How Effective Family Engagement Makes a Difference

By Cindy Long If it hadn’t been for parental involvement at Glendale Middle School, a large group of girls would be failing gym class for one simple reason – they couldn’t wear the uniform. Nearly a quarter of the student population at Glendale is Muslim, and for religious reasons, Muslim girls are unable to wear short-sleeved [...]

NEA Priority Schools Conference Highlights Promising Practices

By Amy Buffenbarger NEA’s Priority School’s Campaign has brought together more than 300 teachers, education support professionals, union leaders, district administrators, community members and parents, representing 36 Priority Schools from 17 states, in New Orleans for a three day forum to share lessons learned, challenges and strategies for success in school transformation efforts. Declaring “the [...]

Parent and Community Outreach in the Spotlight

By Alain Jehlen and Sara Robertson NEA President Dennis Van Roekel and Michigan Education Association President Steve Cook joined forces to bring the National Education Association’s Standing Strong for Students Back-to-School Tour to the Detroit area on Tuesday. The day began with local radio interviews, outreach to education bloggers, and breakfast with some two-dozen local Association [...]

NEA President Begins 2011 National Back-to-School Tour

By Stacey Grissom and Tim Walker “One of the things I love about teaching is that you get to start brand new with the beginning of each new school year,” NEA President Dennis Van Roekel said today. Van Roekel was in Dayton, Ohio on Monday visiting Westwood Elementary School and Belmont High School to kick-off [...]

Creating A Safer School in Just One Year

By Amy Buffenbarger Belmont was a school run by the students. They skipped class and roamed the halls in the hundreds. Fights were a near daily occurrence. Police cars regularly parked outside. An emergency alarm sat next to the cash registers in the cafeteria to sound when students tried to steal the lunch money. Teachers [...]

Union and Parents Join Forces to Improve School Conditions

By Cindy Long Sitting between the more prominent cities of Philadelphia to the east and Pittsburgh to the west, Reading might seem like the city Pennsylvania forgot. But the once thriving railroad community is still one of the prime properties on the Monopoly game board, and there is a group of Reading education activists determined [...]

International Summit Puts Best Reform Ideas on the Table

By Tim Walker High-performing countries have strong unions. They also support teachers and engage them in the reform process. Many right-wing politicians in the United States may want to ignore these facts, but in Finland, Canada, Singapore, and other nations, collaboration with teacher unions has been a keystone in their successful efforts to improve student achievement [...]

New Board-Certified Teachers Join Distinguished Fraternity

By Mary Ellen Flannery When sixth-grade teacher Cynthia Walker thinks back to the two-year process of national board certification, she recalls the months of sleepless nights but also the days of thoughtful discussion with her colleagues. “You start sharing ideas – what are you trying to accomplish (in the classroom)? And why?” she said. “I [...]

Teachers Spend for Classrooms, NEA Pays Them Back

By Kevin Hart A teacher spends on average $356 a year out of his or her own pocket on classroom supplies. The items run the gamut from hands-on activities to improve learning to school supplies for students. The spending can be particularly heavy for teachers at lower-income schools, where students often show up for school [...]