Be safe if you plan to travel on this New Year’s Eve! I will be counting my blessings this New Year’s as I think of my family (both by blood and union siblings) and friends. So many great things are happening to support the goals of the rESPect Campaign; so much more work is left to do! I hope you will join us at our next IEA rESPect virtual meeting on Thursday, January 11th. Click for more information and to register for the upcoming rESPect meeting. Click link to register: https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592186/
Tag: ESP
I hope you all have a safe, healthy, and blessed holiday break!
What activity are looking forward to most to recharge during this holiday break?
Please take the time to rest and recharge! Education support professionals are so important in the education of our students and operation of our schools and universities. Self care is extremely for everyone to be at their best.
Join rESPect today.
Visit www.iearespect.org to learn more and join.
Advocating for rESPect
On Monday, Gina Lozano, chair of the rESPect Legislative Team, myself, Jill Scarcelli, chair of the rESPect Campaign, along with Derek Stevens, IEA Government Relations met with Illinois Senator Robert Peters, chair of the Labor Committee to advocate for our members and rESPect. Gina and myself spoke to educate and inform of who education support professionals (ESPs) are, what we do, and how we are essential for student success. We spoke specifically about UI: Unemployment Insurance and raising the minimum wage for education support professionals.
Senator Robert Peters was very receptive and spoke of his own personal story of being in special education as a young child and how education support professionals supported his education. He spoke honestly and said UI will be a huge challenge. There are several public labor committee hurdles that must be overcome before a vote could be taken. We knew this would be a marathon and not a sprint and we are committed to achieving this goal. Senator Peters also spoke regarding raising the minimum wage and gave us suggestions on how to better move this bill forward.
We truly appreciate Senator Robert Peters for taking the time to meet with us and give guidance as we advocate to support ALL of our members.
Join us for our next rESPect steering meeting
rESPect Steering meeting registration link
DECEMBER
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592185/
Great Webinar Opportunities
FYI from: National Education Association-ESPQ
As we head into the holiday season and closer to a new year, we want to share several upcoming opportunities that will support ESPs in their personal and professional growth. Please add these events to your calendars and share them with your members and colleagues!
- ESP Community Conversations: Self-care for ESPs (NEXT WEEK!)
Wednesday, December 6, 2023, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM ET
Self-care is important now more than ever. Join us for a virtual networking session centered around self-care. ESPs who join the conversation will have an opportunity to share self-care tips, learn from one another, and engage in activities to guide them in their self-care practice. Register now >
- ESP Mentoring in Oregon
Thursday, December 7, 2023, 7:00-8:00 p.m. ET
Learn how to take an established ESP mentoring program and make it your own, suiting the unique needs within your district. Educators from two locals will share their successes and the roadblocks they encountered in building two successful ESP mentoring programs thriving in Oregon and how you can do the same within your state. Register now >
- ESP Rights and Respect Series: How to Build a Strategic Campaign
Thursday, December 14, 2023 (Webinar en Español), 7:00-8:30 p.m. ET
Join us for this webinar, offered in Spanish, to learn how NEA members, staff, and leaders have partnered to build a strategic campaign to increase ESP visibility, rights, and respect. Note: This webinar series is only open to NEA members, staff, and leaders. See the attached flyer and share it with your Spanish-speaking members and colleagues. Register now >
- NASP PREPaRE Workshop I: School Safety and Crisis Preparedness
Saturday, January 20, 2024, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Are you interested in learning about school safety and crisis preparedness? No matter your role in our schools, it is important to understand how schools prepare, mitigate, and respond to a crisis. Join us for Workshop I of the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) PREPaRE curriculum to learn more about how a comprehensive school crisis team functions and how to organize one. Each participant will receive a certificate of completion. All fees for the course and course materials will be covered by NEA. ***Space is limited, register today! Register now >
- Strengthening Family and Community Engagement for ESPs
Thursday, January 25, 2024, 7:00-8:00 p.m. ET
Through NEA’s Community Schools initiative, ESPs across the country are participating in powerful family and community engagement efforts, which help students and support positive worksites. Join us to hear from ESPs and Community Schools coordinators across the country discuss lessons learned and promising practices on family and community engagement, and how these insights can empower ESPs. Register now >
See all upcoming webinars for ESPs at www.nea.org/esppdwebinars.
School Finance for Bargainers
Sat. | Dec. 9 | 10 a.m. – noon
School Finance for Bargainers
Join IEA Research to review key school finance concepts for the upcoming bargaining season. The training will explore three core areas:
- Discuss compensation systems, including salary schedules and salary tables, and the impact of the increased minimum wage/increased minimum certified staff salary
- Review key school finance terms that will come up at the bargaining table
- Highlight school finance issues related to bargaining in spring 2024, including property tax revenue, state funding and federal ESSER funding
The session will also provide an overview of school finance bargaining resources available through IEA Research to assist teams in their negotiations this spring.
Mark Your Calendars: Upcoming rESPect Steering Meetings
rESPect Steering virtual meeting registration links – 5:30 – 7:00pm
Come and bring your voice to the table to collaborate as we move rESPect forward and bring the changes we need. Meetings are on the Second Thursday of each month. I hope to see you there.
DECEMBER
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592185/
JANUARY
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592186/
FEBRUARY
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592187/
MARCH
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592188/
APRIL
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592189/
MAY
https://www.mobilize.us/ieanea/event/592190/
So we did a thing tonight…
Tonight I had the opportunity to present with amazing rESPect leaders about our #IEArESPect campaign on a national NEA webinar about the work of elevating #EducationSupportProfessionals, the essential work we do, and the changes we need for #rESPect.
Have you heard of the RISE Award? Hear what is being said on the national level about education support professionals!!
RECOGNIZING INSPIRING SCHOOL EMPLOYEES (RISE) AWARD
Did you know that there is a national award to celebrate the essential work we do? This is a national award that celebrates the contributions of education support professionals. The U.S. Department of Education invites the governor or designated state official of each state to nominate up to two classified school employees annually. (The deadline is already closed for this year)
Here is what is said about education support professionals in the award Fact Sheet.
WHY: To celebrate classified school employees as the unsung heroes—the “living
infrastructure”—of America’s public schools. They engage with students on the bus and in the classrooms, cafeterias, health suites and hallways of America’s public and private schools across the nation. Their unique professional skill sets range from classroom and library assistant, school health aide, bus driver, mechanic, and school crossing guard, to cook, janitor, school secretary, vision and hearing tester, accounting control clerk and much more. They work closely with students every day, keeping them healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged so that learning can take place. To educate the public on the important, and often invisible, educational support rendered by some of the hardest-working people in our schools – they serve in the capacity of the glue to the school. In short, to remind the school community that it takes a village to ensure student success.
We are making a difference in promoting the amazing contributions ESPs make every day in schools and universities. We must keep the essential work and support we do front and center as we work to advance rESPect. The more we make it real, the more we make it a reality!
TAKE ACTION – Contact your representatives
Take action on the issues impacting ESPs
These are federal bills that the National Education Association along with education support professionals across the country are fight for.
· Urge your senators to cosponsor the Paraprofessionals and Education Support Staff Bill of Rights: https://bit.ly/ESPborAction
· Email members of Congress and urge them to co-sponsor the ESP and School Support Staff Family Leave Act: https://bit.ly/ESPFMLA
· Learn more actions you can take at www.nea.org/esp
#iearESPect
#ESPsareEssential
#rESPect
#NEAESP
IEA Education Support Professional Council 