What is Delegate Assembly? Delegate Nearly every year since NSEA’s 1867 founding — and sometimes twice a year — Association members have met Assembly at Delegate Assembly to conduct the Association’s business. THE Approaches The April 2021 event will mark the 160th in NSEA’s long history. But even VOICE with that rich and deep history, too few Annual Gathering members understand it’s purpose. Nebraska State Education Association Scheduled April 23-24 Now, members will be able to learn 605 S. 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508 answers to the question ‘What is Delegate nsea.org Thanksgiving has come and gone and Assembly?’ by tuning in to a webinar on 402-475-7611 · 1-800-742-0047 the holidays are close at hand. That can Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 7:30 p.m., CDT. Volume 74, No. 4 mean only one thing: NSEA’s Delegate Members of the NSEA leadership ISSN Number: 1085-0783 Assembly will be here before you know it! team, including President Jenni Benson, will USPS Number: 000-369 NSEA’s annual business meeting — the explain Delegate Assembly’s role in driving Executive Director Maddie Fennell, NBCT 160th in Association history — will be held the focus of the association and how Associate Executive Sheri Jablonski April 23-24 (a decision whether it will be members can become an elected delegate. Director & Comptroller held in person or in remote fashion, due to To register, go to nsea.org and click Field & Special Michelle Raphael on the ‘Webinars and Professional Projects Manager the pandemic, is expected to be made later this month). Development’ link, and then on the Director of Public Affairs Karen Kilgarin ‘2020-21 New Educator Online Learning & Communications Duly elected members from across Opportunities’ link. Assistant Comm. Director Al Koontz the state, from local associations large NSEA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE and small, will tend to the business of the President Jenni Benson, Lincoln Association, elect leaders and chart the Oct. 16, 1867, just months after Nebraska [email protected] path for the Association for another year. gained statehood. NSEA is the state’s oldest Vice President Robert Miller, Omaha Inspiring speakers, discussion of professional association and has held a [email protected] Delegate Assembly almost every year, and NEA Director Tracy Hartman-Bradley, Omaha educational issues and consideration of [email protected] updates to NSEA Bylaws and Resolutions in some cases, twice in a year. NEA Director Linda Freye, Lincoln are part of Assembly action. Members will To make your interest in serving as an [email protected] also elect a member to serve as the Ethnic and elected delegate known, contact your local Official publication of the Nebraska State Education Minority Affairs Committee representative association president, your local association Association, 605 South 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508- on NSEA’s Board of Directors. building or faculty representative, or your 2742. Periodical postage paid at Lincoln, NE, and ad- NSEA first met as the Nebraska State NSEA organizational specialist at 1-800- ditional mailing offices. Postmaster: send address changes to NSEA Voice, 605 S. 14th Street, Lincoln, NE Teachers Association in Brownville on 742-0047. 68508. Published 10 times yearly according to this schedule: Honor a Colleague at Delegate Assembly 2021 September, October, November, December, January, Any NSEA member may nominate a member teacher, ESP or group for recognition at February, March, April, May and August. NSEA’s Delegate Assembly in April 2021. Mailed nominations must be postmarked by Friday, Payment of annual NSEA membership dues entitles Feb. 12, 2021, and sent to NSEA Awards, 605 S. 14th St., Lincoln, NE 68508-2742. Nebraska educators to receive The Voice. Total cost of Nominations may also be submitted online, with supporting material sent to NSEA. producing 10 monthly issues of The Voice each year is less than $2 per member. Online forms are under the ‘Call for Nominations’ link at: nsea.org/delegateassembly Advertising rates available upon request. All ad- Members are eligible for these awards, which carry a $250 cash award: vertisements and advertisers are screened prior to Early Career Educator of the Year: For a teacher in their first 5 years of teaching. publication. Appearance of an advertisement in The Award for Teaching Excellence: Honors a teacher for long-term excellence. Voice does not imply NSEA endorsement of either the product being advertised or the views expressed. Education Support Professional of the Year: Honors an ESP who has excelled in their profession. NSEA members are also eligible for: The Great Plains Milestone Award: Honors an individual/group for promoting human and civil rights. Find us on Facebook at: Community Service: Honors NSEA members and/or local