BLUEPRINT OUTLINES RECOVERY PLANS page 10
LOCAL STANDS UP FOR DIVERSITY & EQUITY Page 26
MESSA PULLOUT Inside
#MiEdChamps Celebrating #MiEdChamps
August 2021 | Vol. 98 | Issue 5 | mea.org
LETTER TO MEMBERS
Much to Say, Little Space We have many urgent matters to discuss, but first let’s talk good news. With a $17 billion state education budget signed in July, K-12 funding in Michigan got a historic increase of 8% that includes an equal amount per pupil from the state, additional funds to hire staff, and a preschool spending boost that extends Great Start Readiness to another 22,000 families. Read more on page 15. That doesn’t include community colleges and universities, as we wait to see what the legislature does with higher education spending. Meanwhile, don’t miss a new higher-ed Voice feature, discussing this and other issues, on page 34. The state funding increase, combined with $4 billion from the federal American Rescue Plan, means $21 billion is flowing to Michigan schools to address challenges related to and brought into sharp focus by the pandemic. Read how MEA members helped to shape the state’s Blueprint for Recovery on page 10. Safety must continue to be a priority this year, and our union’s work on that front—including involving our members in local decisions on how best to use education dollars in their districts—will always be at the forefront of what we do. But other challenges loom.
Paula J. Herbart President
In what Vice President Kamala Harris has called “the fight of our lifetimes,” Michigan is among 19 states in which Republican-controlled Legislatures have passed or are likely to pass restrictive voting measures that disproportionately threaten the ballot access of young, minority, and low-income voters—on the heels of the highest-turnout, most secure election in history.
We can’t ignore historic events and experiences because they’re painful or uncomfortable. Students deserve better. Do not miss the editorial on this subject by Plymouth-Canton teacher Richard Mui on page 9. Then read how members of one local union stood up for the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion on page 26. Visit mea.org/honesty to learn how to take action.
In our state, some GOP leaders plan to employ a little-used mechanism to get around an expected veto by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and subvert the will of Michigan voters—who just elected to expand voting access with a 2018 state ballot measure that passed by a 30-point margin.
Your voices matter. That was clear last month, when Joe Biden became only the fourth sitting president to address the NEA Representative Assembly, our national union’s annual governing body.
Partisan attempts to dismantle voting rights should be an urgent priority for everyone, warns Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. The GOP plan, based on lies about the 2020 election that have been disproven, “is un-American and an affront to every voter in the state,” she said. Read about the threat at mea.org/ sos-benson-urges-pushback. The same forces returning Jim Crow-style voter suppression are attacking the freedom of educators to teach honestly about history. As in other states, Michigan lawmakers have introduced legislation to restrict educators’ ability to discuss issues of race and racism in the classroom.
Chandra A. Madafferi Vice President
In his address, Biden marveled at educators’ work to bring young people through a global pandemic: cafeteria workers feeding hungry families, teachers going above and beyond to help students, and bus drivers delivering wi-fi hotspots to disconnected neighborhoods. “The American people understand what you have been saying for years: You are professionals,” he said. “All of you. And all of us have a responsibility to make sure you have what you need to educate our children equitably, safely and well.” You can read about that on every page of this magazine. Let’s keep working on it together.
Brett R. Smith Secretary-Treasurer
CONTENTS
24 Strength in Union MEA pilot project helps new teachers 30 Awards & Honors Teacher of the year sparks learning joy 34 Member Spotlight New series launch: Higher Ed in Focus On the cover: Cedar Springs educator Audrey Debri moved her classroom outdoors full-time amid the pandemic. Read more on pages 17-19.
Executive Director �������������������� Michael Shoudy Director of Public Affairs ������������������ Doug Pratt Editor �����������������������������������������������Brenda Ortega Staff Photographer ����������������������� Miriam Garcia Publications Specialist �������������� Shantell Crispin The MEA Voice ISSN 1077-4564 is an official publication of the Michigan Education Association, 1216 Kendale Blvd., East Lansing, MI 48823. Opinions stated in the MEA Voice do not necessarily reflect the official position of the MEA unless so identified. Published by Michigan Education Association, Box 2573, East Lansing, MI 48826-2573. Periodicals postage paid at East Lansing and additional mailing offices. Payment of the active membership fee entitles a member to receive the MEA Voice. Of each annual fee whether for active or affiliate membership, $12.93 is for a year’s subscription. Frequency of issue is October, December, February, April and August. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the MEA Voice, Box 2573, East Lansing, MI 48826-2573 or via email at webmaster@mea.org. Allow at least three weeks for change of address to take effect. MEA Voice telephone: 517-332-6551 or 800-292-1934. Circulation this issue: 111,495
9— MEMBER VOICES: History teacher calls on educators to raise awareness and tolerance.
10-15— ISSUES & ADVOCACY: MEA members contribute expertise to Recovery Blueprint.
20-23— MEMBERS AT WORK: Three MEA members lead a behavior support team in a comprehensive project to boost trauma-informed practices in every building in Lincoln Park.
26-28 —SOCIAL JUSTICE: The Grandville EA is using a resolution to support the district’s DEI work.
29— AWARDS & HONORS: Local president’s work fighting for ‘the little guy’ wins her Brunner Award. MEA VOICE 3
NEWS & NOTES
Editor’s Notebook It’s not easy interviewing five-year-olds. They don’t have patience for dumb questions, and they tend to talk about what they like no matter what you ask. But once in a while you strike gold. “What do you like about having school outdoors?” I asked Sophia, whose teacher in Cedar Springs took a daring leap this year to spend 80 percent of every school day—rain or shine—in an outdoor learning space with a class of Young Fives, the developmental pre-kindergarten. “We play and we learn,” the pig-tailed little girl said matter-of-factly. At first I told the teacher—this month’s cover subject, Audrey Debri—I came up empty-handed after talking with the children. Most of them veered off-topic, and Sophia’s answer seemed too obvious. But driving home I realized that Sophia perfectly summed up both the philosophy and the beauty of Debri’s first year trying to realize a teaching dream sped up by the global pandemic. Time for play is protected in Debri’s classroom, because that is how young children learn. In the outdoor space where she and her husband installed benches, dry-erase boards, a mud kitchen and more, Debri conducts lessons and activities, but much of the time students are exploring in self-directed play. Read more about the thrills and chills of being outside in nearly every weather condition on page 17. And don’t miss an equally inspiring early childhood educator on page 30: this year’s Michigan Teacher of the Year, Holt’s Leah Porter, lays the foundation for a lifetime of learning with joy and wonder. “Being a child’s first teacher is magical, helping them build the confidence to dive off the cliff and take risks in their learning as an author, a mathematician, a scientist, and reader,” Porter says. This issue celebrates #MiEdChamp stories of our members, local leaders, and union working on important initiatives at the classroom, district and state levels. Together we have persevered, innovated, and advocated for the needs of educators and students alike. For inspiration, look no farther than Lincoln Park. That district’s Resilient Schools project—led in large part by three MEA members—corralled funding from a Regional Enhancement Millage to bring trauma-informed practices to every building. Find the story on page 20. There’s more to cheer in these pages: A Waterford bus driver and local leader who refused to give up in the face of privatization threats and moves in her district (page 29); and an MEA initiative, with six other state education associations, to build a community of support around new educators (page 24). The tough times aren’t over, but here’s hoping this issue of the Voice brings strength in the knowledge that we have each other to lean on and learn from, and together we are champions for education.
