Whitmer to Outline Ambitious Education Budget to Address Critical Needs

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will unveil an ambitious budget plan this week that addresses Michigan’s educator shortage as well as mental health and learning needs for students. Whitmer is proposing to provide the biggest increase in education spending in 20 years. The governor’s budget director is set to present the spending recommendations to lawmakers Wednesday. Whitmer’s […]

Whitmer to Push Pension Tax Repeal in State of the State

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is set to deliver her annual State of the State message on Wednesday evening, during which she will urge the Legislature to repeal the pension tax implemented under her predecessor, Rick Snyder. According to media reports, Whitmer will call for the rollback of the tax implemented on seniors’ pensions enacted in 2012, […]

MEA wins national communications honors

Several MEA communications efforts over the past two years won awards this week from the State Education Affiliate Communicators, with MEA competing against similarly sized NEA state affiliates from across the country. In case you missed any of these award winning pieces when they originally were published, you can check them out below (with the category […]

Registration Open for Winter Webinar Series

Finding light and being the light during dark times. That’s the theme of MEA’s winter webinar series, “The Light of Winter Stars.” An offering of MEA’s Center for Leadership & Learning, this new series of peer-led, SCHEH-eligible webinars will run from January 18 through March 24. Topics for this series include managing stress and anxiety […]

Labor Voices: Real solutions, not stopgaps, needed to fix educator shortage

In recent days, rising COVID-19 cases mixed with staffing shortages have forced many school districts to switch to virtual instruction or cancel classes. It’s a numbers game when there aren’t enough adults to safely have students in school. The pandemic has exacerbated Michigan’s acute educator shortage. The heightened stress, crushing additional workloads, and destructive political […]

Upcoming Roundtables for Educators of Color

In the coming weeks, MEA will hold a second round of Roundtable Discussions for members who identify as people of color. Similar discussions yielded strong discussions about the specific challenges and needs facing educators of color throughout Michigan. All discussions are from 6-7:30 p.m. on the following dates: · January 19 – Ann Arbor · […]

Statement from Oxford Education Association president

The following statement can be attributed to Jim Gibbons, local president of the Oxford Education Association: “As some schools in our community reopen today, I want to express our sincere thanks for the massive outreach of support for Oxford’s students, parents, educators, administrators and the community at large. We are changed forever by the events […]

Labor Voices: Oxford tragedy compounds breaking point for educators, students

For students and educators alike, we’re at a breaking point. That was already clear from conversations I’ve had across Michigan these past few months. Now, add last Tuesday’s tragic shooting at Oakland County’s Oxford High School and its immense weight to that already heavy load. In Oxford, we lost four young people to senseless violence. […]