associations involved in facebook.com/nsea.org volunteer work outside of classroom hours. Find us on Twitter at: Local Public Relations: Honors local associations for outstanding internal @nsea_org communication. Find us on Instagram at: @nsea_org Also to be presented: Find us on YouTube at: Friend of Education: Honors an individual or organization that has made a NSEAMEDIA statewide contribution to education. Media: Cites a newspaper, television or radio outlet for coverage/promotion of public education. A Great Public School On the Cover: Lyons-Decatur Northeast science teacher Paul Timm for Every Child. is Nebraska's 2021 Teacher of the Year. Learn more beginning on Page 7. (Photo by Drew Worster, Multimedia Specialist, Nebraska Department of Education) PAGE 2 | THE VOICE | DECEMBER 2020 | #YouBelong Your NSEA Leadership Layer by Layer, Step by Step First, we want to thank everyone who completed the agreement with the medical experts: If drastic measures recent NSEA survey on teaching during the pandemic. weren’t taken, our medical systems would begin to You can read in detail about the survey on pages 11-15, crash, and many Nebraska school systems would close and you can review both the statewide and individual due to a lack of healthy staff. field unit results at nsea.org/survey. The NSEA board authorized the president to seek The survey was sent to all active members using the help from the Nebraska State Board of Education. On email address we have on file. We also asked local presi- Thursday, Nov. 19, a Petition for a Declaratory Order dents to remind members to complete the survey. And was signed by President Benson and filed by NSEA at- we posted on social media, urging members to contact torneys. You can find the petition at nsea.org/survey. us if they did not receive the survey. Dr. Lowe explained during our Nov. 19 Facebook The response was terrific! More than 6,500 members live discussion that Nebraska must layer our preventa- — one in three active members — responded. More tive measures like Swiss cheese. No single intervention than 2,200 added comments and every one of those or prevention or layer solves all the issues. But masks, comments were read and reviewed by NSEA staff and physical distancing, hygiene, limiting group size — all NSEA President leadership. combine to be effective actions to slow the spread. If Jenni Benson As might be expected, the opinions of our members you haven’t had the chance, we encourage you to watch cover the spectrum, from “NSEA needs to stay out of Dr. Lowe’s presentation on the NSEA Facebook page. this!” to “Please help us, I’m so scared!” – and those Thus, we believe that the NSEA board’s comprehen- two comments came from educators in the same school sive call for action will provide the basic protection that district! There are many layers to this issue, and many is needed statewide. steps to be taken to get back to normal. Some Cannot Wait for Care Advocate for Safety Like many of you, we have already begun to see the NSEA, however, cannot step back and “stay out of devastating effect of COVID-19 running unchecked. this.” Our Association’s Core Values, adopted by mem- Teresa Greve is a member of our NSEA staff. On bers at Delegate Assembly, provide very clear direction: Monday, Nov. 9, her son, a high school senior at the peak We must advocate for the safety and education of our of health – who was scheduled for his physical exam students. In part, those Core Values say: for the Navy SEALs the next day – had to be taken by We value equal access to a quality education that ambulance to Lincoln’s Bryan East Hospital Emergency is adequately and equitably funded. Room, experiencing signs of a stroke. The staff at Bryan We value diversity as being vital to the education said he required care from a pediatric specialist at either Executive process and integral in preparing students to function Children’s, Boys Town or UNMC facilities in Omaha. Director in a democratic society that protects human and civil Unfortunately, all those hospitals were full, so he was Maddie Fennell rights. sent by ambulance to Kansas City. Teresa’s son recov- We value being accurately informed activists ered, but others can’t wait for care. contributing to the ever-changing system of public edu- NSEA-Retired member Robert Beck, living in Mis- cation. souri, passed away on Wednesday, Nov. 11. As his wife We value partnerships that foster excellence, nur- Jean shared, “It is not just people dying of COVID, but ture a desire for lifelong learning, and create responsi- because of COVID people are dying, my husband, Rob- ble, productive citizens. ert, being one of them. We value the expertise of education profession- “We had to work our way through the Urgent Care als and recognize that fair compensation and respect are and ER system with hours of waiting for something that vital for a quality public education.