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—Brenda Ortega, editor
Percentage increase in starting salaries—from $38,000 in 2016 to more than $51,000 in the fall—offered by Detroit Public Schools Community District to lure more applicants amid a national educator shortage. By mid June, district officials had more than 1,000 applicants for 140 job openings, according to a report in Bridge Michigan.
QUOTABLES “It is the school’s job to welcome students into classrooms where they are respected, supported, and loved. If (Senate Bill 218 is) passed, it will no longer be possible to fully provide that for transgender students in Michigan.” MEA member Owen Bondono, 2020-21 Michigan Teacher of the Year and a pioneering educator who is transgender, speaking against a state Senate bill to require high school athletes to compete on the sports team that aligns with their “biological” sex, regardless of their gender identity. Read more on page 15 from Bondono, who contributed to the governor’s Blueprint for Comprehensive Student Recovery, on what students will need as they return to school this fall.
NEWS & NOTES
ICYMI Democratic state House lawmakers in June unveiled a package of 18 bills to improve the professional landscape and better recruit, respect and retain classroom educators in Michigan. “It’s our duty to make sure that every child has the opportunity and the resources they need to succeed, but it can’t happen without
great teachers and great educators in our schools,” Rep. Darrin Camilleri (D-Trenton) said at a press conference announcing the bills—attended by several MEA members from the Aspiring and New Educator groups, AEM and MiNE. Various proposals in the Respecting Educators Package
Above and Beyond MEA member Gary Cooper could have relaxed after retiring from a 30-year career as an autoworker at Ford Motor Co. Instead the 64-year-old former UAW shop steward took on Gary Cooper a new full-time role as a community assistant at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor. The support staff position requires him to wear “quite a few hats” and has spurred him on to pursue a degree at Washtenaw Community College through Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Futures for Frontliners, a tuition assistance program for essential workers in the pandemic last year. He hopes to influence students he encounters every day to pursue post-secondary education or training. “Sometimes we can have blinders on, and if we don’t see beyond our own environment or how we grew up, it’s a small world. That’s the thing about education, it opens you up to have the desire to know different cultures and how other people think and live.” While Futures for Frontliners is now closed to new applications, Michigan residents over the age of 25 who do not hold an associate’s or bachelor’s degree can apply for another of Whitmer’s tuition assistance programs, Michigan Reconnect. Read more at mea.org/ esp-member-walks-his-talk.
would offset student loan debt, reduce the cost of health care benefits, incentivize smaller class sizes, amend the third grade reading law, remove student test scores from educator evaluations, and create a paraprofessional-to-teacher pathway, among other ideas. Learn more at mea.org/respect.
QUOTABLES “By making these critical investments in our kids, from preschool through graduation, we are setting up a generation of Michiganders for success.” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, speaking in a Detroit Free Press column about opportunities provided in funding measures she signed in July to deliver $21 billion to the state’s K-12 schools: $4 billion in federal COVID relief funds and $17.1 billion in the 2021‑22 state budget.
MEA VOICE 5
NEWS & NOTES
UPCOMING EVENTS October 22
Higher Education Conference MEA Headquarters, East Lansing The conference features sessions covering trends in online learning, intellectual property, higher education funding, member engagement, bargaining, and strategies to strengthen local associations. February 3-4
MEA Winter Conference Marriott Renaissance Center, Detroit At MEA’s biggest conference of the year, members and leaders network and attend training sessions in bargaining, organizing, member advocacy, political action, communications, classroom best practices, and more. March 5
MEA Conference for Aspiring and Early Career Educators MEA Headquarters, East Lansing Aspiring and early career educators will gather to network and train on topics such as classroom management, high-leverage best practices, legal issues, work-life balance, and union involvement.
Aspiring Educators from Michigan Win National Award The Aspiring Educators of Michigan (AEM)—MEA’s pre-professional wing made up of college and university student members—has taken home a national award of excellence. AEM leaders were honored with the 2021 NEA Aspiring Educators State Excellence Award at a newly redesigned ceremony in June that recognized the hard work of aspiring educators state programs across the country during the past year. AEM President Brittany Perreault said the state program leaders were surprised and grateful to receive the honor after a long and difficult year in which many education students faced extra difficulties completing course loads, field placements, and student teaching amid the pandemic. “It was very clear that AEM members wanted to grow as educators and leaders despite their challenges and circumstances,” Perreault said. “They continued to show up and actively participate in every event we held, which is a true testament to their desire to be strong educators.” The Michigan program was recognized for efforts and accomplishments in organizing around NEA-AE’s four core values: educator quality, community engagement, political action, and social justice. Read the full story at mea.org/aspiring-educators-win-award.
March 18-19
ESP Statewide Conference
MEA Teacher Re-Entry Program
MEA Headquarters, East Lansing Education support professionals will gather to network and train on topics such as legal issues, ESP certification, privatization, school violence, and member engagement.
Do you know a Michigan educator with an expired certificate who wishes to return to the classroom? Working in partnership with the Michigan Department of Education and the Welcome Back Proud Michigan Educators program, MEA can help. Interested educators can learn how our Teacher Re-Entry membership makes renewing a certificate easy and affordable.
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For more information, go to mea.org/welcomeback.
The Future is Now From College to Colleagues We celebrate the excitement of first teaching jobs with our graduating Aspiring Educators of Michigan. Meet a few members of the AEM Class of 2021:
Megan Watkins, Western Governors University, elementary education “What I look forward to in my career is growing professionally and learning new skills. In the future I would like to be recognized as a highly effective educator.”
Tharan Komarraju Suvarna, Oakland University, social studies/ELA/political science “I became a teacher to help students learn that it is OK to make mistakes. I am looking forward to meeting all the students in my class.”
Lindsay McColley, Saginaw Valley University, elementary education “Teaching was always something I felt pulled to do. Student teaching really solidified that choice. I’m looking forward to the relationships I will build as I move through my career.”
From Classrooms to Second Jobs If starting teaching salaries were given an effectiveness rating, what score would Michigan earn coming in at 41st out of 50 states? Our state’s dismal ranking in a new study begs the question: How will we keep new teachers in a profession that doesn’t offer a salary reflective of their commitment and expertise? While they shouldn't have to work a second job to make ends meet, some MEA-member early career educators are creatively balancing budgets. Amanda Henderson, Rochester Community Schools, German teacher “I started babysitting during student teaching because I needed money for gas and couldn't make another job fit with my schedule. I continued working for that family for six years and even invited the parents to my wedding! Recently I started a treats company where I create chocolatecovered strawberries, hot cocoa bombs, breakable chocolate hearts, cake pops, and more! The extra money has been great and spending time in the kitchen has been a great stress reliever.”
