not considered governmental bodies in applying this prohibition of institutional membership.

F. All individual members in good standing shall have the privilege of (1) making proposals to the Executive Board, (2) suggesting candidates for election or appointment, (3) being nominated for election, (4) voting in elections, (5) attending meetings/conferences sponsored or co-sponsored by the organization, (6) initiating projects and activities using the name of the organization for as long as these are within the purview of the ideals of the organization and are approved by the Executive Board,(7) participating in various Board-initiated and approved projects and activities, and (8) receiving publications designed for distribution to the membership.

G. A member institution is allowed only one voice in exercising its decision-making privileges in casting votes for elections and amending the constitution. As a member institution, it may send as many participants as it wishes to conferences. Two representatives of a member institution may initiate or participate in any Board approved projects and activities for as long as these persons are duly recognized and officially affiliated with the member institution. The member institution shall receive two copies of publications designated for distribution to the membership. The institutional member or representative cannot be nominated for or hold an elective position.

Article V - THE EXECUTIVE BOARD and ADVISORY COUNCIL:

A. The Executive Board is the representative voting and decision-making body of the organization. It shall consist of the President, the Vice President and six members in good standing elected from and by the membership at large from six different countries and, as ex officio members, the immediate Past President and the immediate Past Vice President.

B. To provide for representation of diverse cultural perspectives in the governance of the organization and to facilitate transnational person-to-person communication, all voting members of the Executive Board shall be members in good standing and shall include diverse representation.

C. The Executive Board shall hold regular meetings in conjunction with the Advisory Council (Article V-F.) on the occasion of each World Conference sponsored by the organization. The Executive Board may hold meetings, if feasible, between regular biennial meetings. All other business of the Executive Board shall be conducted via post, e-mail, fax, and/or telephone. The decision of a majority of the Executive Board shall constitute the decision of the Board. At a duly called meeting, the presence of at least 30% of the Board members and one member of the Advisory Council (Article V-F) is required for conducting official business.

D. The President, Vice president, or duly designated officer shall preside at all meetings of the Executive Board.

E. The primary functions of the Executive Board are to provide the vision for the organization; make long-range plans; develop an operational budget for the organization; receive and act on policy recommendations; consider reports and issues relating to the general concerns and viability of the organization; consider proposals of individual members, ad hoc groups, and duly constituted committees; appoint necessary personnel and create all Standing Committees and other necessary committees or task forces; proclaim the elected officers of the organization; report to the membership on policies, procedures, activities, and the financial status of the organization; provide for a publications program and other programs that will ensure the viability of the organization; and represent the organization in all international relations, such as seeking collaboration with other organizations having compatible purposes.

F. The Advisory Council shall be composed of the appointed officers of the organization (Executive Director, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer), the editors of the organization publications, chapter presidents or coordinators (Article X-G), and Board elected honorary members. The Advisory Council is non-voting but meets regularly with and participates fully in the meetings of the Executive Board.

Article VI - THE STANDING COMMITTEES:

A. The Standing Committees shall be appointed and removed at the discretion of the Board and shall include (1) Membership, (2) Publications, (3) [Biennial] Conference (4) Nominations/Elections, and (5) such other Standing Committees as the Board may deem necessary.

B. The Standing Committees shall be responsible for making policy proposals and regular progress reports about their areas of concerns subject to the approval of the Executive Board during the Board meetings. During the interim periods these committees, through the Executive Director, shall be responsible for bringing to the attention of the Executive Board any related issues and concerns that require attention and/or action.

C. The Executive Director is an ex officio member of the Membership Committee; the editors of the organization’s publications-conference proceedings, journal, and Newsletter- are members of the Publications Committee; the Recording Secretary is a member of the Conference Committee.

Article VII -THE PRESIDENTS COUNCIL:

A. All past WCCI Presidents shall automatically be part of the Presidents Council. The immediate past President of WCCI shall head the Presidents Council.

B. The Council shall provide counsel on sensitive issues confronting the organization and on other topics raised among themselves or suggested for consideration by the Executive Board, the Advisory Council or individual members. Individual members of the Presidents Council may attend any Executive Board meeting, but they shall not have voting privileges on the Board with the exception of the immediate past President for two years. Regular feedback from the Presidents Council about its perception of the state of affairs of the organization shall be presented to the Executive Board during the Board meetings and shall be made available to the membership through the Newsletter.

Article VIII-NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS:

A. All elections shall be held in the year in which the [biennial] world conference is held. Within six months before the date of the conference, a Nominations/Elections Committee of at least three members from different countries shall be appointed by the Executive Board. This Committee shall have the benefit of responses to an appeal to members six months prior for names of persons who are eligible, with reasons given, for nomination to positions open in that term and who have consented to be a candidate to the Executive Director or to the Chairperson of the Nominations/Elections Committee. All of the materials with respect to nominations are to be deposited in the Secretariat. The committee shall certify the election results and shall provide the results to the Executive Board before they are released to the general membership. The Nominations/Elections Committee is responsible for following the guidelines stated in Article VIII- B, C, and D.

