A Look Inside
As I write this, the sun is shining, and it is a pleasant day in March, reminding me that spring is just around the corner. The days are getting longer and progressively warmer. Flowers are starting to flirt with popping up and bringing their promise of brightness and cheer.
I love spring. Spring is a time to take stock, refresh and make changes where needed. A time to make the most out of opportunities.
I try and do a little of that every year. I am moving this year into a new place for me and the act of going through one’s belongings accumulated over the years can be frightening. Why oh why did I ever keep the takeout cafeteria trays from my BGSU college years? Why do I still have file folders full of old teaching materials? Why do I still have the key to a house I no longer own, in a state I have not lived in in over 10 years? Clearly, I am either very nostalgic (which I can be), or it is time to assess, purge and make changes for the better.
And with spring on the horizon, MEA is looking inward to do some work on its second strategic foci, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ). If you are unfamiliar with MEA’s strategic foci, the MEA Board of Directors every year discusses and adopts strategic foci to guide the work of the union for the upcoming year. This past July, the MEA Board adopted three foci – membership growth, DEIJ, and local capacity/member engagement. In partnership, the elected leaders and staff of MEA work towards fulfilling the vision of the board in these three areas.
To move the work around our DEIJ goals, MEA is in the process of completing an equity audit. An equity audit is a multiple step process in which stakeholders are engaged around the organization’s commitment to DEIJ principles in all areas of our operations. After extensive research, MEA contracted with a firm, Ascension Worldwide, located out of Maryland, to partner with us to move this work. Ascension Worldwide has experience working with other NEA-affiliated unions and understands our complex structure.
The equity audit began in early 2024 when MEA provided “artifacts” to Ascension Worldwide to review. Examples of the artifacts MEA provided include: MEA Constitution & Bylaws, MEA Board policies, MEA-MEASO collective bargaining agreement, MEA Standings Rules, MEA strategic foci, MEA organizational chart, and MEA Resolutions. These documents will be reviewed from an equity lens by Ascension Worldwide and findings included in a final report. MEA also conducted kickoff meetings with both the MEA Board and MEA Staff informing them of the equity audit purpose and process and to answer any questions individuals might have to provide transparency to the work.
To include as much stakeholder feedback as possible, MEA engaged in multiple methods to collect data on the Association from the different layers of the Association:
- anonymous survey via email to all MEA members,
- anonymous survey via email to all MEA staff,
- eight separate virtual focus groups: local presidents (4), BIPOC members, MEA staff, MEA Board of Directors members, and MEA managers, and
- individual virtual interviews.
All data collection methods were and are entirely confidential. No personally identifiable information will be provided from Ascension Worldwide in its findings and/or report. No MEA representative was present during any focus group nor any interview. Multiple communications were sent jointly from President Leavitt and me to stakeholders to promote and encourage participation in this process. This data collection portion of the audit is wrapping up in March after being open for months.
After collecting all the data, reviewing it, and analyzing it from an equity lens, Ascension Worldwide will provide MEA with findings and recommendations for next steps in early April. These findings will then be shared with the MEA Board and staff, and I will be sharing highlights with the delegates at the MEA RA in May. If you have not yet been a delegate to the MEA Representative Assembly (RA), I highly encourage you to consider running next year as unfortunately elections are closed for this year’s RA.
In the upcoming months, MEA will be discussing the equity audit report findings and recommendations to determine what next steps may be and how to proceed. Please stay tuned for more updates in future articles.
On behalf of MEA, I want to thank those of you who engaged with us in this work as your feedback will be crucial to gaining a better picture on how MEA is doing in this area and how successful the organization is in being an inclusive, equitable, diverse union.
And as for the takeout trays, if you know anyone who went to BGSU in Ohio circa 1987 and wants some memorabilia, please give me a shout.
All the best,
Rachelle
