Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/61011
Building Effective Locals Woodbridge E.A. Vice President Ray Sockrighter (right) practices his role in an actual building meet- ing to explain to mem- bers WEA's negotiations process. The team also spends time during this practice meeting soliciting opinions about what an improved contract would look like. WAR Weekend begins Friday night with a "Social Justice Dance," featuring whatev- er social justice hero or villain one cared to emulate. Among the great villains pres- ent are the wealthy Koch Brothers (Stephanie Ingram, left, and Mike Rees) with Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, aka Nichole Markey, right. In real life, all are leaders of the Colonial Education Assoc. DSEA Board Member Al Booker, a paraprofessional at Howard High School of Technology, listens to DSEA's Legal Counsel Jeff Taschner analyze Delaware's situation compared to other states. New to WAR are (from left) Merissa Gordon and Ezra Temko (above) who team-teach Kindergarten at one of our newest locals, the Delaware College Preparatory Academy Charter School. Getting acquainted with them is CREA President Jennifer Whitesell (far right). "The best part of the weekend was the presentation by the Appo group about their experi- ence implementing a Town Hall - a tool they learned about at last year's Leaders Weekend." Representing some of the "heroes" of Social Justice at our Friday night dance are (from left) Mother Jones - Pam Nichols; Rosie the Riveter – Val Hoffmann; and Norma Rae – Wendy Cannon. Hoffmann and Cannon are DSEA UniServ directors and Nichols is DSEA's dir. of communications. It's Poland's Lech Walesa, chief of the Solidarity trade union in Communist Poland, former post- Communist president of Poland, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Or is it Mike Kempski, Political Action chair for Christina E.A. and member of the DSEA Exec. Board? Todd Lanier of Delmar E.A. is a first-timer at a DSEA Winter Advocacy Retreat. He came to the Social Justice Dance as an environmental beach activist. Honest. Rosie the Riveter meets Black Power: Our Social Justice Dance was full of strange and interesting encounters. From left are Angela Davis, aka Regina Christian of Red Clay Paras; a Black Panther, aka Michael Brown of Capital Paras; Rosie, aka Christine Valente of Red Clay E.A.; and another Angela Davis, aka Denise Waples, Milford E.A. Brown, Valente and Waples are also members of the DSEA Exec. Board. Featured Sunday Morning are the Appoquinimink E.A. leaders who share their most recent organizing suc- cess, a Legislative Town Hall about Component 5 of DPASII-Revised. All but one of their six state legislators came, and heard heartfelt and persuasive stories from many AEA members. The legislators responded. Not long thereafter, the House and Senate Education Comm. held a joint meeting which contributed to changes to Component 5 for this interim year. From left are Linda Prickett, Vicky Caprindo (speaking), Jennifer Smith, and Carol Morris. Dance and WAR 2012 sessions. www.dsea.org Go to Flickr.com/dseaphotos to view all the great photos from the Social Justice March/April 2012 DSEA ACTION! 13