By Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Monday’s event at Orchard View High School in Muskegon looked like a party, but it was the annual general membership meeting of a wall-to-wall support staff union representing custodians, office staff, paraeducators, maintenance employees, transportation workers, and food service staff. Goodies for giveaway lined the front of the community [...]
New gun safety laws in Michigan are among many key pieces of legislation which passed last year and take effect this week as students, faculty and staff at Michigan State University are set to mark one year since a lone gunman opened fire on campus, killing three and terrorizing thousands. All Feb. 13 classes were […]
EAST LANSING — Michigan Education Association President Chandra Madafferi, a teacher from Oakland County, released the following statement Friday: “We hope a resolution can be found soon in the contract negotiations between the UAW and the Detroit Three automakers. The economic impacts of a drawn-out work stoppage would be devastating for our local communities, including […]
The deadline for spending $5.57 billion of federal money sent to Michigan school districts amid the pandemic looms large in many places that still lag behind the pace needed to allocate those dollars in time. The funding came in the form of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) program during the COVID-19 pandemic’s […]
Last November, Grosse Ile fifth grader Ava felt conflicted emotions when her teacher – MEA member Jaime Churches – won election to the state House of Representatives. She wanted Churches to win, but she didn’t want her to leave the classroom. On Thursday, with the school year drawing to a close, the youngster’s eyes lit […]
The vast majority of people support their local schools and the essential work performed by educators to help students learn and grow, but you might not get that perception when you turn on cable news or browse social media. With Teacher Appreciation Week next week, there’s no better time for everyday citizens to voice the […]
Earlier this year, Gov. Whitmer proposed a $20.6 billion plan for the state education budget for the coming year. This week, the State House and Senate put forward their own proposals for funding Michigan schools, with the House recommending a $19.6 billion plan and the Senate at $20.76 billion. Wherever they end up, public schools […]
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic rippled out into nearly every aspect of our lives, and public education was no exception. Michigan’s students and educators have faced unprecedented challenges in the aftermath of extended periods of remote learning and emotional trauma inflicted by a worldwide pandemic. To help alleviate the impact and ensure our neighborhood […]
On March 31, state Rep. Carol Glanville (D-Walker) met with the board of MEA’s Michigan Association of Higher Education (MAHE) to discuss issues affecting colleges across the state. As the Chair of the House Higher Education Committee, Glanville has spent 30 years in the field of education as both a teacher and administrator, working with […]
This week, the State House passed Senate Bill 12, which eliminates the retention requirement from Michigan’s third-grade reading law. Passed in 2016, this law requires third-graders to be held back if they score below grade level on a high-stakes standardized reading test. SB 12 has already passed the State Senate — it now heads to Gov. […]
