Northwest Education Association

08/25/2021

Happy first day Northwest Education Association!
2021-2022

04/06/2021

Michigan school COVID outbreaks surge 47% in 2 weeks; some return to remote | Bridge Michigan

Michigan school COVID outbreaks surge 47% in 2 weeks; some return to remote | Bridge Michigan

State officials say they have no plans to order school buildings to close again because of the pandemic. But with COVID cases skyrocketing, some schools are going remote on their own.

02/24/2021

Educators concerned about lost learning as standardized testing resumes

Educators concerned about lost learning as standardized testing resumes

The results are in: Standardized testing will resume this school year.

02/07/2021

Music and the brain: Why schools should really fund music education more

Music and the brain: Why schools should really fund music education more

Back in high school, if there was one thing I could rely on every year, it was the annual threat that the music program would be cut. Usually, by the time the budget passed in April, these threats became meaningless and the program was saved. However, it was frustrating to hear that every year, the....

01/27/2021

Michigan sending $500 hazard pay checks to teachers, $250 to school staff by Feb. 25

Michigan sending $500 hazard pay checks to teachers, $250 to school staff by Feb. 25

The money is part of COVID-19 grant programs from the MI Classroom Heroes initiative.

12/19/2020

Happy holidays NWEA! Thank you for your membership. See you all in January.

11/15/2020

Governor Gretchen Whitmer

Governor Gretchen Whitmer

10/23/2020

Paula Herbart: COVID Update

Paula Herbart: COVID Update

MEA President Paula Herbart: A COVID update.

10/19/2020

Maryland State Education Association

Maryland State Education Association

"Thank you. We love you. We're proud of you."

It may get a little dusty wherever you are when you watch this video of students sharing messages with Maryland educators.

10/03/2020

Michigan Education Association

Michigan Education Association

Betsy DeVos isn’t looking out for us, our families, or our students. Take a moment to see the candidates at the federal, state, and local level that are! Find your MEA Recommended Candidates today.

09/17/2020

Devin Siebold - Comedian

Devin Siebold - Comedian

Here are some of my thoughts on how Teachers have been viewed lately with the return to school.

09/14/2020

09/14/2020

Lansing Schools Education Association: Teaching Empowered

09/12/2020

Devin Siebold - Comedian

Trust me kids, I'm doing you a favor.

08/22/2020

Judge Rejects Betsy DeVos Plan To Send Federal Funds To Private Schools

Judge Rejects Betsy DeVos Plan To Send Federal Funds To Private Schools

Betsy DeVos had come up with an interpretation of CARES Act aid that directed extra money to private schools. Friday, a Washington state judge issued a stern injunction to stop the DeVos rule from being implemented.

08/15/2020

Senate Passes Return to Learn Bills | Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals

Senate Passes Return to Learn Bills | Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals

The Michigan Senate has passed a package of three bills that will largely define a new set of pupil accounting rules and other requirements that districts will have to live under during the 2020-21 school year. HB 5911-13 moved through the Senate on a 23-15 vote and will be taken up by the House thi...

08/14/2020

Schools struggling to stay open due to increases in COVID-19

Schools struggling to stay open due to increases in COVID-19

Across the country, new reports show that more than 167,000 Americans have now died from COVID-19. And as more schools prepare to re-open, some have already had to shut back down due to outbreaks a…

08/14/2020

Michigan State Police

Michigan State Police

The live stream will start at 10:55 a.m. and the press conference will begin at 11:00 a.m.

08/02/2020

‘I’m sorry, but it’s a fantasy’

‘I’m sorry, but it’s a fantasy’

Jeff Gregorich, superintendent, on trying to reopen his schools safely

08/01/2020

An open letter to our community

An open letter to our community

08/01/2020

Save Michigan's Public Schools

Save Michigan's Public Schools

A letter to the school board from the Farmington Education Association...

Greetings President Green and School Board members,

We hope this message finds you well amongst tremendous pressures and distractions. As important decisions are being made regarding the start of the 2020-21 school year, the Farmington Education Association is interested in a remote start this fall. While other districts are publishing their plans for the start of school, anxiety is at a new level.

In the recent week, we conducted a survey of various FPS teachers. The survey was specific and included the follow items:

Do you understand the hybrid model set forth by FPS?

How safe do you feel returning to the proposed hybrid plan this fall (A/B days)?

Do you understand the safety plan that FPS has put forth?

Are you satisfied with the safety plan that FPS has put forth.

Do you feel that your health considerations have been adequately considered by those individuals making the decisions about schools reopening?

With over 400 teachers responding, the data is clear.

Only 12.7% of the teachers feel safe returning to the proposed hybrid model.

Only 15.4% of teachers are satisfied with the safety plan that FPS has put forth.

Only 14.5% of teachers feel that their personal health concerns have been adequately considered.

We are in extraordinary times, and together we will be most productive for our entire school community, but we need to maintain the focus of safety for our students and staff.

Thank you for your consideration and again, we urge you to support a remote start in FPS for this fall. If possible, we are interested in this letter being read during the next school board meeting.

Sincerely,

Your Farmington Education Association

07/28/2020

Michigan State Police

Michigan State Police

The live stream will start at 1:55 p.m. and the press conference at 2 p.m.

07/27/2020

NEA Today

NEA Today

Join us for a virtual town hall to discuss how parents, educators, students, and communities can advocate for the safe reopening of public schools, facilities, and campuses.