Brittney Maczala, Monroe Public Schools, elementary teacher “I have worked every summer since becoming a teacher, typically waitressing. I am getting married this summer and wanted to have a flexible schedule, so this year I started a craft business with my best friend. Our business, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, is on Instagram, Etsy, and Facebook. We sell hand-made earrings, farmhouse signs, car charms, and more. I am also tutoring kids. Being a teacher is the best job in the world, but sometimes you have to get creative to make some extra dough!” MEA VOICE 7
Health officials sound alarm on child vaccination rates With children’s vaccination rates falling to alarmingly low levels in many Michigan counties, doctors and public health experts are urging parents to get their children caught up on routine vaccines. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services recently reported that vaccination rates for Michigan children ages 3 to 19 fell below 70% in more than half of the state—42 of 83 counties. The rate dropped below 60% in six Michigan counties and the city of Detroit, according to data from the Michigan Care Improvement Registry, which compiles and tracks immunization rates in the state. While community immunity is different for each disease and vaccine, doctors and public health experts generally agree that a 70% vaccination rate is the minimum protection level desired. Experts say children’s vaccination rates dropped over the past year because parents postponed wellchild visits to stay home and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, doctors warn that the lower vaccination rates make it easier for vaccine-preventable diseases to spread. “After stress tests on our health care systems during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan healthcare leaders like MESSA play an integral role in keeping Michiganders healthy and informed,” said Terri Adams, MDHHS immunization division director. “It’s time 8 AUGUST 2021
to catch up Michigan children who did not get their routine vaccinations over the past year so we can protect them and our friends, families and loved ones who are medically unable to be vaccinated.”
MESSA covers 189,000 people, including thousands of children. MESSA urges parents to make sure their children are up to date on all vaccines, so the state can return to a 70% vaccination rate. All MESSA
“After stress tests on our health care systems during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan healthcare leaders like MESSA play an integral role in keeping Michiganders healthy and informed,” said Terri Adams, MDHHS immunization division director. “It’s time to catch up Michigan children who did not get their routine vaccinations over the past year so we can protect them and our friends, families and loved ones who are medically unable to be vaccinated.” Doctors and other medical professionals agree: Vaccines are safe and effective at preventing disease and protecting communities from outbreaks of potentially deadly diseases, such as measles, pertussis (whooping cough), mumps and more. The recommended immunization schedule from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention protects children from 16 vaccine-preventable diseases by age 18. The CDC’s recommended schedule is approved by every major medical organization in the country, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians. It is the only immunization schedule that has been carefully tested, studied and reviewed by medical experts prior to being recommended for children.
health plans cover recommended childhood vaccinations at no cost to MESSA members when administered at an in-network provider, local health department or participating pharmacy. If you have any questions about your MESSA benefits or where to obtain childhood vaccinations, call MESSA’s Member Service Center at 800-336-1300. Parents who have questions about the safety and efficacy of vaccinations can find information based on medical science at IVaccinate.org.
MEMBER VOICES
It’s our job to help students become more tolerant, inclusive
By Richard Mui, Canton High School AP U.S. History and Civics teacher
As a second generation Chinese American, I am proud to live in a country that has provided me and my family so many opportunities for a better life. As a veteran U.S. history teacher, I have the unique opportunity to teach students about the historical context of many of the issues they encounter today. In today’s global marketplace, it is imperative students have the ability to understand and appreciate all cultures. Anti-Asian American sentiment in recent months has made this more important than ever. Much of this hatred and intolerance has been fueled by scapegoating of Asian Americans related to the origins of the COVID-19 virus. None of this—including the recent murder of eight Asian Americans at Atlanta spas—occurred in a vacuum. Many people either don’t remember or weren’t alive when Vincent Chin, a Chinese American draftsman, was beaten to death in 1982 by two white men at a Highland Park bar. Chin was targeted because the men
believed he was Japanese, a culture they associated with the decline of the U.S. auto industry at that time. In the early 1940s, Japanese Americans were held by U.S. officials in internment camps during World War II. In 1882, the U.S. Chinese Exclusion Act prohibited immigration of all Chinese laborers. The Exclusion Act took its cue from the Page Act of 1875, which banned Chinese women from entering the United States. These stains on our democracy are just a few examples of why many Asian Americans feel like perpetual foreigners in our country. I grew up in Ferndale, where at the time there were few other Chinese families. I was outcast by my classmates and experienced teasing and racist comments. As a result, I’ve always taken a proactive approach to broadening my understanding of racial dynamics. I continue to do my very best to impart this knowledge to my students. In my second year teaching at Canton High School, I worked with
my students to launch the Asian Pacific American Club. The club provides a forum for these students to share their personal experiences. It also provides an opportunity to promote better understanding of Asian American history among all students. We’ve kept the club running for more than 20 years, and have continued meeting on Zoom throughout the pandemic. I call on my colleagues to also use their platform as educators to heighten awareness and understanding of all cultures during the pandemic and beyond. We’re at a crossroads when it comes to race in this country. Let’s do our part as educators to help lay the groundwork for the tolerant, inclusive leaders of tomorrow. Richard Mui is project director of the Youth Leadership Initiative at American Citizens for Justice, a program where students learn about APA history and issues. This guest editorial originally appeared in the Detroit Free Press and is reprinted here with permission. MEA VOICE 9
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Focus on Recovery
Vision. Commitment. Staffing. Resources. Funding. Recovery from a months-long public health crisis that has spared no corner of society will require many things— including time, perhaps most of all. The MI Blueprint for Comprehensive Student Recovery gives school districts a head-start on responding. Developed by a 30-member advisory council—appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer—of educators, health experts, community leaders, legislators, parents and students, the document is a resource-rich guide for developing comprehensive multi-year plans promoting student health, achievement, equity and engagement. The recommendations broadly call for: data collection on students’ health and academic gaps tiered supports in behavioral and academic realms
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targeted professional development for educators more school nurses, counselors, psychologists, social workers partnerships with health and social service agencies Go to michigan.gov/ studentrecovery to find detailed recommendations and links to resources and existing models. The blueprint addresses both the trauma and learning disruption directly related to the pandemic and longstanding systemic problems brought into sharp focus by the historic events of the past 18 months—including the worsening educator shortage in Michigan. It also calls on state policymakers to address well-documented budget deficiencies that have driven Michigan to the bottom of all states in education funding increases over the past 25 years. Bipartisan action on state and federal school funding this summer
“We know the presence of highquality educators in every job category is essential to student success and we must remain focused on providing that in every community so our children have equal opportunity for success in school.” MEA President Paula Herbart Advisory council member moved a step in the right direction, providing funds to adopt some of the blueprint’s recommendations. With increasing demands placed on educators to meet student needs, the state must be intentional about increasing respect and compensation for the profession, said MEA President Paula Herbart, who served on the advisory council. “Only then will we be able to stop and reverse the educator shortage trends we’re experiencing. Failure to do so will make even harder the job of helping all students continue their post-COVID learning—and none of us can afford for that to happen.”
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Wellness
The mental and emotional health of students and educators top the list of concerns that demand immediate attention at this stage of the pandemic.
are addressed,” said MEA member Joshua Smith, a high school counselor in Jackson County’s Western School District who served on the advisory council.
As the virus took its toll, as social distancing and masking became the norm, as schools shifted between remote and hybrid modes, young people experienced increasing rates of anxiety and depression. And nationwide problems with student mental health and suicide were considered an epidemic for several years before the crisis hit.
Meanwhile, Smith noted, Michigan is among the worst states in the nation in terms of its students-to-counselor ratio at 690-to-1, compared to a national average of 430 students per counselor, and the staffing level recommended by research of one counselor for every 250 students.
“Students are not going to be able to learn until all of their health issues
The document also acknowledges high levels of educator stress, depression, grief, trauma, and
“COVID has put a microscope on issues that were there before but now have become even more challenging.” Joshua Smith High school counselor Advisory council member burnout—offering resources for staff wellness programs and policies. “It’s OK to give yourself permission to take care of yourself,” Smith added. “Educators by their nature care about people, and sometimes we just want to put our head down and drive through, but at some point, we all need to see when a break is needed.”
SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS screen students for mental health needs and referrals
implement multi-tiered interventions for mental health issues
ensure student access to recess, movement, outdoor activity, sports
hire a full-time or shared school nurse for district services
facilitate communication between school and health providers
train and offer events for staff wellness assessment and practice
ensure staff access to and coaching on trauma-informed practices
collaborate to ensure access to wellness visits and vaccinations
MEA VOICE 11
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Academics
To advance learning, the blueprint calls for schools to build in time for teacher collaboration and for educators to cultivate high-trust classroom environments. Instruction should focus on priority standards with tiered supports for students through tutoring, small-group interventions, and enrichment activities.
for targeting interventions, said VanderGalien, who contributed to the blueprint. “You can go into the school year already knowing your students and exactly what they need. I know it’s harder at the secondary level, but why are we not intentionally looping—especially with math?”
Students’ needs will vary widely, said MEA member Shantel VanderGalien, a national board-certified eighth- and ninthgrade English teacher in Kent County’s Wyoming Public Schools and last year’s Region 3 Teacher of the Year.
Double-dose classes with the same teacher offer extra time daily in challenging required subjects like algebra. And high-dosage tutoring of three or more days per week can pay dividends, as can a whole-building focus on global needs such as students’ numbers sense or literacy skills, she added.
Looping teachers up a grade so they keep the same students for two years—even beyond the elementary level—is a proven strategy
For example, VanderGalien this year is adding a read-a-thon project to her curriculum to incorporate eighth-grade math standards as well
“We framed the pandemic’s effects in terms of ‘unfinished learning’ or ‘unfinished teaching’ because students may have made gains in some areas or regressed a bit in others, but they still grew. Our focus should be on individual students and their unique needs coming out of this pandemic.” Shantel VanderGalien Middle school English teacher Blueprint contributor as language arts—an approach she discovered in the linked materials offered in the blueprint. “It’s a few days out of my curriculum, and I get to partner with a math teacher on a research-based strategy. I’m willing to make those changes to help my students.”
SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS build student engagement and agency to drive their own learning
offer acceleration academies (small group interventions during breaks)
consider teachers looping from one grade to next to stay with students
consider co-teaching models to divide instruction and intervention time
collaborate with community agencies for wraparound services
offer an extended-day option or balanced calendar for interventions
connect schoolwork to topics meaningful to students’ lives
offer double-dose courses and high‑dosage tutoring for tier 2-3 students
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track attendance to flag at-risk students early for coordinated outreach
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Family and Community Engagement Beyond the concentration on students, schools must also be adept at family engagement, noted MEA member Angela Pérez, a Muskegon elementary ELL teacher. Pérez contributed to the blueprint and took over as chairwoman of the more broadly focused Governor’s Educator Advisory Council in June. Some families are disconnected from school life because of mistrust or language barriers, and those are often the folks most in need of supports who are least likely to attend school events, she said. “Even before the pandemic, we needed to do a better job of engaging our families,” Pérez said. “We have to be very deliberate in how we make offerings available and how we bring people to them. We need
to plant the seed for trust in the community, and then keep watering it to help it grow.” The pandemic has not been an equal opportunity force of destruction, Pérez pointed out. The digital divide is one example. In many districts it took time to get devices and mobile hot-spots to students. But it was up to educators like Pérez to visit front porches and demonstrate how to use the devices and hot-spots. “There I was, outside the window—in the snow many times—saying, ‘OK push this button. Now put in the password. Wait, I can’t see. Can you move it closer to the window?’” The pandemic further exacerbated inequities for students who experienced added trauma, family job
“There are communities that live in crisis all the time. Even before this crisis, there was a food crisis, housing crisis, health care crisis, gun crisis. If we could take this opportunity to really talk about the needs and get good services for our families—if we started talking about a preventative model instead of a reactive model—our schools would prosper.” Angela Pérez Elementary ELL teacher Blueprint contributor losses and homelessness, experts say. The state estimates that approximately 13,000 of the state’s most vulnerable students disengaged from school and are missing from school enrollments.
SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS establish guidelines for regular communications
scan student and family needs to build programming
build community partnerships to address needs
offer families actionable information and guidance
involve parent communities in decision making
expand involvement in out-ofschool-time activities
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ISSUES & ADVOCACY
School Climate and Post-Secondary Opportunities Districts should conduct an “equity audit” with broad participation from staff, students and families to develop and implement policies and practices that create a climate of inclusivity and belonging for all, the report said. In addition, students who may not be planning to attend a four-year college need greater awareness of and access to a variety of post-secondary education opportunities, such as two-year colleges, trade schools, and career-technical programs. “One of the guiding principles from the start was that we needed to pay attention to equity,” said MEA member Greg Talberg. “The council chair was really purposeful from the start, saying that not everybody’s starting in the same place, and our efforts need to focus on those places where needs are greatest.”
Senior Dominic Gonzales, a student in Detroit, participated in development of the recommendations because he has seen the need firsthand. At 18, he is a manager at a McDonald’s restaurant, helping to provide for his mother and siblings since the death of his father five years ago. “I wanted to put in my voice and my opinions because over the last year it’s become clear how important education is at all levels,” he said. “But at the same time, I’m seeing the students having connectivity issues and confusion with how online school works and lack of motivation from all that’s going on.” Providing culturally relevant professional development, empowering an equity and anti-racism committee to lead equity work, and establishing restorative justice practices can
“Overall, the blueprint is a collection of what many experts have been saying we should be doing for the last decade, gathered together in one place. All of this has to happen at the local level, but it has to be funded and supported at the state level.” Greg Talberg High school social studies teacher Advisory council member begin to break down barriers faced by students from marginalized communities, the report said. The blueprint also points districts toward ways to catch and connect kids to opportunities who have been underserved even before the pandemic, Talberg said. “It’s typically students of color, students from poverty, and students of parents who didn’t seek out post-secondary education.”
SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS develop an equity and anti-racism board to lead equity work
hire more counselors to improve post-secondary advising
deliver equity and bias professional development to all staff
create online opportunities for early college credits
implement district-wide Restorative Justice practices
offer students experiences to inspire post-secondary pursuits
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build partnerships with higher ed and community organizations
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Education Policy
The blueprint calls on state leaders to implement higher base funding for all schools with additional dollars for districts with higher populations of students who are at-risk, English language learners, or attending special education and career-technical classes. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has pressed for those changes every year since her election. In July, she signed a state K-12 education budget that brings historic investment in Michigan schools—more than $17 billion—and per-pupil funding at $8,700 that is equal across all districts for the first time since 1994. “As I think about investments we need to make, certainly a number of things come to mind, but the education of our young people is the most important investment,” Whitmer said after signing the K-12 budget. The budget includes $240 million to hire additional school counselors,
nurses and social workers, and an increase in the Great Start Readiness Program enough to serve an additional 22,000 preschoolers from low-income families. However, the increased education spending does not address the reality that some districts have greater needs. Beyond that, one fiscal year budget cannot address all of the problems caused by decades of state disinvestment, a problem documented in numerous studies in recent years. A comprehensive study by the School Finance Research Collaborative tagged the base cost of educating a student in Michigan at $10,400, with more funding required in districts with greater needs. However, between the state budget and $4 billion in federal COVID-relief funding, we are making progress with opportunities to fix aging infrastructure, improve access
“The pandemic has highlighted both the importance of schools to our society and our pre-existing struggles to meet students' needs. After the experiences of the last school year, it is important that we provide safe and flexible learning opportunities that do not simply return us to pre-pandemic standards, but close the opportunity gap for learners across the state.” Owen Bondono High school English teacher Blueprint contributor to technology and broadband internet, and address problems worsening the educator shortage, said MEA President Paula Herbart. “These investments will show our communities what’s possible for our students when we fund their education appropriately, so we can make the case in the long run to fix our broken school funding system,” Herbart said.
SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS enact equitable, adequate, sustainable education funding
enact a statewide strategy to attract and retain teachers
create innovation zones to provide flexibility for change
build weighted funding to support critical staffing levels
focus intentionally on recruiting educators of color
expand access to universal high‑quality preschool
MEA VOICE 15
MEMBERS AT WORK
Celebrating #MiEdChamp Stories
Stephan Hogan
Every day and especially during the most challenging times, MEA members step up in unprecedented ways to be champions for public education. You protect safety, promote learning, innovate, improvise, and adapt to a changing and challenging landscape. You remain creative and unstoppable forces for good, always true to our mission of providing students the education they deserve—even during a global pandemic.
Jenny Jarrard
That’s why we want to hear, honor and help tell your amazing stories. “When the school closure happened, we grieved,” Ann Arbor teacher Stephan Hogan says in one of the new videos. But, he adds, we moved forward. Transformed our work on the spot. Stayed committed to students and doing what it takes to succeed. Watch for a series of MEA #MiEdChamp videos as the new school year approaches. Read about other champions for public education on these magazine pages. Share these stories far and wide, and tell your own story today using #MiEdChamp on social media.
Ben Pineda
Watch and share the videos at mea.org/miedchamp.
16 AUGUST 2021
Karen Moore
Pushed by COVID, Trailblazing Teacher Takes Giant Leap
Outdoors
Stories by Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor Two years ago, in October 2019, MEA member Audrey Debri took a step toward a long-dreamed-of goal to spend more learning time outdoors with her Young Fives students.
use a system of nature trails. But in that first year with the new outdoor classroom, she and her students also enjoyed being able to gather and work on a lesson or activity. Then the pandemic hit, shutting down in-person school and interrupting her use of the space as spring arrived. So the following fall— amid COVID restrictions one year ago—Debri made a giant leap.
In a clearing underneath tall conifer trees on property next to the K-1 building where she works in Cedar Springs, Debri and her husband built permanently rooted benches, standing tables, and a whiteboard to create an enchanting pine-needle-carpeted classroom in the forest.
She went full-out (pun intended). For 80 percent of every school day—through sun, rain, wind, snow and everything in between—she and her students played and learned outdoors (only excepting for lightning and below-zero temperatures).
Throughout her 10 years at Cedar Trails Elementary School, Debri had regularly taken her classes outside to
“I was always planning to eventually end up there, but COVID kind of forced my hand,” Debri said.
“I thought, OK, well. There’s this now, so we’re just going to go for it. But it’s been years in the making.” Two operating philosophies governed her first year teaching full-time in the great outdoors. Firstly, she believes—and often repeats— “There is no such thing as bad weather as long as we’re wearing the appropriate gear.” Principal Beth Whaley helped to provide rain boots and ponchos, and grants from the district’s foundation purchased waterproof snow boots and mittens. Secondly, from the beginning Debri understood a truth she would soon grapple with on a new scale: “Anything that can be taught indoors can also be taught outdoors—you MEA VOICE 17
MEMBERS AT WORK
just have to be creative and think outside of the box.” The biggest difference being out in all conditions is in planning materials, which she transports via wagon, large shoulder bag, and/or small backpack. The classroom is a several-minute walk away from school grounds down groomed paths with wood planks over wet spots. She shares her knowledge with other Cedar Trails teachers who also schedule time in the outdoor spaces through weekly sign-up sheets. Dry-erase boards don’t work in harsh cold—markers freeze. Paper
came across snakes quite often, so we read a lot of books about snakes and had discussions about them and all the amazing creatures that live in the space we learn in.” Lessons followed by free play and exploration is key to her teaching. “Play just naturally ties in standards associated with reading and writing and social studies and science and math. The bulk of my students’ day is play. It’s crucial for children’s development. They’re wired to learn that way.” Last winter, Debri and her husband Tom completed phase two of the outdoor learning area with
scattered—nicknamed The Sticks— became the best spot for fort-building. A grassy area they called The Weeds was perfect for bringing toys out to play. And The Singing Tree was named one day during a heavy rain when the class discovered both wonderful cover and acoustics for a song break under its branches and leaves. The biggest learning curve has been for Debri, who says it can be difficult to give up control and view distractions as opportunities. Now a fresh blanket of snow means an extra long walk to the classroom with stops for exploring, making
“Anything that can be taught indoors can also be taught outdoors— you just have to be creative and think outside of the box.” and pencil with clipboards? Not if it’s too wet or windy. But sticks can write in snow, and watercolor paints make great snow-art creations. The payoffs can be huge. Research shows that regular outdoor education opportunities can improve students’ problem solving, social skills, self esteem, motivation to learn, and emotional regulation—and Debri has seen it first hand. She had few behavior problems last year, and test scores for her Young Fives students were higher than when she taught kindergarten, she said. Students in her class learned about the biology of bees and other insects, spiders, and snakes in literacy and science lessons that helped them learn how to share and be good stewards of the environment next to critters they used to fear. “We learned a lot about insects and how to investigate them and respect them and keep them safe. And we
the addition of play equipment in an open meadow next to the classroom, including a kitchen sink, stove with dishes and utensils, large wooden blocks, an art easel, magnet board, dry-erase board and weaving station. During play time, children choose what they want to do, making snow or mud pies in the kitchen, creating art on the easel, running and chasing, or crouching in discovery of a new bug. As weather got cold and wet, the children made paths into covered areas nestled in the edges of woods surrounding the meadow to create cozy play spots. They discovered other fun places walking to and from their indoor school classroom, where they returned for lunch, bathroom breaks, rest time, and recess. A wooded area along the path where a large number of limbs and branches were
tracks, and creating snow angels. And in a classroom without walls, the occasional cat—and chicken— can wander in for a visit. “It’s just an unpredictable, amazing place to play and explore,” she said. Even on the hardest days—when cold combined with rain or wind or both—the children were troopers and knew that to be comfortable they must stay dry and keep moving, Debri said. In fact, the first time that a heavy blanket of rain fell outside during indoor breakfast and prep time, it was Debri who had doubts. “I told my teaching partner, ‘I don’t know what to do. What would you do? Would you take them outside?’” “And she said, ‘Turn around. Look at what your kids are doing.’ I turned around and they were getting on their ponchos, because they knew that’s what we do.”
Enjoy the MESSA Pullout section, and see photos of Debri’s classroom on p. 19 18 AUGUST 2021
“We play and we learn.”
“There’s so much more freedom for kids to run and yell and do what they want to do and truly be the little energetic beings that they are,” Debri said of making the change to teaching outdoors for 80% of each day. The children quickly learned boundaries and followed rules about staying in eyesight of the teacher and responding to the occasional all-call check-in, she said.
