Category: Illinois Education Association

Illinois Union Organization

Education Support Professionals, Illinois Education Association

What a great day!

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Thank you!

Thank you to locals DUEA (Distruct U-46 Educational Assistance) and DUSA (District U-46 Secretarial Association) located in Elgin for inviting Debra Ward Mitchell and myself to come present at your locals professional development day on Friday February 28th. We started our morning at Bartlett High School for Parapalooza and a great keynote speaker who spoke on the connection between the mind and the ability for relationships and learning….so relevant for staff self reflection and interpersonal relationships with students and colleagues. Also, a huge shoutout to IEA President Al Lorens who spoke and presented. DUEA, thank you for allowing us to spend the morning with you all!

After our morning, Deb and I traveled to the U-46 District Welcome Center for an amazing afternoon of professional development with DUSA. Thank you for allowing us to share about the rESPect Campaign, how the Illinois Education Association is advocating for members, and how their voice and talents are essential to grow our organization to advocate and make the changes we need. We are Stronger United!

Education Support Professionals, Illinois Education Association

You’re invited – ESP Council Virtual Meeting – June 22nd

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Dear Education Support Professional,

You are cordially invited to join us as we come together to bring ESP voices to the table. 

Join us virtually and share your successes, challenges, hopes and dreams and help us as we advocate to improve ESP wages, health insurance, pensions and job duties to retain and recruit new staff.

**Virtual Event** All ESPs Welcome
Saturday, June 22
(For those who have already signed up, this meeting has been changed to Virtual Only)
VIRTUAL Meet & Greet
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
VIRTUAL Roundtable
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Click to register
Education Support Professionals, Illinois Education Association

Thank you! We can’t do it without you!

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Thank you to everyone who attended our last rESPect steering meeting of the 2023-24 school year this past Thursday evening. At this meeting we focused on evaluating our successes and our challenges, and we reviewed our goals to make sure our targets haven’t changed. We are doing so many things right and we are having great successes…but there is ALWAYS room for improvement. One of the biggest takeaways for me is team members wanting more…more opportunities for engagement and to take on more leadership roles. YES!, that is what we need. This is your campaign and your voice and leadership will drive this campaign to the finish line.

Reminder – There is NO rESPect steering meeting in July.

Education Support Professionals, Illinois Education Association

Call to Action – Undo Tier 2

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In 2010, the Illinois General Assembly hastily created a “Tier 2” of separate, lower pension benefits for public school and public university employees hired after 2011. We are asking our members to take action now to change this.

Since then, the drastically reduced benefits for “Tier 2” workers are further diminished due to inflation, meaning they can’t keep up with rising costs like grocery and drug price increases. Many education employees cannot collect Social Security, and these pension benefits are their sole source of retirement security. You can see the negative effects of Tier 2 reflected in the shortages of both educators and Education Support Professionals (ESPs) in schools and universities across the state. The shortages mean an increased workload and sometimes overwhelming working conditions for everyone working in our schools and at our colleges and universities.
This problem was created by politicians failing to pay into the retirement system, and it’s them we should be holding accountable, rather than punishing educators.  
From April 15-18, please join Illinois public employee unions in a week of action. Contact your lawmakers and tell them they must take action to fix Tier 2 pensions. You can write your lawmaker here. Or, you can dial 507-497-1665 to be connected to your legislators by phone.
ACT NOW!
This action is the first step to push legislators in Springfield to ensure that all school employees have a fair, secure retirement and we can retain essential teachers, adjuncts and higher ed staff, Education Support Professionals (ESPs) and all public school and university employees.  All educators deserve an equitable retirement. 

Stand up for your colleagues. Help us Undo Tier 2. 

Remember, we are stronger united! And together we are IEA! 
Education Support Professionals, Illinois Education Association

What does RESPECT look like?

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You’re invited to attend our next RESPECT virtual meeting

register: April virtual meeting

Support staff are typically the first to arrive at school as they unlock doors and turn on lights. They are some of the first people to greet students when they arrive at school in the morning, who give students the academic support they need to become successful scholars, who carefully assist with their health, safety, and nutritional needs, and are the last people who see students safely home at the end of the day. The value of their work is priceless.

So it’s time we start treating them that way!

Join the respect campaign
resolution of support
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