Legislative Wrap-Up

The second year of Alaska's 26th Legislative Session ended last week. It was a good session in some respects such as education forward funding and money allocated for schools in high need for replacement. We continue to be frustrated at the ability of one legislator, the chair of any given committee, to prevent a bill from moving. There have been two such "roadblocks" in the last session. Representative Kurt Olson, chair of House Labor and Commerce, refused to allow HB 30 out of his committee. Senator Bert Stedman, Co-chair of Senate Finance, refused to allow SB 23 out of his committee. This lack of action is unacceptable and we will redouble our efforts in the coming year to move forward in our quest to return all public employees to a reliable defined benefit retirement.

Spring Leadership

This year's Spring Leadership Conference was energizing! Members from across the state and presenters from across the country converged on the Hotel Captain Cook in Anchorage to learn and share. The majority of sectionals were offerings that had not been part of our training events in the past. New ways to look at bargaining and the role of local presidents were explored, as well as communications, organizational analysis skills, and minority leadership training were all included in the weekend. During a lunchtime presentation on Saturday, I tried my best to explain the alphabet soup and acronyms that are coming at us on a daily basis. It included such terms as ESEA, I3, RTTT, SIG, challenge schools, the four change models, and more. There is so much to keep track of and so much confusion that we felt it would be a good idea to help members try to make some sense of what's out there. I hope it was helpful.

Respect for Our Elders

We lost a greatly respected elder earlier this month. Merritt Olson will be remembered for his commitment to education in Alaska by all those who knew him, or knew of him. I can still recall meeting him for the first time. He was on the ASPIB board. He told me it was very important that I pay attention to what was happening in Juneau because it would impact my life in many ways. He was right and I have appreciated his willingness to share his perspective with me over and over again. Those who didn't have the chance to meet him or know who he was, must take time to understand what he meant to public education. Merritt's work to help establish a solid retirement for Alaska's educators was paramount in our ability to retire from public service with dignity. His efforts make it much more clear that we MUST win the battle to return all public employees to a defined benefit retirement. We must make our needs known and do everything we can to convince policymakers of the importance of a solid and reliable retirement to Alaska's future. Not only is it crucial to us, but it honors the work of our elders who pushed so hard to make sure we were taken care of into the future. Merritt will be missed by the entire NEA-Alaska family.

Cat in the Hat Going to the Dogs!

Hugh Neff, veteran Iditarod and Yukon Quest musher, is headed for Nome and carrying a piece of Americana with him. NEA-Alaska has partnered with Hugh to promote literacy and the importance of reading in our Read Across Alaska project. When Hugh and the team, including leaders Annie and Watson, reach Nome they will hand the book over to Nome Education Association President Todd Hindman. The book is a gift to the children of Nome and we hope it will excite them into reading throughout the year. This is the first time we've had a statewide project plan in place and next year we hope to expand the effort.

Voting Has Begun

Members of NEA-Alaska can easily click on the voting button on the front page of our website, log in, and vote in regional and statewide elections. If a member needs their member identification number, all they need to do is call one of our regional offices in Juneau, Anchorage or Fairbanks and ask for the number. It just takes a few seconds. The new electronic voting system usage began last year and is continuing in this election cycle. It is easy to log in and vote. Members can even print out a receipt showing that they voted. A large number of local associations are using the new system also. NEA-Alaska Board members and Local Presidents will receive weekly updates on the percentage of members who have voted in each region during the entire thirty day voting cycle.

Juneau Open House

On Tuesday, February 16th, NEA-Alaska showcased our new office building in Juneau by inviting many of our friends, neighbors, legislators, members and the community to stop in and see our new digs. Everyone had a great time visiting, eating and touring our brand new building. It is exciting to think that we have the best spot in Juneau and that our board will have ample space to meet. The members of the Juneau Education Association stopped in to see where they'll be able to hold meetings and training offerings. The staff did a great job of giving tours and serving as gracious hosts for the event.

Anti Free Speech, Not Anti Corruption

The nerve of those outside our state who wish to determine what we can and cannot do is astonishing! Delegates to this year's annual meeting of NEA-Alaska voted to take a firm stand on the initiative that will appear on the primary ballot in August. The item is titled "Anti- Corruption" but is really an attempt to limit the ability of Alaskans to speak their minds. It will block individuals as well as organizations from political activity. This language has been peddled around the country and funded by a millionaire in New York. If this person has so much money to put into this type of effort, perhaps he would be willing to spend some of that wealth in helping our students! I stand ready to make suggestions as to how we can improve public education in our state and country.