Once again, the wheels of change are turning at JRME. This issue marks the beginning of Volume 47, which will be the last volume under my editorship. To facilitate the transition to the new editor, there is a 1-year period during which the work of the journal is shared by the editor and the editor-designate. I am pleased to announce that Jinfa Cai, Professor of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Delaware, is the JRME editor-designate. His term as JRME editor will span Volumes 48–51, from 2017–2020.
Although volumes of the journal correspond to calendar years, the tasks of the editor follow a different timeline, which is governed by production schedules. Thus, the work of the editor-designate begins long before his or her name appears as editor on the journal cover. For example, Jinfa and the University of Delaware editorial team began handling all new manuscript submissions on September 1, 2015. The Illinois State team continued to process manuscripts that were already in the system and conducted reviews for resubmissions of manuscripts that had previously received revise and resubmit decisions. As of January 1, Jinfa and his team will have assumed responsibility for all aspects of the submission and review process. During this final phase of the transition, my role, with the assistance of Amanda Fain, will be to work with authors to complete the final editing of articles that will appear in Volume 47.
Another aspect of the transition involves the special section editors, who are appointed by the JRME editor. As you may have noticed from previous issues, some new appointments have already occurred: Steve Williams is now serving as the Research Commentary editor, and Sarah Lubienski has taken on the role of Book Review editor. Randy Groth will continue as the Monograph editor.
The gradual shifting of responsibilities between the JRME editor and the editor-designate in this transition period allows for a seamless change in the stewardship of the journal. While the work at one editorial office is winding down, the work at the other is ramping up. I would like to thank the NCTM Board of Directors for supporting both editorial offices during this period of transition.