Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/40928
NEA: Standing Strong for America NEA stands strong at Representative Assembly Delegates wrestle with tough issues after a rough year A fter a school year that saw redoubled attacks on educa- tors and unprecedented attacks on the collective bargaining rights of public servants in many states, the National Education Association took a strong stand for children, public education, and pub- lic service at its Annual Meeting and Representative Assembly in Chicago earlier this summer. RA delegates take three key policy stands The Representative Assembly adopted a Policy Statement on Teacher Evaluation and Accountability ( ). Based on a rec- U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, left, stands with NEA President Dennis Van Roekel after Biden delivers a rousing speech to delegates to the NEA Representative Assembly. NEA President Dennis Van Roekel kicked off the 2011 NEA Representative Assembly (RA) on Saturday, July 2, with a vigorous call for educators everywhere to stand strong in the face of relent- less attacks on public education, their profession, and working fami- lies across the nation. In his keynote speech, Van Roekel reminded more than 8,200 delegates that NEA has seen trying times in the past. The Association stood up then and will continue to stand up now. "Today we are at another cross- roads, another moment in history. A moment that compels us to stand up for our values and our worth, to speak out for our students and our profession," Van Roekel said. Bookending Van Roekel's speech, the new RA theme song "NEA Standing Strong" got delegates' hearts thumping and blood pump- ing. The song takes its title and lyrics from President Van Roekel's theme for the RA: Standing Strong for Our Schools, Our Students, and America. ommendation of a workgroup of NEA leaders convened in the spring by President Van Roekel and led by Secretary-Treasurer Becky Pringle, the policy statement outlines an evaluation and accountability sys- tem focused on enhancing the prac- tice of teachers, instead of identify- ing teachers for dismissal. The statement reflects the impor- tance of maintaining high stan- dards, not lowering them, and calls for robust evaluations based on multiple indicators. It also supports state or local affiliates in the use of standardized tests for evaluating teachers if said tests are proven to be of high quality and provide meaningful measures of student learning and growth. Delegates also voted to bolster NEA's crisis fund with a $10 dues increase to strengthen affiliates against the kinds of legislative and policy opposition public education has faced this year in Wisconsin, Ohio, New Jersey, Tennessee, Idaho, and so many other states. With an eye to defending against similar attacks at the federal level, the RA voted overwhelmingly to recommend the re-election of Barack Obama for a second term in the White House. President Van Roekel, many dele- gates, and special guest speaker Vice President Joe Biden acknowledged that the Association and the Administration have had a number of differences, particularly 12 September 2011 DSEA ACTION! on education policy, but as Biden told the cheering delegates, "We should be listening to you, not lec- turing you. We should be embrac- ing you, not pushing you aside. You are not the problem." Vice President Biden was just one of many guest speakers who rallied the more than 12,600 RA partici- pants. 2011 ESP of the Year Jameel Williams urges all members to put aside dif- ferences based solely on job titles 2011 NEA Education Support Professional of the Year Ernest "Jameel" Williams urged educa- tors to stand together in the face of opposition. "Our enemies want to strip us of collective bargaining, deny us a living wage, tie our evalu- ations and raises to students' test scores, and cut school budgets," the North Carolina Association of Educators member said. "We must put aside our personal and petty differences based solely on job titles," Williams stressed. "We must concentrate on uniting for our pro- fessional survival." 2011 Teacher of the Year Michelle Shearer from Maryland, graduated from Brandywine High School and praises her teachers there Michelle Shearer, the 2011 National Teacher of the Year, urged educators to swing open the doors to their classrooms so others can drop by and see the creative work being done by students and teachers. "We need parents, business lead- ers, members of our boards of edu- cation, and our elected officials to rally around our students and with us," said Shearer, a member of the Maryland State Education Association (MSEA). Recently Shearer returned to Delaware to speak to staff in Red Clay and Brandywine about her great Delaware teachers. Daniel Hoffman, a Delaware delegate from Indian River, joins 10,000 other delegates to thank the 14 Wisconsin senators who stood up to Gov. Scott Walker this past winter. Several of the 14 state senators who defied Wisconsin governor Scott Walker's efforts to strip public employees of collective bargaining rights, crossed the state line into Illinois once again—this time to be named Friends of Education, NEA's highest honor. www.dsea.org www.nea.org/ grants/46326.htm