FEBRUARY 2021 | #Youbelong Your NSEA President Hindsight in 2020, Foresight for 2021 As 2019 Came to a Close, I Don’T Believe Anyone Saw the Chaos of 2020 Coming
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NSEA Professional Development Covers Politics and Classroom, Loan Forgiveness, Technology THE New Educator February, March Lineup Online Learning Opportunities VOICE Programs all Online n Thursday, Feb. 4, 7:30 p.m.: How Do Politics Affect Me and My Nebraska State Education Association Ever wonder how and why politics 605 S. 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508 Classroom? — Featuring NSEA’s Brian affect your classroom? Local, state Mikkelsen, learn how politics affect the nsea.org and national politicians have much to 402-475-7611 · 1-800-742-0047 classroom and hear the current status of say about what happens inside your Volume 74, No. 6 legislation this session. classroom, and you can learn why it is n Tuesday, Feb. 23, 6 p.m.: Planning ISSN Number: 1085-0783 vital to stay attuned to political happenings USPS Number: 000-369 for Uncertainty — Collaborative in an online session with NSEA Director decision-making processes and drawing Executive Director Maddie Fennell, NBCT of Political Operations Brian Mikkelsen on real-world situations, training will Associate Executive Sheri Jablonski on Thursday, Feb. 4. Mikkelsen’s online Director & Comptroller demonstrate how educators, counselors Field & Special Michelle Raphael workshop, How do Politics Affect Me and and leaders can build comprehensive Projects Manager My Classroom? will convene at 7:30 p.m. action plans that attend to the wellness Director of Public Affairs Karen Kilgarin CST. To register, go to: needs of both themselves and their & Communications nsea.org/NewEdLearn Assistant Comm. Director Al Koontz students (90 minutes). NSEA is fast becoming your best n Thursday, Feb. 25, 6 p.m.: Repeat NSEA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE source for professional development. of Planning for Uncertainty. President Jenni Benson, Lincoln This list of opportunities over the next [email protected] two months assists members in meeting Vice President Robert Miller, Omaha EdTech Webinar Series [email protected] classroom needs, personal care and n Wednesday, Feb. 10, 6 p.m.: Using NEA Director Tracy Hartman-Bradley, Omaha education technology issues. Sessions Videos in Your Lessons — Videos are a [email protected] are one hour, unless noted, and all times great way to connect with your students. NEA Director Linda Freye, Lincoln are central time. To learn more, and to [email protected] Learn how to create videos using register, go to: QuickTime Player, Screencastify, and Official publication of the Nebraska State Education www.nsea.org/webinars Loom and how to share them in Google Association, 605 South 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508- 2742. Periodical postage paid at Lincoln, NE, and ad- Classroom and Seesaw. Explore ways to ditional mailing offices. Postmaster: send address Membership/Association link videos that other people have created changes to NSEA Voice, 605 S. 14th Street, Lincoln, NE Workshops in your online space (90 minutes). 68508. n Thursday, Feb. 11, 5:30 p.m.: n Wednesday, Feb. 17, 6 p.m.: Using Published 10 times yearly according to this schedule: Women and Money. 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Submit your questions about the process, and your topics to us at: [email protected] A Great Public School On the Cover: Your Association support assisted Lincoln member Jennifer Un- for Every Child. gvarsky as she worked to resolve issues with her paycheck. Learn more beginning on Page 7. PAGE 2 | THE VOICE | FEBRUARY 2021 | #YouBelong Your NSEA President Hindsight in 2020, Foresight for 2021 As 2019 came to a close, I don’t believe anyone saw the chaos of 2020 coming. Pandemic, economic uncertainty, political division – I think we all took it Lessons from 1918 as it came and made decisions as best we could based Influenza Service on the information at hand at the time. (from the January 1919 edition With the benefit of the information that comes of The Nebraska Teacher) with, appropriately, 20-20 hindsight, we can all see The war has produced heroes of the that in many cases we could have made better deci- battlefield in unprecedented numbers. It has sions. Such judgment comes easily when reflecting also discovered many thousands who have on past experiences and actions after the fact. freely offered their lives and their services As we enter 2021, we stop to reflect on our expe- riences and those decisions made in 2020. We have to the Red Cross and the YMCA and allied learned a great deal and your insight is invaluable as organizations. NSEA President we move forward. The influenza epidemic which is re- Jenni Benson ported to have taken a toll of 6,000,000 in Foresight in Treatment three months has also produced its heroes. Over the past couple of months, I have been evalu- When the influenza reached this country, “ ating quite a bit, both personally and professionally. I the trained nurses were nearly all in war service. But the call for help was imperative. The pandemic do not make decisions in isolation or autocratically. I carefully research, consult, discuss and survey others School teachers everywhere responded al- of 2020 delivered before making a shared decision. I listen to experts most unanimously where there was need, and weigh the options carefully. The information and their schools were closed. This service many cases gathered with hindsight, knowledge and expertise on the part of the teachers in this time of of hindsight then contributes to insight and foresight as we move sore trial will never be forgotten. forward. It is futile to attempt to give personal expertise: Should My husband, Mike, has a major blockage in the credit, for every center had its nursing unit basal artery leading to his brain which resulted in sev- have, could have, of teachers and other public-spirited wom- eral ischemic strokes the week before Thanksgiving. en, of whom there were many; but the sick would have. The holidays took on a new meaning as we navigated whose lives were saved by these volunteer our new challenges. Hindsight would suggest there nurses will not soon forget. History was were signs we didn’t notice ahead of the strokes. Many school boards have hesitated to pay being made as On Dec. 30, my brother, Jim, died unexpectedly. teachers their salaries during the vacations He was 59 and had battled health challenges for when the schools were closed by order of the playbook years. Grief is packed full of hindsight and memories. boards of health. State Supt. W.H. Clemmons, If those challenges weren’t enough, as I write was being however, has ruled that these salaries must this, Mike has been hospitalized for five days with be paid. The ruling is right and just. The teach- written. NSEA a chronic infection. Hindsight regarding issues with ers must not be left without funds to live on his infection are all over the internet. Hindsight won’t during such an emergency as this. And when locals and our help, but foresight in treatment will. the schools open again there must be teach- members were The Most Important Voice ers for them. In other words, the teachers must hold themselves in readiness to return vital in making The pandemic of 2020 delivered many cases of hindsight expertise: should have, could have, would to work at any time the school board may pandemic have. History was being made as the playbook was deem it safe to reopen the schools. We are glad that Nebraska is not lagging related decisions being written. NSEA locals and our members were vital in making pandemic-related decisions in their behind the other states in a matter so vital in their school school districts across the state. to the schools. It was not much different from the influenza pan- districts across demic of 1918. As with the current pandemic, edu- ence each of them. the state. cators in 1918 gave vital service in that instance, as cited in the predecessor to The Voice magazine, The We know from experience your voice is the most Nebraska Teacher (see box).