Whether students return to school in person, online, or a hybrid, we need to come together and make our voices heard.

07/25/2020

NW Community Comment for Board of Education

NW Community Comment for Board of Education

To provide the public its right to address the Board during meetings and to ensure the orderly conduct of meetings. This form must be submitted by July 27, 2020, at 4:45 pm. In addition, you must be present at the virtual board meeting on July 27, 2020, at 5 PM to present your community comment to t...

07/23/2020

Dave Grohl, whose mom taught public school, says we need to protect America's teachers like the national treasures they are

Dave Grohl, whose mom taught public school, says we need to protect America's teachers like the national treasures they are

As a high school dropout and self-proclaimed "terrible student," Dave Grohl is the last person you'd expect to defend teachers caught up in the contentious debate of reopening schools amid the pandemic.

07/23/2020

MEA Locals Keep Safety at Forefront in Return to School Discussions - Michigan Education Association

MEA Locals Keep Safety at Forefront in Return to School Discussions - Michigan Education Association

By Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor As president of the Grandville Education Association, Blake Mazurek knows that in normal times many members of his local union don’t notice what he and the leadership team do to bargain contracts, advocate for members, and navigate challenges. But everyone is payi...

07/23/2020

DEMAND TO BARGAIN
Re: Roadmap to

The Northwest Education Association hereby demands to bargain with the Northwest Community School District, as provided for under the Public Employment Relations Act, (PERA) as follows:

The Association is demanding to bargain the working conditions issues that directly and indirectly impact the Association regarding the COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Plan required by Governor Whitmer's Executive Order 2020-142, in order to open schools safely for students and staff.

The Association is ready to meet and begin negotiations as soon as possible, and will meet its obligation under the Act to work with the Employer in good faith to resolve these issues.

This Demand to Bargain is issued on July 23, 2020 on behalf of the Association by:

Jill A. Laurin-Maxwell
Northwest Education Association President

07/23/2020

07/23/2020

Betsy DeVos just crossed another line. She's an ongoing danger to teachers and students.

Betsy DeVos just crossed another line. She's an ongoing danger to teachers and students.

Schools must look inward, assess local COVID-19 conditions and ignore pressure from DeVos. They have authority over whether to reopen. She doesn't.

07/23/2020

Waverly Community Schools

Waverly Community Schools

Dear Waverly Families,
The Waverly Board of Education has agreed that we should move forward to plan for a full remote/online learning model to begin the 2020-21 school year. We all want to get our students back to the school buildings, but we know that we need to prioritize the safety of our students and staff first. While COVID-19 has changed our lives, we can and will make the best of it!
• We will start the school year with a comprehensive online learning experience with our students from August 31 to September 30. Unlike the spring online experience, this fall is not optional for your students.
• As the September 30th date approaches, we will closely follow and evaluate public health data surrounding COVID-19 to determine the direction the school district will take after September 30. It is possible that online learning will remain an option throughout the 20-21 school year.
• Why September 30th? Governor Whitmer’s current Executive Order is in effect until then. If this Executive Order is not extended, we will apply for the appropriate waivers (if necessary) to continue online learning.
• It is possible that by September 30, our region will be in phase 5 of re-opening. During phase 5, we will re-open for face-to-face instruction. Our hope is to offer an online option for families who are still not comfortable sending their children back to a school building during phase 5 of re-opening.
• After September 30th, we will begin to pull in small groups of students to receive appropriate supports. These small groups will follow all safety protocols recommended by the MI Safe Schools: Michigan’s 2020-21 Return to School Roadmap. As this plan develops, we will share more information.
• All students will be issued an electronic device to use for the 20-21 school year. We would like all of our students using the same device, so we can ensure they can use all of the programs that teachers will be utilizing.
• We are currently looking into expanding our child-care options for students in grades K-6.
We know that you will probably have many questions, some that we don’t have answers to yet. Thank you for your patience, flexibility, and partnership. Please stay well and relaxed during these final weeks of summer. Stay tuned for additional communication.
Yours in education and partnership,
Kelly Blake, Superintendent
Evan Nuffer, Director of Finance and Operations
Tiffany Wright, Director of Student Services
Lara Slee, Director of Teaching and Learning
Matt Corliss, Director of Human Resources

07/22/2020

Michigan Education Association

Thank you to our union! Thank you MEA!

MEA President Paula Herbart: “If medical experts say it’s not safe for us to return to buildings to teach students face-to-face, then we can’t and we won’t.”

07/19/2020

Most Big School Districts Aren’t Ready to Reopen. Here’s Why.

Most Big School Districts Aren’t Ready to Reopen. Here’s Why.

All but two of the nation’s 10 largest districts exceed a key public health threshold, according to a New York Times analysis.

07/19/2020

Opinion | Please Don’t Make Me Risk Getting Covid-19 to Teach Your Child

Opinion | Please Don’t Make Me Risk Getting Covid-19 to Teach Your Child

If I’m asked to return, I’ll have to walk away.

07/19/2020

Older Children Spread the Coronavirus Just as Much as Adults, Large Study Finds

Older Children Spread the Coronavirus Just as Much as Adults, Large Study Finds

The study of nearly 65,000 people in South Korea suggests that school reopenings will trigger more outbreaks.

07/18/2020

Teachers: You Are Being Gaslit

Teachers: You Are Being Gaslit

And you have the power to shut it down