VEA CenVaServ

Excited to be at the VEA Convention! Pictured below, CenVaServ Chair Connie Finney & BCEA President Kristina Childress

Interested in working at our office? We are a non-profit that works with and provides support for our local and state teacher unions and members. A retired public school educator would be a perfect fit! We are looking for a part-time office administrator in Lynchburg, VA to begin work immediately. Hours are Monday - Friday from 1pm to 5pm. Hourly pay at $15 an hour.

Must be proficient in use of Microsoft Office Documents, preferably also with Google Docs. Digital/technology competency and proficiency is essential for this job. Must be able to work independently.

Required competency in basic office skills and finances. Comfortable learning and using databases and technology. Personable and professional attitude.

Please include a cover letter with your resume. Email them to: [email protected]

++Great Opportunity to Advance in Leadership
NEA offers members a new course to develop their understanding of leadership and how they can help to grow their Union. It’s called “Leadership Development 101: A Foundation Course for Activists,” and it aims to help members understand what it means to be a leader and what is required of educators to transform themselves, their Union, their communities, and public education. This is the first of a 2-part course; it is asynchronous and can be completed in 30 minutes. Click here to access the course.

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++Act on These Two New Offerings from VEA Human & Civil Rights
VEA’s Human & Civil Rights is coordinating these two exciting opportunities:

The Beblon G. Parks Scholarship Fund will award one $500 scholarship to a high school senior who plans to pursue a career in education. We have attracted great winners for this scholarship in the past. Applications are available to dependents of a VEA or VEA-Retired member if the parent/guardian’s membership is current and has been for at least three years. Learn more and apply here.
Get ready for VEA’s Webinar on “Social and Racial Justice in Our Schools and You.” Come learn about the recommendations from VEA’s recent racial and social justice summit and how you can take action to address key issues. Save the date: Wednesday, April 21 at 6 pm. Registration will open soon!

www.veanea.org

++Messaging the New CDC Guidance
You’ve heard that the Centers for Disease Control has proposed that, when appropriate mitigation strategies such as mask-wearing are in place, schools may be able to enforce a 3-foot distancing between individuals rather than 6 feet. This has little impact on the overall “return to in-person learning” message we have shared before, but it may cause a jump in media interest in the near term. I completed a TV interview with a Hampton Roads station already using the attached talking points. Reach out to VEA Communications if you need help with interviews or message.

++Stand Up for Our Asian American Brothers and Sisters
While some of the headlines may be disappearing after the horrific mass shooting in Atlanta, the need to stand up for Asian Americans most certainly has not.

Let’s continue to stand together against bias and racism in all forms as leaders and as educators and community members. VEA Human and Civil Rights offers these suggested resources to share:

Anti-racism resources to support Asian American, Pacific Islander community (NBC News)
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1260467?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma&__twitter_impression=true

NEA EdJustice tips on how to report incidents
https://neaedjustice.org/2020/03/30/standing-up-to-hate-and-bias-related-to-covid-19/

Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta is working to coordinate a community-wide rapid response to support AAPI folks in GA
https://www.advancingjustice-atlanta.org/

Support Georgia’s Asian American community with a donation.
https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/support-georgias-asian-american-community/?fbclid=IwAR1BZG3Fasduyao4aYMYraJQTWIQo8ocvtnz_sUiUr-afDleeNe47i8LI7c

++Standardized Testing Must be Cancelled This Year!

This has been the most difficult school year in modern history. With losing loved ones to COVID-19, being forced out of classrooms, adapting to distance learning, and missing out on a year of regular social interactions—students have had their worlds turned upside down. The last thing they need is a stressful, ineffective standardized test. That’s why I’d like you to join me in NEA’s campaign by signing our national Union’s Open Letter demanding that high-stakes testing be cancelled this year. Our students need adults to understand their physical, social, mental, and emotional needs at this time—not just get unreliable two-dimensional data from a multiple-choice test. Add you signature to the Open Letter here:

www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/cancel-standardized-tests-during-covid-19

Cancel Standardized Tests During COVID-19 We're calling on the U.S. Department of Education and state governments to think beyond the bubble and stop high-stakes testing during the pandemic.

++VEA Rally, Conference will Prep Members for Contract Negotiations

We’re on the cusp of history here in Virginia: The 40-year-ban on public school educators being able to negotiate their contracts will end May 1! To both celebrate and seize the moment, VEA is having a rally on April 30 and a one-day conference on May 1. We’ll help you hone your bargaining skills, communicate your message, and build local power on the way to the table. We’re encouraging locals to send a team to the conference. To hold your spot for that day, go here:

VEA Organizing to Bargain Conference Pre-Registration Form The Virginia Education Association will be hosting an Organizing to Bargain Conference on May 1, 2021. This will be open to all VEA members interested in gaining skills and knowledge about collective bargaining. This is a pre-registration form where you will indicate interest. We will send a final r...

++VEA Delegate Assembly Delegates Make It Happen in Cyberspace!
Our Union’s first (and hopefully, last) all-virtual convention wrapped up last weekend, and the more-than-300 delegates attending from living rooms, offices, and kitchens across Virginia focused on contract negotiation rights and issues of justice and equity. Thanks for hanging with us as we worked out an entirely new format! Read all about 2021 convention activities at www.veanea.org/21convention/. There, you can also see and hear my address to delegates. I’ll look forward to being together with you IN PERSON in 2022!

Negotiation Rights for Educators, Justice and Equity Issues Highlight VEA Convention - VEA Tackling the annual convention in a first-ever virtual format, over 300 VEA members maneuvered through cyberspace to lay some important plans for the Union, honor outstanding educators and legislators, and take stock of the havoc wreaked in everyone’s world by the COVID-19 pandemic.

++Organizing2Bargain Campaign Made VEA’s Top Priority

At least week’s Delegate Assembly, VEA members voted to make the ‘Organizing2Bargain’ campaign our Union’s top priority for the next two years (for more on the DA, see next item). O2B, as we call it, is going to be the means by which the expertise of educators will, at long last, be put to work at the table for the benefit of both students and educators. It’s going to be historic, and I’m all in! Read more in the new Virginia Journal of Education cover story at www.veanea.org/members-right-to-bargain-contracts/.

Why VEA Members Fought for Right to Bargain Contracts - VEA Collective bargaining has been an elusive goal, just beyond the reach of VEA members for more than 40 years. Since 1977’s ruling by the Supreme Court of Virginia banning the practice of local school boards negotiating contracts with local educators, our Union has created 10-year plans, legislative...

The Governor has signed this bill (https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?ses=212&typ=bil&val=hb1776 ) that automatically extends for two years all teaching licenses that were set to expire June 30, 2021.

LIS > Bill Tracking > HB1776 > 2021 session Board of Education; temporary extension of certain licenses. Requires the Board of Education to grant a two-year extension of the license of any individual licensed by the Board whose license expires on June 30, 2021, in order to provide the individual with sufficient additional time to comple...

The Zoom link for the following is: https://veanea.zoom.us/j/87223561015