The Council is the MatheLite Project's leadership corps. It creates and coordinates the Tulsa-area network of organizations and communities concerned with aiding Tulsa's math-needy youth and adults. It gathers pertinent network input about public needs, sets policies and priorities for Project operations, and keeps the network informed of Project proceedings, progress, and plans.

The Council also gathers the resources needed for development of the Project's community education program, and manages the area-wide distribution of its program materials. In effect, the Council is the "publisher" of the Project's instructional program.

The Council represents the Tulsa community. Council members share humanitarian concerns about the personal educational health of Tulsans, and socioeconomic concerns about life in the Tulsa area. They are community leaders and representatives from concerned Tulsa-area organizations, agencies, and communities. The Council's Membership Committee continually strives to expand the Council, so as to increase community-wide participation in helping the math-needy.

Organizations and individuals are asked to nominate candidates (who might be themselves) for Council membership. Candidates are screened and appointed by the Membership Committee. All members are appointed for unlimited duration, subject to current guidelines for appointment and continuation. All serve as public service volunteers. Their respective workloads vary at their discretion. The minimal service is to stay abreast of the Projects proceedings, progress and plans ... make pertinent input into those ... and help keep interested contacts informed. Candidates should identify themselves by e-mail to Office@mathelite.org > Subject: Candidate for Council membership ... including contact information and brief statement of interests in joining the MatheLite effort.

The Mathematical Literacy Project is an outgrowth from the Tulsa-based, not-for-profit MALEI Institute's Mathematical Learning Clinic. The Clinic serves math-needy youth and adults, only a few at time, and charges professorial fees. The MatheLite Project began as the Clinic's "outreach" to math-needy adults who could not access the Clinic or afford it.

The Project's Community Advisory Council was created by the Clinic as a means of enabling additional Tulsa-area resources to join the move toward helping those Tulsans whose lives are most seriously hurting because of their educational disadvantages in mathematics. In order for the Council to have the leverage and benefits of not-for-profit status, it was born as an activity of the American Institute for the Improvement of MAthematics LEarning and Instruction, a.k.a. the MALEI Institute.

Naturally, the original Council was quite small, but is rapidly growing. When it becomes quite large, it will create its own Executive Board to steer its evolution and proceedings. As it matures, the Council may choose to become an autonomous non-profit organization. Until then, the Council and its activities are subject to the same NPO regulations that apply to the Institute. Through that arrangement, the MALEI Institute is one of the Council's collaborating local organizations.

The MALEI Clinic is responsible for providing the Council with rough drafts of videos that have been well tested for their effectiveness with math-suppressed adults ... developed through resources generated by the Council. So, the Council sets priorities and guidelines for the Clinic's proposals for the MatheLite videos ... and makes final decisions about contracting for their reproduction in professional video formats. [The Clinic is solely responsible for the content of the videos, but welcomes input from Council members.]

Until the Council has the staff services and facilities needed for its work, the Institute is providing both. However, the Institute cannot cover the associated expenses.