MEA member Lindsey Wilson holds a position in Lowell Area Schools that rarely existed in Michigan school districts just five years ago. Wilson is a behavior coach, assigned to address needs of students exhibiting the most challenging classroom behaviors. She doesn’t work directly with children most of the time. Like an instructional coach, she brings [...]
In her three decades as an educator, Hayes Elementary art teacher Christine Lakatos never considered herself an environmentalist. Yet Lakatos and her students at the Westland school for years created art using egg cartons, paper towel tubes and other household items that otherwise get tossed. Under Lakatos’ leadership, Hayes Elementary, part of Livonia Public Schools, [...]
By William Renner Hastings Area Schools We all know one of the greatest joys of teaching is when a light bulb goes on for a student who grasps a new concept for the first time. That’s what I loved about hosting a summer camp for my middle school manufacturing students in Hastings last year. Not […]
MEA member Kossi Komlassan has led soldiers in combat and teenagers in math class. Both of those identities recently came together in one room at Beaverton Junior/Senior High School (BJSHS) when the third-year educator received a promotion in the Michigan Army National Guard in a ceremony before his family, school community, and the sophomores he […]
By Chandra Madafferi MEA President & CEO Collaborate, explore and participate are three words that were everywhere in a middle school that I visited in Norway last October, where I joined a group of professors from Michigan State University’s College of Education to observe Norwegian schools in action and bring home lessons for our state. […]
By Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Big themes recur throughout the story of Grand Rapids art teacher Stephen Smith. Trauma. Grief. Hopelessness. Then creation, connection, community. Images and ideas return like motifs in Smith’s remarkable personal narrative. A 37-year-old San Francisco native, Smith is a multi-faceted and award-winning artist, innovative entrepreneur, emerging community leader—and a […]
Click to view online. In this issue: LETTER TO MEMBERS: Here for you in uncertain times NEWS & NOTES: Protect Public Education—Get Involved Call for submissions: 2025 MEA/MAEA Art Exhibition Michigan Senate sues House for withholding bills Nominations sought for ESP Caucus Board AEM/MiNE: Early career help: tough topics ISSUES & ADVOCACY: MEA members tell […]
Uncertain times can be trying for all of us. But by working together, we can and will overcome what uncertain times bring us — both through strength in numbers as a union and as a network of dedicated educators that can rely on each other in tough times. It’s times like these that are why [...]
The young leaders of MEA’s Michigan New Educators—MiNE—are presenting a virtual series called “Tackling Tough Topics,” professional development they designed to help newer educators survive the cold, dark days of winter. Register now! While early-career educators may have attended other professional learning opportunities centered around these topics, this one is tailored to their needs, facilitated […]
Matt Hamilton, a middle-school teacher in Northern Michigan’s East Jordan Public Schools, is the national winner of the NEA Foundation’s 2025 Award for Teaching Excellence — one of the highest honors in public education. Since 2001, the NEA Foundation has conferred the Award for Teaching Excellence annually. This distinguished recognition, which comes with a $25,000 […]
