On Tuesday, Sept. 1, the Michigan Court of Appeals will consider the state’s appeal of a 2018 ruling that school employees were owed additional interest on the 3% of their earnings illegally withheld by the state. In December 2017, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled in favor of returning to educators their 3% withheld from 2010-2012 to fund […]
The U.S. Senate is poised to finally begin taking action on the next round of COVID-19 federal relief, which needs to include additional funding to help states and schools navigate this crisis. The U.S. House passed the HEROES Act in May, and since then NEA and MEA have been calling on Congress to pass $175 […]
The State House has passed – and now the State Senate is considering – a series of Republican-introduced education bills that contain a variety of concerning measures, including allowing the outsourcing of virtual instruction. “This legislation uses the cover of a pandemic to push extreme ideas that are straight from the playbook of Betsy […]
By Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor As president of the Grandville Education Association, Blake Mazurek knows that in normal times many members of his local union don’t notice what he and the leadership team do to bargain contracts, advocate for members, and navigate challenges. But everyone is paying attention now that he’s “getting into the […]
EAST LANSING — The following can be attributed to MEA President Paula Herbart regarding the House passage of HBs 5910-5193 this evening: “This legislation uses the cover of a pandemic to push extreme ideas that are straight from the playbook of Betsy DeVos to make a profit off the education of our students. “The most […]
“If medical experts say it’s not safe for us to return to buildings to teach students face-to-face, then we can’t and we won’t,” said MEA President Paula Herbart in a video released Wednesday. “If school districts are keeping you and your members out of the process, making decisions about returning to school that don’t include you, […]
EAST LANSING — The following can be attributed to MEA President Paula Herbart regarding today’s approval of an agreement between Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Legislature on the current year’s state budget: “I applaud Gov. Whitmer and legislative leaders for working together to pass this budget plan, which will help minimize the negative impact the […]
UPDATE 7/22 – On largely party line votes, HBs 5910-5913 passed the House Education and Ways & Means Committees before being passed on the House floor Wednesday evening. Deviations from party lines included Rep. Scott VanSingel (R-Grant), who was the sole GOP vote against HB 5910 but voted in favor of the other three bills […]
The Legislature is expected to enact a supplemental budget bill this week to address pandemic-driven revenue shortfalls for the school year that ended in June. As announced a few weeks ago, Gov. Whitmer and Republican legislative leaders agreed to a budget resolution that filled funding gaps with federal CARES Act dollars, State Budget Stabilization Fund […]
MEA joined with AFT Michigan, the Michigan Association of Superintendents & Administrators (MASA) and the Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) on a joint statement calling on local districts and educators to work collaboratively on Preparedness Plans for fall learning. “To create and maintain safe school communities, district leaders, building leaders, teachers, staff members, and […]
