I have worked at this profession for 24 years. I can see that it is in a nose dive.
- We have Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education
- the Janus decision which turns every other association into a right-to-work-for-less state like Nevada
- and now the Arizona Supreme Court is denying inclusion of a ballot question to fund education in that state. This plane – our profession- is on a crash course!
But – YOU, me, WE can do something about it!
The airlines have trained us as passengers to prioritize placing the oxygen mask on the adult before assisting the children we accompany on a flight. This is counter to our training as educators which teaches us to focus on students. To place our energy in preparing lessons, reporting progress, helping them through struggles at home and modeling how to be a successful adult. The reality is we work long hours at each of our education jobs and we are never finished. We simply run out of time.
We have effectively put the oxygen mask only on our students while we as adults in our profession are gasping for air.
New mandates continue – now, we must monitor student’s attendance and their make-up work, the arduous testing schedules have resumed, our case-loads and class sizes are bursting. As educators it is time to prioritize our energy and reallocate more time to our profession. As leaders in WEA – as members of our union – we must all make these larger issues our priority:
- donate to TIP (Together in Politics)
- give your time to serve on a committee or caucus
- engage members at your site to register and VOTE
- post education friendly candidates information on Facebook and in your yards.
Taking these steps is how the long-term needs of our students and our profession will be met. All these actions and more will be required to change the trajectory of this plane.
Together YOU, me, we can help education take flight in Nevada!
Susan Kaiser,
WEA Middle School Director