Despite what people start saying at this time of year, summer is NOT over! I hope this finds you well and having some time to enjoy whatever you are doing—professional development, travel, or just relaxing. And for those who are working (and I know many are), I hope you still have some time to enjoy this beautiful state!
Summer is often the busiest time for MEA leaders, but attending events and meetings with members around the state is a good kind of ‘busy’! After the NEA Representative Assembly, the local treasurer and president trainings began (two more this week), then the four-day MEA Board of Directors training and meetings, one of which was spent with MEA staff to review the outcomes of the legislative session and to discuss ways to engage members in our work going forward. Six new Board Directors have joined the MEA Board of Directors: Kristen Braun for District B, Suzie Szava Kovats for District C, Valerie Pinkham for District G, Lisa Henderson for District P, Jay Nicholson for District ESP, and Kay Grindall for the MEA Retired seat on our Board. In addition, Zac Wentworth was appointed to join us in September as Student Observer for the coming year. Board Directors will be sharing with local leaders details of the actions taken and the discussions held at our meeting—please do not hesitate to reach out to them or to me with any questions! Not sure which Board district is yours? You can find the information here: https://maineea.org/board-of-directors/
I was honored to represent MEA at the recent visit of President Biden to Auburn Manufacturing. Three MEA Board members, Dennis Boyd, Rebecca Manchester, and Jay Nicholson, along with Lewiston EA President Jaye Rich were also able to attend. I had the good fortune to actually shake hands with the President and got to speak with him for a few minutes. I thanked him for all he has been doing for public education and he said, “We have more to do!” to which I replied, “Yes, we do!”
We will continue to work at the federal level, and given the outcome of some of our priority legislation in Maine this session, we will certainly be working hard at the state level as well. We have the commitment of leaders in Augusta, including the Governor and legislative leaders, to make progress on raising educator wages and salaries in the coming session, so stay tuned—there is more to come!
Thank you to the members who donated items for the MEA virtual auction for the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education last month, and to those who had the winning bids! And a huge thank you to our Maine delegates to the NEA Representative Assembly whose generous contributions placed us third of all states in per delegate donations. But in per member donations, we are very low on the list. Let’s work to change that! As you know, we do not use dues dollars in support of endorsed candidates; only your voluntary contributions to PAC may be used for this purpose. With 2024 just around the corner, I encourage you to make a recurring donation to either the MEA Fund in Support of Public Education or the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education —or both! You have been seeing what has been happening in other places where public education is being undermined and attacked—we must be ready for November 2024 to see that this does not happen here!
Of immediate importance are upcoming school board elections in many communities. If you know of potential candidates for these important positions–including yourself if you would be willing to take this on!—please do what you can to urge them to run and then help elect candidates who will make good decisions to support our students and our schools!
This month after our MEA Conference (where I hope to have chatted with many of you!) I will be attending the various meetings held by our UniServ Directors to assist locals with their back-to-school membership plans and engagement. I look forward to having the chance to meet with more of you at these and I would be glad to attend any of your new hire events and/or local association gatherings—just let me know!
Reminders
A quick reminder about an opportunity for our ESP members: the application for the next cohort for the NEA ESP Leadership Institute, a program to develop leadership skills, closes soon. Details are here: https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/professional-learning/esps/ESPLI
NEA recently released a guide to help educators understand their rights and limitations when speaking up for public education and students—You can listen to the School Me podcast here: Educator Advocacy Rights | School Me (simplecast.com) and read the full report here: https://www.nea.org/advocacy-rights
Along with being a member of MEA, do you belong to an academic association? If so, is it affiliated with MEA? If not, please encourage the leaders to connect with us – there are many ways that we work together with our ‘non-governance academic affiliates’. FMI: https://maineea.org/academic-affiliates/ Any questions, let me know!
Next Month
MEA is helping to sponsor an event held by the Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) on September 20th at USM. This is the first “Policy Insights”, a series to learn about economic justice, and will feature a conversation with Chris Smalls, the founder and president of the Amazon Labor Union. Click HERE to view the event flyer. The event is free, but you need to register: https://www.mecep.org/policy-insights-talk-2023-registration
Important
The MEA Board of Directors recently adopted a compliance policy for all local associations. The information will be sent to local leaders soon and I will hold a webinar in the coming weeks to provide more information—watch for the announcement. Meanwhile, if you are a local president or treasurer who was unable to attend one of the trainings this summer, please reach out and we will do what we can to schedule some time with you soon. (And thank you to the many who did attend these important trainings!) I will also be continuing the monthly ‘MEA President’s Virtual Office Hours” (the first one is Sept. 12th) and MEA Business Manager Tammy Simpson will be holding periodic check-ins for treasurers (first one will be Nov. 1st.)
That’s all for now—a shorter message than usual–after all, it is STILL summer!
Stay well, and enjoy, and reach out any time!
In Unity,
Grace Leavitt, President
Maine Education Association
