School districts are taking advantage of state grants, creating new high school courses, and developing partnerships with colleges and universities to address the educator shortage by exposing students to career opportunities in the profession before they reach college. The growth of courses and programs for high schoolers reflects heightened concerns around far fewer young people […]
By Shana Saddler Michigan summers have a special place in my heart as a time for many educators to recharge their spirit and spend quality time with family and friends. Last summer I experienced one of the most frightening yet joyful times in my life – one that reminded me what it means to be […]
Theresann Pyrett, president of the West Ottawa Education Association, traveled to Washington D.C. in late April to speak with the Biden Administration about the positive impact federal school rescue funds have had on her school district and ways in which Michigan educators need continued support. Pyrett is among a handful of educators from across the […]
Congratulations to MEA member Nanette Hanson, a first-grade teacher in Escanaba Area Public Schools, for being named Wednesday as Michigan Teacher of the Year for 2022-23. Hanson teaches at Lemmer Elementary School and will be entering her 26th year of teaching this fall. “Nanette is a life-changing educator who has been serving her community for […]
The past three years brought MEA member Elaine Zomberg so close to two special students in her class for cognitively impaired young people that the fourth-year Grand Haven educator invited them to play important roles in her spring wedding. The COVID-19 pandemic began during Zomberg’s first year running a CI classroom and her second year […]
Addressing students’ academic and mental health needs, while lightening the load for overstretched educators, are among the most urgent uses of federal school rescue funds prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to one local union leader in west Michigan. Theresann Pyrett, president of the West Ottawa Education Association, took that message to the White House […]
Every school should have a Julie Tolfree, a veteran teacher-turned-behavior-specialist who supports both students and staff at Bridgeport-Spaulding Middle School in Saginaw, her colleagues say. Tolfree extends a safe space to talk, help with physical needs – food or clothing, for example – and time to regroup from a difficult moment. She operates whole-school systems […]
Katie Hillyard tried not to be an educator. As a teen, the MEA member didn’t want to be just like her parents – both music teachers in the Grand Rapids area who are now retired. But when it became clear in college she was drawn to the profession, Hillyard followed her calling and today is […]
Steve Galvan wants people to understand educators are on the front-lines just as health care workers have been, “and we too are digging our claws deep into the dirt and holding our ground, because those students need us now more than ever,” he said. “Our students may not come from a two-parent home. They may […]
MEA member Leya Woods is concerned about the lack of teachers and administrators who come from minority populations across many school districts in Michigan and the message it sends to students of color sitting in all of those classrooms. The problem is especially striking when comparing the number of support staff who are people of […]
