PLEASE read through this month’s message—there is a LOT of important information! And please share it with other members who might not see this somehow (we still hear that some MEA communications go in spam folders—perish the thought!)
MOST IMPORTANT!—WE NEED YOU! AND YOU NEED A RAISE!
We are holding an MEA Lobby Day on Thursday, February 22nd, at the state house in Augusta. We have unanimous support from the legislators on the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee to raise the minimum wage for our educational support professionals and also to raise the minimum teacher salary—UNANIMOUS SUPPORT, and now we need to support their efforts!It is time for YOU to show up and speak up!
REGISTER HERE
If you have never attended a Lobby Day before, no worries! MEA will have all you need to have a great day! All you need to do is register and show up! Let’s get this done!
THIS MONTH:
This week is National School Counseling Week (February 5 – 9). Let’s be sure to thank our school counselors who support our students and us!
February is Black History Month. NEA has lots of resources you can use these resources year-round!
MEA AND NEA EVENTS, RESOURCES, AND AN UPDATE
Government Pension Offset/Windfall Elimination Provision (GPO/WEP—the Social Security Offsets)—several state affiliate presidents (including yours truly) along with NEA have been working together on this issue. The National WEP/GPO Repeal Task Force shared their call for action this week to contact the members of the House Committee on Ways and Means to push for a “mark-up” of H.R. 82. Lots more information on this issue here: https://www.nea.org/resource-library/about-gpo-and-wep and here https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/action-center/take-action/fully-repeal-unfair-social-security-penalties and here https://ssfairness.org/ This is a list of Representatives on the Committee on Ways and Means: Ways and Means Committee.docx
Thank you to the MEA members who recently attended the 2024 NEA Minority Leadership/Women’s Leadership Training. NEA Director Rebecca Cole’s latest report includes information about this and many other items—take a look! NEA Director Report Jan 2024.docx
Rebecca is also a lead facilitator for NEA’s Leaders for Just Schools. Several other MEA members have also taken this training. NEA just released the 2024 report on LJS: LJSReport_2024_digital.pdf Thank you to our members who have become LJS trainers! If you are interested in connecting with them, let me know. And if you are interested in NEA’s training, watch for an announcement about the next cohort!
The MEA contest, Read Across Maine, takes place next month. All Maine public school students, in all grades, are encouraged to participate! Each participating classroom sets a collective reading goal for the duration of the contest reflecting the number of books, pages, sight words, or reading hours the class aims to complete. Educators will receive access to a map where they can track the books read, pages completed, words, or hours spent reading by their classroom. Details here: READ ACROSS MAINE
New Webinar Series: AI in Education—Join NEA and the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) to discuss the rise of AI in education, February 1st through April 14th. The four courses range from an Introduction to AI in Education to AI For Good: Exploring Ethics, Equity, & Digital Citizenship. Learn more about and register for any or all courses today.
As you saw in a previous President’s message, MEA will be working to support better gun safety legislation in our state. If you are interested in joining our Educators for Gun Safety group, please let me know.
Also, On February 14 at 5 PM, join NEA President Becky Pringle and member Zach Martin on NEA’s Instagram (@NEAToday) for a live conversation about the gun violence epidemic in schools. Zach was a freshman at Columbine High School in April 1999, and now he’s in his thirteenth year of teaching there. Meanwhile, you see this from NEA: Taking Action on Gun Violence | School Me (simplecast.com)
Our Early Career Educators (those in their first five years in the profession) should have received an invitation to the Early Career EdPalooza on March 16th, designed specifically for those new to the profession. If you missed the email, let us know!
The 2024 NEA Higher Ed Conference is March 15-17 in Atlanta. Self-funded or local-funded participants should register here https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/conferences-events/higher-ed-conference by February 17, 2024.
The 2024 NEA ESP National Conference is March 22-24 in Las Vegas. Self-funded or local-funded participants should register hereby February 18, 2024.
This week you will receive a message asking you to participate in a survey as part of MEA’s equity audit which we are undertaking with Ascension Worldwide. Please take a few minutes to take the survey. There will be some additional opportunities to give input. Watch for the email coming soon!
A request from MEA-Retired: They will be including “Hearing from the Halls” in their convention book this year and are asking you to send along a word of appreciation for retired educators who substitute, volunteer in classrooms and libraries, participate in Day of Caring activities, and assist in cafeterias, and help our active educators and our students in so many ways. Please send your message along with your name, school name and town/city, grade, and subject level to kay_grindall@yahoo. com by March 15.
OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST
Alert your high school students to this opportunity from Maine Public! Deadline for submissions is February 23rd, so please share this with them NOW: Future Driven: A Youth Climate Story Challenge | Maine Public
Our union siblings in Maine AFL-CIO have had a monthly reading group that some MEA members have participated in. Since they are currently reading “Red State Revolt” (about the teachers’ strikes in West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Arizona), you may be interested in this, too: Labor Reading Group | Maine AFL-CIO (maineaflcio.org)
For our Aspiring Educators–The NEA-Retired Jack Kinnaman Scholarship Fund was established in honor of Jack Kinnaman, the then-serving NEA-Retired Vice President. There are five scholarships of $3,500 each. To be considered, aspiring educators must submit an applicationand several letters of recommendation. Applications are due on April 15, 2024. To submit an application, click here.
If you work with young children, or have your own, you may be interested in this new exhibit at the Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine: Ckuwaponahkiyik Atkuhkakonol: Wabanaki Storytelling Through Art and Traditions — Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine (kitetails.org)
The Holocaust and Human Rights Center of Maine has many programs that may interest you and your students: HHRCMAINE
You may be interested in this event held by the Maine Chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI) APRI events.pdf
REMINDERS
Do you have a student teacher working with you this semester? If so, have they joined Student MEA? https://ims.nea.org/HowToJoin/stateStudent.action?mbrType=STUDENT&sea=me If they haven’t, please talk to them about the importance of joining–perhaps you could sponsor their membership to help them connect with other aspiring educators and enjoy the support of our union!
Nominations for MEA Awards must be submitted by March 9th. Information and forms are here: https://maineea.org/award-grants/
If you haven’t visited the MEA Shirt Swag Shop yet, you can check it out here: https://www.rayguncustom.com/collections/maine-education-association
The next MEA President’s Virtual Office Hour is Tuesday, February 13th at 7 p.m. All local presidents and vice presidents should have received an invitation to attend.
Lots of elections are coming our way—MEA elections, state elections, local elections!
You will soon be receiving ballots in the mail for elections conducted by MEA. Be sure to read and follow the directions and return your ballot by Friday, March 15th.
Will your local be represented at the 2024 MEA Representative Assembly this May? Local presidents need to send in the certificates of election of local delegates by March 15th. Information is here: https://maineea.org/mea-elections/
Any questions, let us know!
And—what positions are up for election in your city or town? On your school board? All seats in the Maine Senate and House of Representatives will be up for election in November. Help ensure there are candidates running at all levels who will support public schools, students, and educators by talking to people you know. And if YOU are interested in being a candidate, let us know! MEA can help!
SEE YOU ON MEA LOBBY DAY!
Meanwhile, reach out any time!
In Unity,
Grace Leavitt, President
Maine Education Association
