May-June-2020-Advisor

2 CEA ADVISOR MAY-JUNE 2020

LEADING

Leading: Our Perspective

The multiple crises we are experiencing now are like nothing we have experienced before. First, of course, is a pandemic that has separated us from our students and removed us from our traditional teaching spaces. Too many of our members and their students were clearly not given the resources needed to continue the instructional process in any meaningful way. CEA UniServ Reps, together with local union leaders, worked hard to fashion memoranda of understanding about what at- home learning might look like

new normal that ensures every school meets the needs of every student? A new normal in which it is unacceptable for Danbury to spend $13,039 per student, while spending in Cornwall exceeds $40,000 per child? A new normal that recognizes that Black Lives Matter? A new normal that no longer accepts that the top one percent of Connecticut residents take home 37.2 times more than the bottom 99 percent? First, we will strengthen our resolve to stand up to those who would dismantle our public schools—and that means voting to ensure that

Teachers Rise to the Challenges in These Unprecedented Times

Jeff Leake, CEA President

with our districts, but that effort had decidedly mixed results. All of us did the best we could under widely disparate circumstances. Second was the ensuing economic turmoil in which we found ourselves. Although teachers were able to continue their work from home—albeit with many challenges—too many parents in our communities were hit with a double whammy of lost jobs and food and housing insecurity. Others faced a difficult choice: go to work and risk getting sick for a

Betsy DeVos is sent packing. But sending DeVos packing is not enough. Here in Connecticut, we must re-examine and change a tax system that allows for the disparate spending mentioned above. (See pages 8-9.) Second, we must refocus our interactions in our union to ensure we have relevant, rigorous conversations with each other and our students about race, racism, and the dismantling of systemic policies that undermine justice for all, building our capacity to

Tom Nicholas, CEA Vice President

paycheck that would at least put food on the table, or stay home to support their children in the new environment of learning at home. Given the extreme wealth inequality in our state, we were not able to offer a truly equitable education to all of Connecticut’s students. (See pages 4-6.) Meanwhile, cities and towns continue cutting education budgets, jeopardizing the future of our children and our state, and prompting a new CEA campaign to ensure our students, our teachers, and our schools are supported.

safely broach these issues and come away with strategies and action items. (See page 7.) Third, we will implement the Resolution on Inequality that our CEA Board of Directors agreed to on June 5. (See page 7.) This resolution calls on our union to (among other actions) hold member meetings and community forums to elicit diverse views about the effects of economic inequality in our schools, our communities, and our state, and the best ways at the local and state levels to achieve greater equality and to hold ourselves accountable, knowing that we have

We still have not engaged in the difficult conversations and made the changes necessary to confront and improve the conditions in our union, in our schools, and in our society that erode equity, understanding, and pathways to freedom and justice for all people.

Donald E. Williams Jr. CEA Executive Director

CEA GOVERNANCE Jeff Leake • President Tom Nicholas • Vice President

Stephanie Wanzer • Secretary David Jedidian • Treasurer

John Horrigan • NEA Director Tara Flaherty • NEA Director

(See pages 8-9.) We are pushing for passage of the HEROES Act and other measures that will ensure our schools do not suffer further as they struggle to rebound from the pandemic and the inevitable learning loss and trauma that come with it. The pandemic has also touched many families— including those of our members and students—most directly. (See pages 10-11.) Thousands of Connecticut residents have suffered grave illness and, in some cases, succumbed to the virus. They have included mothers, fathers, grandparents, teachers, and in rare but tragic cases, children. Last but certainly not least, the continued crisis of institutional racism and unequal justice remains with us, and it is a crisis our nation and state have not adequately addressed. Resolutions adopted at our NEA and CEA Representative Assemblies in 2015 and 2016 sought to address these concerns, and protests around the world continue to bring a new level of awareness to systemic racism. But we still have not engaged in the difficult conversations and made the changes necessary to confront and improve the conditions in our union, in our schools, and in our society that erode equity, understanding, and pathways to freedom and justice for all people. And we must not forget the issues we were dealing with before this pandemic and renewed calls for social justice: the trauma too many of our students experience, the lack of resources to help them, and the unmitigated health risks—mold, extreme temperatures, poor air quality—in the very buildings that should be safe havens for children and their teachers: our public schools. These issues have not gone away, and progress will depend on how we support the physical and emotional well-being of our students and colleagues. So, what must we do to re-envision our schools, our justice system, and the way society treats its most vulnerable members? What must we do to establish a

succeeded when our locals, members, and communities are engaged in the battle for their own economic destiny, and when we make progress— with racial disparities lessening, wages rising, and income inequality diminishing. We understand how critical it is to continue to speak out and speak up for our students, our profession, and public education. Teachers are role models who inspire and encourage others to strive for greatness, and who are committed to excellence in a just and democratic society. We must continue to stand up for what is right and have the difficult conversations necessary to move us forward. While we don’t know the specifics of when or how schools will reopen, we have heard from you, in surveys, virtual meetings, emails, and phone calls. CEA’s priority is your health and safety, and we are working hard to ensure protocols are in place to protect all members of our education community— especially those at higher risk. We also know the needs of our members and our students will be greater than before and that those needs will include not only physical health and safety but emotional health and support as well. We are committed to providing you with the assistance you need, and we are in ongoing conversations with Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona to ensure that your priorities and concerns are part of the state’s reopening plan. In one of the largest CEA events ever held, Dr. Cardona heard from nearly 800 of you about what you have faced in the last three months and what you need to work safely and effectively in the coming school year. (See page 5.) Thank you, CEA members, for the way you have risen to meet and overcome the obstacles you encountered. And thank you for being there— for your students and your union—because we truly are stronger together. We hope you have a safe, healthy summer and enjoy a well-deserved break. June 11, 2020

CEA ADVISOR STAFF Nancy Andrews • Communications Director Lesia Winiarskyj • Managing Editor Sandra Cassineri • Graphic Designer Laurel Killough • New Media Coordinator Eric Ahrens • Web Designer and Developer May-June 2020 Volume 62, Number 7 Published by Connecticut Education Association 1-800-842-4316 • 860-525-5641 cea.org CEA Advisor The CEA Advisor is mailed to all CEA members. Annual subscription price is $5.72 (included in membership dues and available only as part of membership). Institutional subscription price: $25.00. Advertising in the CEA Advisor is screened, but the publishing of any advertisement does not imply CEA endorsement of the product, service, or views expressed. CEA Advisor USPS 0129-220 (ISSN 0007-8050) is published in August, October/November, December/ January, February/March, April (regular and special editions), May/June, and summer (online) by the Connecticut Education Association, Capitol Place, Suite 500, 21 Oak Street, Hartford, CT 06106-8001, 860- 525-5641. Periodicals postage paid at Hartford, Connecticut. Postmaster: Send address changes to CEA Advisor , Connecticut Education Association, Capitol Place, Suite 500, 21 Oak Street, Hartford, CT 06106- 8001. Production date: 6-17-2020

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