Read the story of Debri’s full-time outdoor classroom starting on p. 17. MEA VOICE 19
MEMBERS AT WORK
It’s All Hands on Deck for ‘Resilient Schools’
L-R Angela Burley, Anna Schankowski and Kim Wagner Jacob Blanton used to have trouble focusing in school. The soon-to-be Lincoln Park sixth grader remembers a few years ago when he would “get mad and stuff and keep on getting distracted,” but now he knows how to calm his anger and reset his brain so it doesn’t feel impossible to concentrate on classwork. “I used to get in trouble and fights, but now I come here and it helps me,” the boy said after demonstrating how to use all of the equipment in the general-education sensory room at his elementary school— the place that has offered him saving grace. It seems simple, but the youngster’s transformation resulted from a remarkably comprehensive shift in culture the Downriver district has been making over the past five years—a change now all the more urgent amid emotional struggles 20 AUGUST 2021
faced by educators and students alike in the pandemic’s wake. The Resilient Schools Project in Lincoln Park has brought trauma-informed practices to the forefront in every classroom in every building district-wide. Even before COVID, more young children were showing up for kindergarten with visual-motor deficits and fine motor skill delays, says MEA member Kim Wagner, a 29-year school occupational therapist who changed districts to be part of launching the project. Over the past decade, preschoolers are spending more time in front of screens and less time in the kind of unscheduled outdoor play known to develop motor skills along with social-emotional and executive functioning skills, Wagner said: “Things are so much different than they were 10, 15 years ago.”
Add in trauma from poverty, parental substance abuse, childhood abuse or neglect, and other stresses outside of school, and it’s a recipe for emotional dysregulation and behavior challenges, she said. Trauma changes how the brain functions, which in turn affects how a youngster behaves and learns. “We know increasing movement increases the neurons firing in the brain, which means students are going to be able to focus better,” Wagner said. “Bringing movement back is my mission, but it’s specific movement.” Joining forces with Wagner are two MEA member behavior specialists, both longtime school social workers who—like Wagner—moved districts to be able to work on a dream project they consider to be unprecedented in scope and scale in Michigan.
Through the Resilient Schools Project, student Jacob Blanton has worked with a coach on a “sensory diet”—prescribed movement in a sensory room to manage emotions and reset his brain for learning.
“I don’t know of a district that is doing this work at the level and intensity that we are,” said Angela Burley, one of the team’s two behavior specialists, now in her fourth year at Lincoln Park after working 16 years as a school social worker elsewhere. Together the trio makes up the district-level Behavior Support Team responsible for training building staff, modeling strategies, observing students and teachers in classrooms, assessing student needs, developing intervention plans, and conducting home visits. For ongoing guidance and trainthe-trainer services, the district partnered with Starr Global Learning Network—the professional development and coaching arm of Starr Commonwealth, an agency specializing in trauma and behavioral health headquartered in Albion. In turn, the behavior support team leaders have not only trained other Lincoln Park staff, but the three have traveled to present to neighboring districts and at conferences. “In any training, what you’ll hear me say again and again is that we’re going to get rid of the word ‘why,’”
said Anna Schankowski, the other behavior specialist on the team, who was first of the three to move to join the project five years ago when it was being piloted at one school. “We’re not going to ask a child why they’re behaving a certain way, because why is for science and research,” the 16-year school veteran said. “We are going to ask kids what is going on. It’s about stepping back and being curious, asking questions instead of making judgment.” In addition to structured movement, the project incorporates mindfulness strategies and restorative practices for building resilience in the face of trauma. Teachers have been trained, and paraeducators in every building—known as advocates or coaches—also mentor students as they help to put various strategies into action. “The investment of time up front in these practices pays back a hundred times later,” Schankowski said. The program has built out every year, and it hasn’t stopped growing yet—more social workers and occupational therapists will be added this fall. Overall successes so far include test score improvements that
removed one school from the state’s list of failing schools, and a reduction in violent incidents. However, for the MEA members interviewed, success also looks like individual students who begin to recognize feelings and behaviors that are not beneficial and what they can do to prevent those from overtaking them and spinning out of control—students who used to get in trouble but now are empowered to do what’s needed to reset and return to learning. The project is the brainchild of Nicole Chubb, an experienced school social worker who became the district’s special education director, with enthusiastic backing from Supt. Terry Dangerfield. That unwavering administrative support has been key to success, the three behavior team leaders agreed. “They saw the need, and they didn’t blink,” Schankowski said.
About the Brain We know from research that suspension as a tool to change behavior does not work, Burley said. More often than not, the same students get suspended repeatedly—and other MEA VOICE 21
MEMBERS AT WORK
K-12 teachers have been trained in how to conduct classroom circles, a restorative practice that builds community, communication and trust, which can be helpful in resolving conflicts.
punishments, such as taking away recess, often harm students most in need of movement and play. Part of what gets educators across the district to buy in to making the trauma-informed shift is showing them the brain research and having honest conversations, Burley said, noting, “You can’t talk a student out of trauma.” Toxic stress affects the hippocampus, which is connected to memory and learning capacity, and the amygdala, which experiences emotions and trips the fight, flight, or freeze mode. Decades of research have shown that traumatic events in childhood can have a lifelong effect on health and life outcomes.
academic and behavioral needs. The behavior support team generally is called in to help with tier three students—those exhibiting more serious behaviors, such as eloping the classroom or physical aggression toward others. The team might observe a student in class, provide a detailed screening, and make recommendations for interventions to support the student both at school and at home, so students have multiple layers of support in learning to self-regulate. “We’re doing a lot to teach our kids about the brain so they understand what’s happening to them in terms they can understand and discuss,” Burley said.
Conversely, through play and movement kids can calm the amygdala and build their hippocampi, Wagner added, “meaning they’re going to be able to process information faster, and they’re going to have more storage in their brain for their memories. They’re going to retain stuff.”
Brain-Body Reset
In Lincoln Park, staff at the building level design tier one (whole class) and tier two (small group) interventions to address students’
Every building in Lincoln Park every day incorporates mindfulness, a practice in which students learn breathing and relaxation techniques.
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Animal terms and color-coded emotion charts give children the language to speak about what they’re feeling, and both students and teachers offer feedback regularly to evaluate whether plans are working or need to be revised.
“We’re trying to teach our students they have the skills within them to calm their brain and to calm their body,” Wagner said. Part of that also involves talking about the fast-beating heart and racing mind that are the physical indications of upset, so kids start to notice what they’re feeling instead of being swept away by it. In some buildings, the principal leads a mindful moment over the intercom. In others, teachers conduct mindfulness lessons. From the outset, the team has focused on getting a “calming corner” set up in every classroom and establishing a general-education sensory room in every building where students on a prescribed sensory “diet” of activities can learn how to counteract stress and big dark emotions, such as anger, fear, sadness, and anxiety. Regulation stations adorn the walls of hallways throughout the district’s 11 buildings, where students can step out of a classroom with a coach and go through brain exercises. For example, in “Lazy 8,” a student’s fingers trace over an infinity sign in multiple ways to
A first grader works on brain exercises at hallway stations—here a “Lazy 8,” which calms and improves eye coordination and tracking to build reading skills in students easily distracted by visual stimuli.
calm but also to improve coordination and visual tracking. A centerpiece of the project for the neediest students are the sensory rooms in each building—made up of equipment such as swings, slides, soft blocks and pulleys that students can arrange, play on, move about and operate to redirect their energy away from emotions. Students must have permission and a spot on a coach’s schedule to use the sensory rooms. “We know motor planning helps calm the body,” Wagner—the OT— said. “When kids are really elevated and firing in the amygdala, we try to do something with motor planning just to slow them down.” The break room looks different at the high school level, with a swing and comfortable seating arranged for talking. A courtyard with garden area is another break area being added at the high school for next year. In most districts, school sensory rooms are designed and used only by students in special education programs, such as autism classrooms or resource rooms for emotionally impaired students, Wagner said.
