Who needs “latte funds” anyway? By Kay Walker-Telma MEA-Retired president Welcome to 2020. Have a cup of coffee and relax for a moment. Then, get to work. With the November election a mere eight months away, we’ll be looking at the Election Day date on the calendar much more quickly than we can imagine. Members […]
MEA member Stefanie Sedlar was drawn to become an educator in two ways. She felt a strong desire to help at-risk kids find their way to success, and she believed a federal loan forgiveness program for teachers would help her “afford” to make less income than other college-educated professionals. This week Sedlar shared her story […]
The Education Policy Innovation Collaborative (EPIC) at Michigan State University is launching their first ever statewide Read by Grade Three survey for current K-8 teachers and principals – which is now live. Because educators’ time is valuable, EPIC has worked with the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) to offer 5 hours of State Continuing Education […]
By Jennifer Dooley M.Ed., MAED. Sixth-grade teacher Pontiac City School District In the December-January issue of MEA Voice magazine, I was one of several educators quoted in a piece about educator recruitment and retention. However, I found when the issue came out, my quote did not make sense out of context. Without explanation, it was […]
February 19, 2020 By PAULA HERBART/President – Michigan Education Association There is a crisis in our public schools that threatens a generation of students. According to the U.S. Department of Education, Michigan has experienced a 70.7% decline in enrollment in teacher-education programs in the last decade. The only state with a worse decline in students studying to […]
This election year Michigan will be a battleground state in a fight that will determine the future direction of public education, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters told attendees at last week’s MEA Winter Conference. It’s time to replace U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, who has zero experience with public schools as a parent, teacher or administrator, […]
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer launched the process for developing next year’s state budget with a proposed spending plan that includes increases for education and weighted funding for students who are costlier to educate. Whitmer is proposing a $415 million increase in K-12 funding and additional money for universities and community colleges. Under the Whitmer plan, base […]
At a chilling 71 percent, Michigan’s percentage drop in enrollment in teacher preparation programs between 2008- 2017 is second in the nation only to Oklahoma, according to the latest federal data. This precipitous drop in enrollment has led to teacher shortages in some parts of the state (in all subjects) and in hard-to fill subjects […]
At the MEA Winter Conference last week, Sarah Conklin – vice president of the Bridgman Education Association – signed up for a session on a topic she needed to learn more about but dreaded at the same time: Understanding School Finance. “I was most intimidated by this session, and it’s the one where I learned […]
EAST LANSING – The Michigan Education Association is pleased to announce the following recommendations of candidates for the U.S. Senate and for eight Michigan Congressional districts: – U.S. Senate – Gary Peters – 5th District – Dan Kildee – 6th District – Jon Hoadley – 8th District – Elissa Slotkin – 9th District – Andy […]
