Category: Uncategorized

Every home in the U.S. is eligible to order 4 free at-⁠home COVID-⁠19 tests. The tests are completely free. Orders will usually ship in 7-12 days.

Order your tests now so you have them when you need them.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day January 17th, 2022

IEA-NEA Spring Election Information

Nominations are now open for the NEA RA State, Retired and Student Delegate elections as well as for sectional representative positions on the IEA Board of Directors and the ESP, Higher Ed and Retired Councils.  Hard copy nominations were sent to every member the first week in January and a link to online nominations is on the IEA website.

 Nominations must be received by February 16, 2022.  If you have any questions, contact the Governance Elections/Fair Share Paraprofessional, Kim Trader at kim.trader@ieanea.org.

The ESP Council created the ESP STAR program to allow IEA local leaders, members and board of directors to recognize and publicize the good work of their ESP members across the state. Use the online nomination form to nominate one or more special ESPs. Nominations can be submitted monthly.

Nominate a worthy ESP today!

Educators counting down to summer break in the middle of January.

Governor Pritzker currently has House Bill 2778 (The COVID School Employee Wage and Benefit Protection Bill) which provides Covid Administrative Leave Days, on his desk.  He is thinking about whether or not to sign the bill.

This Bill creates COVID administration days for all school employees and paycheck protection for hourly employees.  

We need our members and other friends of public education to send an email to Governor Pritzker asking him to sign this Bill.

Email Gov. Pritzker & tell him to sign HB 2778

IEA is accepting applications from IEA members to be RA Assistants for the 2022 IEA RA. There are a limited number of assistant positions available for the 2022 IEA RA. RA Assistants will be chosen from these applications on a first come, first serve basis. The deadline for submitting RA Assistant applications is midnight on January 14, 2022. Only non-delegates can be considered for these positions.  If you know anyone who may want to volunteer as an RA Assistant, please have them apply at this weblink: 2022 IEA RA Assistant Application

The Eastern Regional Conference STARTS next week, January 12-13^th 2022!

Act Now!! Registration will close Monday, January 10, 2022! Don’t miss out!!

The Western Regional conference, held in October 2021, was a big success with over 225 registered participants.  We received excellent feedback including:

“The conference was exceptional and has offered me more opportunities to better serve my kids.

I will be working on my team skills as well as my personal health and abilities. I’m going to try to be a better laugher and use it to brighten the day! I’m going to do my best to create “positive learning experiences” every day with my students. Thank you so much again for all of this valuable information!!”

Please note each conference is held in the region’s time zone and in the evening hours, so not to interfere with the school work days.

• Eastern NRCP Regional Conference January 12-13, 2022 6:30-9:40 pm ET
• NOTE: Eastern Leadership Meeting January 11th 4:30-6:30 pm ET
• Register Here: https://cvent.me/xkDREX

January 20th 6:00-7:00 Central Time

Our Bodies: Are We Paying Attention to the Signals?

Our lifestyle, environment, and bodies are trying to tell us something. Mental health and physiological health go hand in hand, and there are many lifelong and recent factors that impact both, including external stressors, toxic systems, habits, and more that have been either activated or exacerbated by the pandemic. In this webinar, we will examine the risk factors and resulting health problems that educators are experiencing, as well as provide strategies to improve personal health and mental well-being.