“Before I started, the superintendent said, ‘We want you to put a sensory room in a gen-ed building. This is not about a program, it’s about meeting kids’ needs. We know our kids are dysregulated, so please help us.’ And I was like ‘Really? Wow.’ So that’s what I get to do, and I’m really lucky.”
Restorative Practices The Resilient Schools Project uses the circle of courage as a guide, steeped in Native American ideals that say four components make for a flourishing life: belonging, mastery, independence, and generosity, Burley said. “We try to work those four components into the everyday classroom world,” she said, “and then when we go out to observe a student and we do an assessment, that’s one of the tools that we use. We try to determine where their circle is broken.” On a regular basis, Lincoln Park classroom teachers conduct classroom circles with simple and fun question and answer sessions to build a sense of community and trust. The teacher acts as facilitator, and the conversations follow rules and rituals to deepen the connection
and provide fertile ground for problem solving when difficulties arise. Once trust is established, circles help students to communicate through conflict, listen to each other without interrupting, see and articulate another’s viewpoint, and take responsibility for personal actions. “It brings this sense that everyone is even, and that’s the idea of circles—to build up each kid to where they’re all together,” said Schankowski, who is a certified trainer through the International Institute of Restorative Practices, along with Burley. All three of the behavior team leaders agree that the reality of the Resilient Schools Project is living up to the dreams that lured them to the district. The effort is like no other in the state, they said. “I could retire, but there’s no way I want to retire,” Wagner said. “I love what I’m doing.” “It’s not perfect, but we’re getting there,” Burley agreed, “and we’re going to continue to see many of our students thrive who would not have thrived if we weren’t engaging in these practices with them.” MEA VOICE 23
STRENGTH IN UNION
MEA Joins Seven-State Pilot
Utica second grade teacher Casey Joss will start her 18th year in the classroom this fall, but the MEA member hasn’t forgotten the struggles and uncertainties of being brand new to the profession. In fact, it’s become her passion to remember those early days with clarity—so she can develop meaningful ways to directly help today’s early career educators thrive amid the complexities and demands of the job. “Teaching is so hard, and we need to retain high-quality people in the profession and not lose them in those first few years, so I think of it as one of my duties to support the next generation of teachers,” Joss said. Now she has a new vehicle to drive that work within the union. MEA is one of seven Midwest education associations piloting a teacher-led system of supports for early career educators, called Educators Leading the Profession (ELP). Joss will serve as one of the virtual coaches available for participants to select as a professional practice guide. In addition to a virtual coach, early career educators in the pilot program will receive a building mentor to act as a go-to person for practical information about how the school operates. Building mentors will also help to form a local
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Casey Joss
Mike Shoudy
in-person community of new teachers to support each other through collaboration and reflection.
to do their student teaching,” Joss said. “I get a lot of positive feedback, because I talk about the realities. They will stay after class just to chat about how to handle an angry parent or to get feedback on their lesson plans.”
Virtual instruction coaches, including Joss, will offer direct guidance through one-on-one meetings and use of research-based frameworks in a series of learning modules. Joss said her focus with any new teachers she’s assigned to support will be to stress the importance of building relationships with students, the how-to of classroom management, and everyday realities not covered in teacher preparation programs. She already has experience supervising student teachers in her classroom. In addition, for the past several years, Joss has secured an NEA grant to run professional development courses to help new teachers in Utica earn 30 of the 90 hours required in their first two years of teaching. “Whenever there are openings, I also teach mathematics to undergrad students at Oakland University right before they’re getting ready
The ELP pilot program offers veteran educators like Joss a new avenue for leadership within the union, and it extends MEA’s reach in a vital area of support for educators that is growing in importance—especially given the teacher shortage in Michigan and across the U.S., said MEA Executive Director Mike Shoudy. “Because it’s union-led, the whole structure of the program is about creating a safe space for the new teacher to grow and be vulnerable,” Shoudy said. “We don’t work for administration; we’re not part of the evaluation process; we are solely there to support new teachers and make sure they’re successful so they stay in the profession.” The discussions and planning for the program over the past two years have been vibrant and enthusiastic
Program to Support New Teachers
as union leaders from across the region have come together in thinking outside of the box and trying something new, Shoudy said. “Professional practice is our work. Being the voice of members is our work. Supporting new educators is our work. And our willingness to take a chance on something new is an exciting shift into a space where we haven’t traditionally been involved.” By mid-summer, Farmington Public Schools had joined the free program to begin this fall. In Michigan, the goal is to run the pilot in two school districts for two years—and then evaluate if new teachers who participated grew their skills and stayed in the profession longer than peers who did not. “Many members have described the first one to five years of teaching like drinking from a firehose,” Shoudy said. “Helping new teachers sift through that volume of information is so important. “With ELP’s program, new teachers have a virtual coach to help on that instructional side, while the building mentor can support them in navigating the school’s culture, administration expectations, how to hold parent-teacher conferences, etc. Someone who has been there and can give advice and encouragement—that means so much to new teachers.”
MEA President Paula Herbart thanked the coaches, mentors and new teacher participants for being willing to pioneer a new approach that promises to keep early career educators from slipping through the cracks in those critical first few years. “I can think of nothing more important than building an understanding and encouraging
community around the early career educators who’ve answered the call to join the greatest profession,” Herbart said. Neighboring state associations partnering in ELP include Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota and Ohio.
