Fall 2018 COMMUNIQUÉ
Welcome Back! Member Experiences Be a Part of the New NEA edCommunities The Threat of a One Page Contract
Special Election Issue Welcome Back to the Start Member Experiences of a New School Year! Tiffany Thomas (Hilliard EA)
Adrienne M. Bowden (Pickerington EA), Central Over the past two years my experiences OEA/NEA President in and out of the classroom have led me to taking a more active role not only in my local, Thank you for belonging to Central OEA/NEA. As members but within Central OEA/NEA. In pushing we continue to use our voices and collective strength to myself to find my place in this profession, ensure that resources and opportunities are being directed I was given a wonderful opportunity to to our students and schools. be a voice not only for myself, but for my colleagues, students and profession. Our working conditions are the students’ learning condi- tions. We need to continue to use our collective power to After jumping into my role as Building Rep ensure all of our students receive a quality education so and being a part of the Emerging Leaders they can be successful and engendered with a life-long Cohort and the Diversity Committee within love of learning. Central, the opportunity to be a delegate I know that all teachers and support staff have been work- at the NEA Representative Assembly in ing diligently to prepare for the school year, exploring ways Minneapolis, Minnesota, was presented. I to challenge and inspire our students. We, as profession- couldn’t pass this up! als, have a number of avenues through which we can engage in educational advocacy. With the support and ef- I was excited for the RA, but extremely forts of members like you, we can shape the lives of many nervous. It was intimidating because of the students all over Central Ohio. pace of the meeting, but the wonderful leadership and Reps in Central calmed me There are many opportunities that lie ahead for us as edu- down and let me know my fears were a cators inside and outside of our school buildings. Whether normal part of the process. As I navigated my you are a seasoned educator or new to the profession, way to understanding these meetings, I kept Central OEA/NEA is here to support you with your educa- reminding myself that it gets better and to tional and professional development needs. keep swimming. We have been working hard throughout the summer to Walking onto the RA floor was an experience find ways to further enhance our I feel every member should live through at services and programming, creating least once. Seeing the huge, brightly-lit stage ways to engage all members and bet- and thousands of educators excited about ter support our Local Associations. “doing the work” was inspiring. Not many Check out our website for details on times do teachers get the opportunity to the conferences, scholarships, grants gather and really feel supported. The NEA RA and committee work we offer. did just that for me. It reignited my fire to be I wish you the best of luck this the best advocate for my students and my school year! profession.
I am so happy I took this opportunity to become a delegate and a more active part of the process of creating a stronger union. A week of fellowship, dialogue and positive change has me fired up and ready to move COMMUNIQUÉ our Association forward in this current Volume 47, Number 1 Fall 2018 political climate.
Published four times a year as a service of CENTRAL OEA/NEA, INC. My advice? Don’t be afraid to answer the call 947 Goodale Blvd. to become more involved in your local, state Columbus, OH 43212 and national associations. It’s so worth it! I Adrienne M. Bowden, President feel like a much bigger piece of the puzzle Kevin Griffin, Vice President Russell Hughlock, Communications & Organizing Coordinator after this experience and can’t wait for next year. See you in Houston! Editors Ann Eblin, Judy Furnas, Carla Noll Fiscal Manager Tim Skamfer Production Russell Hughlock Design Pam McClung Phone 614-222-8228 E-mail [email protected] 2 Fall 2018 National Conferences Save the Dates
Here are some upcoming National Conferences Testimonials from the 2018 NEA Leadership you may wish to save the dates for. Summit