THANK YOU, Kansas NEA and RHEA

I have been a member of my professional teaching union since my first year of teaching.

A fellow teacher came into my room prior to school starting and asked me to join Rose Hill Teachers’ Association, which was affiliated with Kansas NEA and NEA. I knew NOTHING about the organization. (I actually had joined as a student member during my student teaching semester because I was told it was important to have the liability insurance. I remember thinking $15 was a bit steep.)

I was a little apprehensive and shared, if I did join, I would not go out on strike unless the children we taught were in harms way. I was soooo dumb!! Had no clue what the Association was about. I did join. I’d have to say it was a result of peer pressure. I so desperately wanted to be a part of the great Rose Hill teaching staff. It was one of the best decisions I stumbled into making. And thank goodness someone asked me to join!

Without the Association my teaching career would have been considerably different and so would I. I don’t think I’d still be a teacher. I would have been what my father thought teachers were, good people, boring people, people (usually women) with no social life, and intellectually stagnant. Dad ALWAYS supported his kids’ teachers, he just didn’t want that for me. He worried I would fossilize if I became a teacher. BOY…was he wrong! Now days I could do with a little ‘boring’ and stagnation. :)

The teachers at Rose Hill mentored me in teaching and professionalism. These same teachers were responsible for organizing Rose Hill teachers, getting Rose Hill teachers their FIRST master contract, organized the community and voted in a ‘teacher friendly’ Board of Education…..AND were totally committed to their students. I was mentored by the best!

When I started teaching, it never occurred to me that doing a wonderful job of teaching would not be enough. I was sure I’d be appreciated, rewarded handsomely for my work, the principal would love me, parents would be in awe of my abilities. It would just happen if I was a good teacher.

WHOA, it took five years to completely destroy this illusion. It was a gradual process and my local Association teachers were there for me every step of the way. When I stumbled, they propped me up. Before actual mentoring, Association teachers mentored. I was invited and attended Walnut Valley UniServ and KNEA workshops. Through the Association I learned about local school finances, State school funding, advocacy for schools and teachers, school law, teacher rights/student rights, professional development school programs, quality instructional practices, interviewing legislative candidates, how to lobby State legislators, positive communication with parents/administrators/Board members, how to set goals and implement plans to achieve goals. As I became a better Association member, I became a better teacher and person. I have had the privilege of collaborating with teachers across Kansas and our Nation.

Over the next 29 years the Association was responsible for my growth in the teaching profession and my personal growth. I became a part of a team constantly trying to improve education in Kansas for our kids as well as growing professional teachers….improving the quality of teachers in Kansas schools.

AND we do all of this in a ‘right-to-work’ State with no strikes. :)

Rest assured, the opinions and beliefs of NEA, Kansas NEA, and even my local RHEA are varied and diverse, very representative of America’s population. We BELIEVE in the democratic process of our Association. Very often, we don’t agree how to ‘get there,’ but we ALWAYS agree to ‘go there!’