B. In the transition election (2006) from triennial to biennial conference the following will apply:
the President and Vice President will be elected for a two-year term beginning January 1, 2007.
half of the Executive Board members will be elected to serve a four-year term beginning January 1, 2007.
the next election will be held in 2008. Half of the Executive Board will be elected to serve a four-year term beginning January 1, 2010.
C. To be eligible as President or Vice President, the candidate must be a member in good standing; must give evidence of three years of active participation in organizational and/or program activities of the World Council at the local, national, or world level and must have experienced serving on the Executive Board or the Advisory Council for at least three years. To be eligible for election as an at-large Executive Board Member, the candidate must be a member in good standing and give evidence of at least two years of active participation in organizational and/or program activities of the World Council at the local, national, or world level.

C. A candidate for President and Vice President must have the endorsement of at least five members from different countries. A candidate for Executive Board at-large must have the endorsement of at least three members from different countries.

D. The President and Vice President shall be elected for a two-year term, without immediate reelection, by secret ballot of the membership prior to the January date on which they take office. Elected officers must have completed their term four years or more previously before being eligible for nomination to the same office again.

E. At each [biennial] election, a designated number of Executive Board members shall be elected for a four-year term to take office on the ensuing January 1. Half of the Executive Board will be elected every two years. No member of the Executive Board may immediately succeed her/himself. Elected members must have completed their term four years or more previously before being eligible for nomination to an at-large position again.

No ballots shall be opened until after the deadline for return of ballots. The ballots are collected at the Secretariat for membership participation verification and counting by three tellers (two non-members of WCCI and one member of WCCI) appointed by the Executive Director. The results shall be forwarded to the Nominations/Elections Committee for certification. The Nominations/Elections Committee reports the results to the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall proclaim the winners before the information is released to the general membership in the next Newsletter. G. In the event that a Board member is unable to serve or complete her/his term, the remaining members of the Executive Board will appoint a member in good standing to complete the term.

Article IX- RESIGNATION, REMOVAL, and REPLACEMENT:

A. Should the Presidency become vacant through resignation, incapacity as determined by the Executive Board, or death, the Vice President shall succeed to that office for the remainder of the term. The post of the Vice President shall be filled by the Board member who garnered the highest number of votes among those Executive Board members elected at-large at the time the departing President was elected. This succession shall also take effect in the case of the resignation or incapacity of the president-elect; the Vice president-elect shall fill the position of the president-elect and the Board member who received the highest number of at-large votes in the most recent election shall become Vice President-elect.

B. Should the position of the Vice President and the Vice president-elect become vacant for any reason, the same pattern of succession shall be followed as set forth in Article IX-A.

C. Any individual member of the Executive Board may resign any time by giving written notice to the Board through the Executive Director.

D. Whenever a position on the Executive Board becomes vacant, the Executive Board shall appoint an individual to complete the term.

E. The Executive Board may, with the approval of two-thirds of its members voting on the matter, remove any member or officer of the Executive Board for cause. Such action shall be taken only after thirty (30) days written notice to the person whose removal is proposed, giving her/him an opportunity to respond. In the case of individual members, removal proceedings must be proposed by at least one-fourth of the members of the Board, or at least fifty members in good standing representing at least twenty-five percent of the members countries, and the decision of the full Board shall be final. After approval of at least two-thirds of the members of the Board voting on the matter, the charges against the person in question and her/his response or lack of response shall be submitted by mail ballot to all members of the organization. The action of the Executive Board shall be void unless a majority of members voting approves such removal within sixty days after submission of the removal to the membership. No individual may continue in office after final notice of removal.

Article X - PROGRAM AND OPERATION:

A. Operating principles: (1) The organization shall strive for a membership, which represents substantially all parts of the globe. (2) The organization shall operate according to principles of social justice, including fair representation of both sexes and of ethnic groups among elected officials and appointed committees. (3) The organization shall operate openly, with as full communication between members and their elected officials and appointed committees and personnel as possible. (4) Modes of exchange of ideas shall be consistent with the principle of respect for other cultures and with the rights of participation of all parties concerned. (5). As a non-governmental, nonprofit organization, The World Council for Curriculum and Instruction shall not accept financial supports from any source that is incompatible with the purposes of the organization.

B. The global program shall be the primary emphasis of the organization. The World Conference, which brings together many members of the organization in an effort to elaborate worldwide endeavors to achieve the purposes of the organization, shall be its main forum and program. The Conference shall be devoted to issues of global significance in education for a more humane world society.

C. All projects of the World Council shall be transnational in personnel, operation, and purposes, drawing participants from as many parts of the world as feasible.

