Aspiring & Early Career Educators

Kristin Crane is a busy wife, mom of four, AEM member, and brand new teacher. She also exemplifies resilience and dedication to public education. She knows the difference that educators make for their students and communities every day. Crane has worked in Gibraltar School District as a paraprofessional and long‑term substitute teacher. Often teachers leave very simple plans for substitute teachers. This…

A lot has changed with teaching in the three decades since I began as a student teacher in Oak Park Schools — much of it to the detriment of Michigan children, educators and families. If policymakers don't take immediate action to support aspiring and early career educators, Michigan students will face irreparable harm. I remember those early days as a…

Katie Hillyard tried not to be an educator. As a teen, the MEA member didn’t want to be just like her parents – both music teachers in the Grand Rapids area who are now retired. But when it became clear in college she was drawn to the profession, Hillyard followed her calling and today is finishing her ninth year in…

A group from MEA’s Aspiring Educators of Michigan (AEM) designed a multi-layered project for March is Reading Month that gave children from several elementary classrooms across the state a window into another culture, which in turn helped them look more closely at their own communities. Aryana Jharia Members of the AEM Social Justice Committee designed the project to value children’s…

Maya Murray Aspiring Educators of Michigan (AEM) members promoted March is Reading Month with a unique program motivated by a desire to show that even small efforts toward social justice can have a big impact. Supported by an NEA Create grant, members of the AEM Social Justice Committee demonstrated their dedication to both literacy and advocacy in a project titled…

Next January 8 will mark 20 years since President George W. Bush signed No Child Left Behind (NCLB) – federal legislation that ushered in a destructive era of high-stakes standardized testing and so-called “accountability” for educators and public schools. Michigan State Superintendent Michael Rice noted the upcoming anniversary during a wide-ranging, hour-long virtual chat last week with Aspiring Educators of…

From granting collective bargaining rights to deciding how much money is spent for students, public education is an inherently political profession, but educators are often missing from policy discussions and decisions.  Research has shown this lack of respect for educators’ expertise and professionalism is a big factor driving the educator shortage. Our next generation of leaders refuses to let that…

An overhaul of the broken federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF) announced on Wednesday is meant to restore the promise made to educators and other public service employees who have suffered under the program’s 98% rejection rate. Changes include a limited one-year waiver that allows all payments by student borrowers to count toward PSLF, regardless of loan program or…

MiNE, MEA’s networking and support group for new educators, is rolling out several events to engage early career members in October. Register and secure your spot today! A virtual book study offers 15 SCECHs and engages the book “Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy.” The online book study will run Mondays, 7-8:30 p.m. from Oct.…

NEA has released a first-of-its-kind report on the impact of a growing mountain of student loan debt among educators. The report, “Student Loan Debt Among Educators: A National Crisis," found that no segment of educators is immune from the burden of student loan debt – not young educators, not older and more experienced educators, and certainly not educators of color.…