Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/886719
COMMUNIQUÉ A PUBLICATION OF THE IOWA STATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION – OCT/NOV 2017 – Vol. 55, No. 2 IN THIS ISSUE: ISEA Students Assembly Nominations Recertification District List 2 7 10 Set it... Set it... and forget it! and forget it! EFT AVAILABLE NOW! EFT AVAILABLE NOW! Have you voted? Statewide wins in school board races Dozens of districts risk losing representation at the bargaining table, but last month's elections show educators overwhelmingly want the ISEA there. Nearly 220 Iowa State Education Association locals are in the midst of an election, the results of which will determine if their education professionals will have a seat at the table when their contract is up. These are recertification elections. They are mandated under the same 2017 law that stripped educators, firefighters, police officers and other public employees of rights that were in place since the 1970s. These elections are like none other in the state of Iowa in two key ways: first, everyone covered by a contract, union or non-union, is counted in the final tally, and second, people who don't vote count as a "no" vote. This is a higher standard for success than is required for a school board member, state legislator or even the president ISEA-recommended candidates swept into office on in September It was a humid summer afternoon when Mari Butler found herself in a study room of the Burlington Public Library considering a proposal. Would she be willing to help elect a former state senator to the Burlington school board? The trick was the senator, Tom Courtney, who represented this Mississippi River town for more than a decade in the Iowa Senate, wouldn't be on the ballot. Instead, he'd have to run as a write-in. Plus, this was August 10. The school board election was in a month and two days. Butler is a high school English teacher in Mount Pleasant, but she lives – and votes – in Burlington. She knows educators need to support each other across the state. "Yes," Butler said, nodding. She'd do it. FOLLOW US ON: see RECERTIFICATION on page 6 see SCHOOL BOARD on page 8 Ankeny educator – lifting student concerns – scores big in first run for office The notion of running for a seat on Iowa's largest school board was a bridge too far for Kyrstin Delagardelle Shelley. After all, she reasoned, she had no experience in politics and she had to focus her energies on her students and completing her master's degree. Well, that was in April. Fast forward to Tuesday, September 12, when Shelley, propelled by a network of educators, parents, the labor community and local and state elected officials, won her race for an at-large seat on the seven-member Des Moines School Board. She joins Heather Anderson, a Waukee teacher and who was first elected in 2015, making it so the state's largest see EDUCATOR on page 9 Kyrstin Shelley (third from left) talks with volunteers during her run for a seat on the Des Moines School Board. Shelley a middle school teacher librarian in Ankeny was elected to the Des Moines School Board in September. FELIX PEREZ/EDUCATION VOTES How to vote You can vote "YES" by going to www.iowaperb.everyonecounts.com or calling the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board at 1-855-976-9349. The ISEA recommends using the online voting method. If you encounter any problems at all, or if you're unsure if your vote registered, call the Iowa State Education Association at 515-471-8002. Fort Madison EA member Christina Schelich (l-r) and ISEA President Tammy Wawro listen as ISEA board member Rachella Dravis makes a point during a conversation at Ft. Madison Middle School. Wawro has spent the last several months traveling the state to talk with members about recertification elections. ANDREW ISAACSON/IOWA STATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION By Mike Wiser, mwiser@isea.org By Mike Wiser, mwiser@isea.org By Félix Pérez, fperez@nea.org