Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor MEA member Carolyn Matzinger had no idea the union could help her make a case for disability retirement benefits after a progressive illness made it dangerous for her to return to her Petoskey classroom. For two years she […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Carolyn Matzinger, MEA‑Retired Let me say with full-throated enthusiasm thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the support the MEA gave me to prevail against an unjust decision about my qualifications for non-duty disability retirement due to my Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL). […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Four years ago, MEA member Dr. Tracy Loveland joined with a fellow Ann Arbor school psychologist to bring the union’s strength to bear on frustrations within the district’s special education department, which were contributing to high staff turnover. […]
Eva Menefee says her interest in academic advising grew out of a bad experience she had as a young undergraduate student seeking guidance from an advisor. “I wanted to be an accountant, which at that time meant getting into the school of business. I can remember going to see the advisor, and he said, ‘People […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Mike Eyre has been a middle school history teacher for 25 years, and he’s served nearly two decades as president of his local union. But even Eyre was moved by a recent turn of events that he and […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Four years ago, serendipity stepped in to help MEA UniServ Director Mike McGee and a bargaining team in Portland win a good contract for secretaries—and set the stage for an even better outcome in talks this year for […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor The celebration was short-lived when members of United Teachers of Flint learned the district was offering to pay each of them a $22,500 bonus, using some of the federal COVID-relief money sent to the district this year. Soon […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor At the start of her 30th year in public education MEA President Paula Herbart is looking forward, and a newly unveiled MEA Strategic Plan is helping bring the future into focus. Developed over the past year by a committee […]
Engagement * Bargaining * Advocacy * Justice * Empowerment * Support by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Strength in union takes many forms. It can look like a team of bleary-eyed bargainers negotiating a contract through the wee hours of morning, or a crowd of educators standing in solidarity for what’s right. It’s training and […]
