Hello all,

There's a good chance you arrived at this discussion topic by way of an EMC message. If so, and you'd like to ask a question or make a comment, you can do so below. If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's the announcement in its entirety:

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EMC members,

We’re excited to announce a major transition for our online community. Effective July 23, EdMedia Commons will take a step to ensure that our community’s content can be viewed by anyone interested in education and its coverage.

What does this mean?

EMC is currently a closed community that requires users to log in before viewing the site. When we make the transition to a more open community, visitors to www.edmediacommons.org will be able to view content – discussions, Q&As, videos and more – without logging in.

Anyone who wants to create content or interact on the site through forum posts, content uploads or direct messages will still need an edmediacommons.org account. Those accounts will remain limited to members of the Education Writers Association, and conduct on the community will continue to be monitored by EWA’s staff in accordance with our long-standing house rules.

Why are we making this change?

EWA’s mission is to increase the quality and quantity of education coverage to create a more informed public. Since we launched last year, EMC has become home to valuable content, such as interviews with journalists and newsmakers and expert roundtables. We believe those features advance our mission and thus should reach a wider audience. By allowing visitors to view the content without logging in, EMC resources will become easier to promote and easier to access.

How will this affect me?

All content you’ve uploaded, with the exception of private messages, will be viewable by nonmembers of EWA once the community opens on July 23. We recommend that all EMC members log in and take a look at their history under My Page. If there’s anything you don’t want non-EMC members to see, you can delete it using these simple instructions. You can also edit any content you’ve contributed at any time.

Will there still be a nonpublic side of EMC?

Yes. We’re now allowing registered members to form groups (click here to learn how), which can be public or private. Group creators can allow or disallow access to anyone they want, and hold conversations on EMC away from public view if they choose to do so. Groups that are set to private will never be opened or viewable by anyone except members of that group.

Thank you for being a part of EMC’s first year. Our hope is that this change makes the community more welcoming, more convenient, and ultimately, a more effective tool for its members.