D. Three relationships of the organization with proposed projects are possible - sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement. (1) Sponsorship indicates that a project is an official one for the World Council. The Council thus will help to formulate the objectives and methods of the project, help to seek funding, and help to implement results. Sponsorship requires approval by a two-thirds majority of the Board members voting on the matter. (2) Affiliation indicates that a project has been originated by another organization but that it serves to fulfill the purposes of the World Council and will help meet the needs of its members. Affiliation does not require financial support or implementation by the World Council. However, in many cases, affiliation will produce some effort at implementation by members of the World Council. Affiliation requires approval by a majority of the Board members voting on the matter. (3) Endorsement may be given by the World Council for projects organized and carried out by individuals and other agencies when such projects are found to be consistent with the purposes of the World Council. Endorsement indicates this consistency of purpose and expresses the wish of the World Council for the success of the project. It requires no financial support or active involvement on the part of the World Council or its members. Endorsement requires the approval of a majority of the Board members voting on the matter.

E. Although the World Council is a non-governmental organization, it will cooperate with international governmental organizations on projects consistent with the purposes of the World Council. Such cooperative efforts also are subject to the approval of a majority of the members of the Board voting on the matter.

F. National or transnational chapters of the World Council may be formed by any group of ten or more members who submit to the Executive Director a set of purposes compatible with the purposes of the World Council and an operational document, such as a constitution or other plan of organization, and who receive approval by the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall have the right to cancel its approval and to forbid future use of its name by that chapter. Each chapter shall have a chapter coordinator or president to (1) coordinate chapter activities and (2) encourage the formation of local branches of the chapter.

G. Any national or transnational Chapter with at least one hundred (100) or more members of the international organization shall have an automatic seat in the Advisory Council. Any Chapter President and/or Coordinator may be nominated to run for an at-large position on the Executive Board.

H. Local branches of a chapter may be formed by three or more members who submit to the chapter president and/or coordinator a set of purposes compatible with the purposes of the World Council and a constitution, and who receive approval by the chapter officers. In cases where there is no organized chapter, three or more members may create a local branch affiliated directly with the world body, using the procedures specified for the formation of a chapter.

I. Chapter or local branch activities, programs and conferences/meetings shall be designed to carry out the purposes of the World Council in the interim between world conferences.

J. Chapter or branch meetings may serve to facilitate the activities of individual members working with specific learning environments to carry out the purposes of the World Council, by providing, wherever possible, information, assistance in acquiring resources, and professional support.

Article XI - AMENDMENTS:

A. An amendment may be proposed by the Executive Board or by a petition signed by ten percent of the members in good standing. The Constitution may be amended by approval of two-thirds of those members in good standing voting within ninety days of submission, through the Executive Director.


- Adopted August 1, 1971
- Amended August 1, 1975
- Amended July 1, 1983
- Amended January 1, 1987
- Amended December 1, 1998
- Ratified, January 31, 1999
- Amended in Manila August 6, 2006
- Proposed to the Membership for Ratification, August 10, 2006
- Ratified, March 30, 2007

Greetings from the Anatolia, from my beloved country Turkey, which is known as the cradle of civilization and which connects continents, cultures and beliefs. It is with great pleasure that I send you this first communication as the President of the WCCI for the next two years. I hope this finds you all in the best of spirit, good health and continuous success in your personal and professional endeavors.

When I received the official communication from the Secretariat and the Newsletter announcing my Presidency, I felt humbled and honored to take the reins of the WCCI leadership. Together I hope that you welcome our new WCCI leadership with the same enthusiasm and support you have given to the past administration. I wish to take this opportunity to express my thanks and appreciation to my brother Vincent Shieh for his successful WCCI Presidency and to the Past Presidents who have carried the banner of WCCI with honor and distinction. We will seek the continuous support of the WCCI leaders in particular and the membership in general. It is also important to work closely with Dr. Estela Matriano and Ms. Carole Caparros at the WCCI Secretariat as the need arises. On our part let us join hands to live up to the expectations of everyone in the organization for a successful leadership.

I plan to build my Presidency on two pillars of WCCI which are (1) collaboration and (2) person-to-person relationship in working together in harmony and cooperation as we lead the organization. I hope to be able to participate in most if not all the WCCI local, national and international activities. i.e. conferences, meetings, etc. It will be an indication of greater cooperation if most of us can do the same.

In closing I reiterate my pledge that I will try to carry on this big responsibility of the WCCI Presidency to the best of my ability and hopefully with your heartfelt support and cooperation. May God help us to pursue successfully our endeavors to promote the Culture of Peace and guided by the basic ideals/values of the WCCI Constitution.

Truly yours,

Ismail Hakki Mirici
WCCI President
Full Professor
Hacettepe University
Ankara, Turkey