Willow Grove, Pennsylvania
2013 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient
Jim
Rubillo has been an inspirational leader, communicator, and advocate for
mathematics education for more than 45 years. He has made numerous
contributions to the mathematics education community, with a special emphasis
on technology and teaching mathematics at the community college and high school
levels.
Rubillo
had a rich career in math education before leading the National Council of
Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) as executive director from 2001 to 2009. He
began his career as a mathematics teacher and department chair at Cheltenham
Township Senior High School in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. For 30 years, he served
Bucks County Community College in Newtown, Pennsylvania, in a variety of roles,
including professor of mathematics, associate dean for information systems and
services, executive assistant to the president for planning assessment and
research, and chairperson of the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.
Rubillo is currently professor emeritus at the college.
Rubillo
is well known in the mathematics education community. He has conducted K–12
in-service programs for schools and school districts across the country on a
variety of mathematics education topics. He is a frequent speaker at
professional meetings and has made presentations in all 50 states. He has
served on both the NCTM and NCSM boards of directors. His service to NCTM
includes membership on four annual meeting and ten regional conference program
committees. The diversity, scope, and reach of his service to the field of
mathematics education are legendary.
A
leader in the revolutionary “problem solving as a basic skill” movement,
Rubillo participated in developing NCTM’s An
Agenda for Action, released in 1980. This seminal publication, the first to
focus on problem solving as a basic skill, changed the direction of mathematics
education in the United States.
Rubillo’s
vision for improving instruction extended to the use of technology to reach
more educators through such initiatives as Math in the Media, Math Matters, and
NCTM’s e-Workshops and e-Seminars. In addition, Rubillo connected NCTM with
what has now become its Illuminations initiative—one of the Council’s most
valued projects.
During
his tenure at NCTM, Rubillo oversaw the development and publication of NCTM’s Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten
through Grade 8: A Quest for Coherence. Always a leading force in
increasing the Council’s presence and influence as an advocacy organization for
mathematics teaching and learning, Rubillo framed high-level policy discussions
about the need for greater coherence in mathematics curriculum.
One
nominator noted that Rubillo’s use of NCTM’s “member first” principle was one
of his greatest accomplishments: “He made every staff member aware that he or
she could help meet the organization’s goals … he articulated meaning in the
work for everyone across the organization.” Those supporting Rubillo’s
nomination remarked on his enthusiasm for teaching, service, and leadership—and
his wonderful sense of humor. “Teachers learn from and love him. He runs a
tight ship; however, we all want to be on the ship with him.”
Honors presented to Rubillo include the Hall of
Fame Award from the Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of Mathematics, and the
Ross Taylor/Glenn Gilbert National Leadership Award from the National Council
of Supervisors of Mathematics. Rubillo was named a Distinguished Alumnus by
West Chester University, and was awarded an honorary doctor of science degree
by the university in 2004.