From MEA's Executive Director

Rachelle Johnson

Happy Spring or Mud Season!!??

The last time we chatted, I was marking the turn of the calendar year and hoping that the new year would be kind to us all by signaling the waning days of the pandemic. Today, I believe (or want to believe) that is the case… at least in some ways. Finding hope and joy during the pandemic has been hard but there have been bright spots along the way…. and in very unexpected places. Yesterday, I noticed that tulips were popping up where I live due to the unseasonably warm weather we have had for a few days. The small sprouts of green are pushing through the sunwarmed earth, unusual for Maine this early in the year. It made me smile and gave me hope that we may actually be turning a corner.

I also recently found the joy in and comfort of having a pet in your life. She is a beautiful Havana Brown-Siamese cat whose name is Abby or Ladybug as I like to call her. (Please note the required cute cat picture with this column.) There have been many a day recently where she has curled up on my legs and brought a sense of calm that I have never experienced before. It has been a welcome surprise. While there is clearly a way to go before a sense of calm returns to the world at large, I am hopeful that all of you are beginning to find ways to turn a corner or a page to move forward towards a reality that while different is still hopeful and encouraging. Speaking of hopeful and encouraging…. The ongoing instruction and supports that all of you have provided under such extreme circumstances has been both incredibly inspiring and encouraging. The challenges that presented themselves to you at the beginning of this pandemic journey and that continue to present themselves have been and continue to be overwhelming, but somehow you have persevered and provided much needed stability to our students and communities.

Over the last 2 years, MEA members have done amazing things… • Transitioned teaching methods from completely in person to all remote to hybrid models and back again. With a day’s notice. • Taught in outdoor, nontraditional settings and/or adapted their classrooms to make learning safe and accessible for all students. • Jumped in to do whatever it took to cover new classes, new classrooms when vacancies occurred due to illness or quarantine. • Managed through changing Maine CDC and Department of

Education COVID protocols. • Became counselors to support the social and emotional well-being of our students. • Bargained safety protocols in the best interests of students, educators and the school community. • Drove buses safely, served healthy meals, and cleaned and sanitized with new and then evolving COVID protocols in place.

Just when you didn’t think you couldn’t continue, you did. Thank you from your Union for doing what needed to be done, whenever it needed to be done, however it needed to be done in the best interests of students and public education. To MEA, you are all worthy of every accolade in the world, and we are honored to have you as our members. As the pandemic days wane and hope returns, there is still much work to do as we remain under attack from folks who do not believe you did all that you did and have always done, but please know your union stands with you in lifting up your voices to move some groups and decisionmakers to do the right thing. MEA is here for you.

MEA will be reaching out to all of you on what you need from your union. We recently conducted ESP Listening Tours and will be conducting more in the days ahead. We will be polling all members on your views of the changing landscape that is public education post-pandemic and how we can better support you as professionals and union advocates. As public education evolves so must MEA. We will need your help to do so. Wishing you hope in the coming days. Stay safe. Stay well.