Education Support Professional Council consists of thirteen (13) members all of whom are ESP school employees and members of the Illinois Education Association. The ESP council's goal is to represent and support ESP's throughout Illinois.
I wanted to share the upcoming Virtual Budget Engagement on January 5, 2023, at 8:30pm EST.
Attached, please find the 2022-2024 Strategic Framework. The QR code at the bottom will direct you to the NEA Strategic Framework and Budget site<https://www.nea.org/…/nea-strategic-framework-budget>, where you and your members can view video descriptions of each objective prior to the budget engagement, resulting in more time to collaborate, answer questions, and address concerns.
As I sit here and reflect on this past year, I am proud of how I’ve grown, stretched, and have done things I never thought I was capable of doing, but I also realize that I have much to improve. Yes, I want to eat healthier, lose some weight, and exercise more, but I also want to be a better me. I feel best when I’m helping or doing something that helps others. So my goal is to continue to be stretched, to continue to seek situations that may be uncomfortable but will help me grow emotionally, spiritually, and as a leader and advocate.
You all are amazing, and I’m proud to represent so many talented and dedicated people. It’s okay to brag about yourself a little…Tell me somethings you accomplished during this past year that makes you proud…and one goal you have for this next year.
The Education Support Professional Council and Illinois Education Association collaboratively wrote the language for House Resolution 0077. This resolution called to find solutions to salary parity, quality professional development and access to health benefits for ESP members. In April 2021 the resolution was unanimously passed by the Illinois General Assembly. This laid the foundation on which we are building the rESPect Campaign!
At 135,000+ members strong, we are the largest union in Illinois. We harness the collective power of teachers, ESPs, higher education faculty and staff, students and retirees to advocate for strong public schools– because every student deserves a high quality public education no matter where they live.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! Enjoy this time with your loved ones.
Every year, the IEA advocates for more state funding for higher education, P-12 education and early childhood education.
Your union helped pass the historic evidence-based funding model for our P-12 schools, helping to make our schools more equitably funded instead of relying so heavily on local property taxes. Over the last several years, the Illinois budget has included additional monies for education, totaling over $1.5 billion.
With adequate funding, our schools, colleges and universities can make sure they are providing the best possible public education to all of our students.
Safe travels to those visiting family and loved ones this weekend. Stay warm!
The Education Support Professional currently has openings in the following positions.
NORTH/CENTRAL SECTIONAL REP. ALTERNATE (INTERIM) – Members from North Central Regions: 15-25, 37, 38, 40, 44, 49, 51, 53, 54, 60, 61, 63, 65 and 66 can apply to fill
SOUTH/CENTRAL SECTIONAL REP. ALTERNATE (INTERIM) – Members from South Central Regions 1-14, 45, 47, 48 and 62 can apply to fill
If you are interested in filling one of these positions on an interim basis until the spring election please reach out to your region chair and have them nominate you at the next IEA Board of Director’s meeting.
Consider running for the IEA Education Support Professional Council in the spring election.
Please review the current ESP Council roster to see the upcoming openings in this spring election. It is extremely important that we have a full roster so ESPs have the representation they deserve at the table. For information, please contact Arlene Criglar at arlene.criglar@ieanea.org .
Benefits include: free term life insurance, additional insurance for disability, long-term care, pet and home, low interest and reward credit cards, NEA auto buying and car rental program as well as hundreds of discounts and coupons on the My Deals app.
IEA’s Opportunity Coalition works to reduce the impact of the opportunity gaps facing students in our community.
We offer leadership development as well as financial & technical support to educators interested in racial, social and educational justice.
As we have been getting closer to the holiday season it’s been extremely busy and stressful. I know you all can relate!! The truth is I just haven’t been able to keep up with the daily posts, but I don’t want to miss sharing these important reminders so here we are…catching up with days 1-8.
We have more work to do…please go to www.iearespect.org to see how we can advocate and bring the change we need so members can get the compensation and rESPect they deserve.
Unionized workers make 20 percent more than nonunion workers. And unions significantly reduce the wage gap for women, people of color and other minority groups.
In 1983, the IEA worked with the General Assembly to pass the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act (IELRA) which gives Illinois educators the right to organize and collectively bargain.
Prior to the IELRA, it was ILLEGAL for educators to go on strike. Members would often end up in jail – just for using their voice to advocate for a fair contract.
Your personal information is protected by law, thanks to the IEA. It is illegal for school districts to provide your private information, even when someone files a FOIA to get it.
In 2019, the IEA helped pass Senate Bill 1794 into law. The law prohibits employers from disclosing the following information of any employee: home address, DOB, personal phone number and email, union membership status and communications with labor organizations.
IEA launched the rESPect campaign to improve the economic conditions for Education Support Professionals (ESPs) – nurses, secretaries, paraprofessionals, bus drivers, mechanics, cooks, custodians, library aides and others.
We are advocating for higher wages, affordable health insurance, a Tier 2 pension fix, and opportunities for growth.
The IEA worked to make sure the right to collectively bargain was added to the Illinois Constitution. Voters passed the Workers’ Rights Amendment this November. It means our right to collectively bargain our wages, pensions, hours, working conditions and so much more are now protected and enshrined in the Illinois Constitution.
IEA looks out for your quality of life, ensuring your contract provides for work/life balance and good, affordable healthcare.
In 2022, the IEA passed a law to help support staff and teachers/professors who had exhausted their sick and personal time because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The law provided COVID administrative days for all employees to use for any COVID-19 related reason and also offered paycheck protection to hourly employees in the event their school should close.
Education is the only profession that received COVID administrative days.
Due to efforts by the NEA, over 360,000 educators and public service workers have received $24 billion in student loan forgiveness through the Limited PSLF Waiver. Working to cancel student debt not only provides relief to current educators, but also makes higher education more accessible for aspiring educators.
Drafted by the IEA, HB 12 has expanded coverage of the Family and Medical Leave Act to thousands of education support professionals (ESPs) across the state.
Previously, to be eligible for FMLA an employee must have worked 1,250 hours during the previous year. This disqualified many ESPs due to the limited number of days they are able to work during a school year. HB 12 reduces the minimum threshold to 1,000 hours, so that more ESPs can qualify.
Date: January 12th, 2023 Webinar: Free to IEA Members
Presenter: Sue Lyons, 321 Insight Description: As we start the new year, we will continue to be managing some challenging behaviors!
This session will provide strategies for IEA ESP members allowing them to implement the strategies right away to address the challenging behaviors and often preventing them from happening. During this session IEA ESP Members will:
· Gain a deeper understanding of the root causes of many behavior challenges
· Understand the importance of educator mindset to have a positive impact on the overall effectiveness with students
· Learn proactive strategies you can implement right away to prevent many challenging behaviors
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IEA Education Support Professional Council 