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MEA VOICE 25
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Grandville Union Stands in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion For MEA member Henry Stallings, systemic racism and bias is nothing new in the U.S. “As a Black man, I live this every day,” he says. But one thing is changing, he believes: public awareness of issues surrounding marginalized communities in America. With the May 25 one-year anniversary of the brutal police killing of George Floyd, which sparked worldwide protest and calls for change, the local union in Grandville—where Stallings works as a third-grade teacher—passed a resolution and presented it to the school board in support of the disHenry Stallings trict’s beginning work to broadly promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). difficulties that educators face in In addition to race, the Grandville discussing controversial topics in Education Association’s resolution in school, but teaching kids how to support of equal rights and opporunderstand and discuss complex tunity considers individuals’ color, issues is partly the role of education, creed, gender, LGBTQIA+, national he said. origin, and physical, intellectual or “We have all of these events conemotional ability. verging at this one point in history. The resolution’s first statement Can we just talk about it? The time addresses “both the current and is now. In order for things to even historically disparate treatment of remotely change and be better for and biases against the aforementhe next generations, we have to be tioned persons, and a growing able to talk about difficult things.” awareness of these injustices in our Grandville is a small suburb southGrandville community, our State, west of Grand Rapids where the and our Nation.” 5,600-student school district is preStallings served on a committee dominantly white, although the racial of the GEA that drafted the resoluand ethnic demographics of the city tion. He acknowledged fears and
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are becoming more diverse as is happening elsewhere. Last year the district’s administration formed a DEI committee and is next hiring a DEI director to build awareness of and support for students who belong to underrepresented communities. That is the work supported by the GEA in the union’s resolution. Middle school math teacher Kristin Bakker co-chaired the GEA’s resolution committee, her first time stepping up to a leadership role with her local union since she began working in Grandville three years ago. Bakker spent her first 12 years teaching in the more diverse Grand Rapids Public Schools. “I came in with a different-angle view on various students and populations I had worked with in Grand Rapids, which is where I developed a real heart for this work around diversity, equity, and inclusion,” Bakker said. “It’s a passion of mine.” The committee met virtually each week for several weeks to develop a draft resolution, which was put out to membership for line-by-line feedback and further revised based on the comments and suggestions submitted. The resolution pledges support for the district’s DEI work and calls upon the administration to “allot
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
Support of Initiatives
Grandville Education Association Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Resolutions The Grandville Education Association believes that every person, regardless of race, color, creed, gender, LGBTQIA+, national origin or physical, intellectual or emotional ability, has the right to equal opportunity for education and employment and equal rights of citizenship as established in the nation and state by the constitutions, statutes and judicial decisions. WHEREAS, in response to both the current and historically disparate treatment of and biases against the aforementioned persons, and a growing awareness of these injustices in our Grandville community, our State, and our Nation; WHEREAS, schools should be places for practice of equity, for the building of understanding, and for the active engagement in creating pathways to freedom and justice for all people; WHEREAS, the Grandville Education Association acknowledges the need to address institutionalized racism and inequity in the communities in which we all coexist; WHEREAS, we affirm our commitment to the emotional and physical safety of all our Grandville students. It means that our schools and classrooms must be safe spaces for dialogue and support on the relevant issues we are facing; WHEREAS, the core principle of unions and the labor movement— “An Injury to One is An Injury to All”—requires all working people of conscience to take a stand for justice;
Kristin Bakker
and require professional development opportunities related to race and other challenging topics such as confronting biases, racial micro-aggressions, using schoolwide data on race and discipline, fears, cultural ignorance, inclusion, and stereotypes of the aforementioned youth to all district staff and associated employees.” The resolution also announced the establishment of a permanent GEA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee and pledged the union’s commitment to promote those values within the local association by “reviewing our bylaws and policies that may be contributing to lack of diverse representation within our Association.”
Therefore, Be It Resolved that the GEA: Will encourage and support Grandville Public Schools’ initiatives reflected in the work of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee. We are committed to finding ways where the GEA can partner with the district’s goals. Will call upon the district to allot and require professional development opportunities related to race and other challenging topics such as confronting biases, racial micro aggressions, using school-wide data on race and discipline, fears, cultural ignorance, inclusion, and stereotypes of the aforementioned youth to all district staff and associated employees. Will actively work to foster diversity, equity and inclusion in our local association by reviewing our bylaws and policies that may be contributing to lack of diverse representation within our Association. Will establish a permanent Grandville Education Association Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Will promote the understanding, acceptance and recognition of all individuals, regardless of race, color, creed, gender, LGBTQIA+, national origin or physical, intellectual or emotional ability. Grandville Education Association, 2021
MEA VOICE 27
ISSUES & ADVOCACY
The resolution overwhelmingly passed a vote of the membership, and GEA President Blake Mazurek presented it to the school board a few weeks later. He stressed the resolution’s purpose—to highlight the importance of strengthening the community’s bonds. “A close reading of our statement shows acceptance, not exclusion; encouragement, not indictment; recognition, not repudiation,” he told the board. “We are your partners in building a stronger, more equitable school district and community.”
Blake Mazurek
The union’s resolution plays an important role in giving voice to educators who want to show support for all of their students and staff colleagues by acknowledging social justice struggles playing out in society and on the news every day, Bakker said. “Having a statement like this gives support to teachers by saying together we are standing behind this work and it’s important for our students to feel heard and seen,” Bakker said. “It says that it’s OK to talk about tough issues within our union and to look for ways to make things better for our students.”
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Mazurek teaches middle school history and knows firsthand that discussing controversial issues in school can be fraught with peril, he said. Educators must be careful not to appear to espouse political points of view with a captive audience of students. “Many teachers—especially if they’re newer or don’t believe they’ll be supported by administration— don’t want to get anywhere near that line,” Mazurek said. “Even if they feel a discussion about what is happening today could help students understand the curriculum, their caution about how they may be misconstrued holds them back.” However, with his knowledge of U.S. history, Mazurek also realizes all of us are living in a period when “we’re rubbing up against some of our
past history that keeps dogging us and that we need to find a way to let go of and move beyond”—and the union has a role to play in helping members stand up and speak out together. “These things that we struggle with as a nation, as a community, they’re not easy topics,” he continued. “It’s hard to look in that collective mirror as a nation and see some of the things that we’re carrying forward from the past that we need to address and find solutions for by continuing to listen and trying to understand.” Bakker agreed that talking and learning are important steps toward healing divisions in the country. “We’re all learning here, and no one is a master on the subject,” she said. “This is not pointing a finger that I’m right and you’re wrong. It’s about saying, ‘Hey, let’s have the discussion and be willing to hear each other out.’ That would be a massive step forward anywhere.” Being willing to talk and listen is a vital first step that is overdue, Stallings added. “If we can’t be in a place where we aren’t afraid to talk about difficult things, the wheel is just going to keep spinning and things will just keep going the way they have been going,” he said.
AWARDS & HONORS
Award-Winning ESP Leader Fought for ‘the Little Guy’ It won’t be easy for MEA member Becky Lesh to retire at the end of this summer from the Waterford district where she’s lived for 27 years and worked for two decades. But she finds consolation in wins that her education support professionals unit has secured under her leadership. In her five years as local president, Lesh beat back a district effort to fully privatize the custodial department, and she won back some of the 16% wage cut and four holidays that were taken away to discourage those members from staying. In 2017, the district moved to privatize transportation, but Lesh organized the community and her members to pull out a victory. She has since won an increase in transportation wages and paid holidays. “My grandpa was a huge union guy, a pipefitters union steward, and I’ve always been one to look out for the little guy,” Lesh said. “In the end, it’s about making sure people aren’t taken advantage of.” A longtime bus driver and vicechair of the 7E Coordinating Council, Lesh has been named MEA’s 2021 Leon A. Brunner Award winner for her tireless work fighting privatization efforts and reversing cuts to positions and pay. Lesh has gotten at least 15 positions returned to the unit in various job classifications as a new administration agreed with her arguments that higher union pay and
local control brought greater ease of hiring, better quality, and greater efficiencies over privatization, she said. “Now I feel good that hopefully things will continue to rise up and get better,” she said. Lesh led her local union in various community service opportunities, from holiday donations to raffle fundraisers, and she has been a patient leader always willing to teach and share information with members and the community, according to nominators Heather Madigan, the union’s custodial maintenance rep; and Toni Weddle, the food service rep and local treasurer. “Becky is continually there for her members and is always willing to fight for the betterment of our members,” the nominators said. “If she feels anyone has been treated wrongly by the District, she is willing and ready to go the extra mile to make it right.” The annual Brunner Award recognizes support staff members who have exhibited a high degree of commitment and dedication to their union while advocating for ESP member issues. MEA UniServ Director Troy Beasley worked with Lesh when he was president of the education association in Waterford. She was instrumental in developing the collaborative relationship that exists between the teachers and support staff unions, he said.
Becky Lesh “She believes in unions, solidarity, and speaking up for those who can’t speak for themselves,” Beasley said. “She is not afraid to speak her mind and is the first person to volunteer to help others when they are in crisis.” Despite the admiring words and award, Lesh says anyone can do what she did—armed with belief and commitment—and she has trained others to replace her. “I remind my members every day, I’m not Superwoman; you can do this without me. Just don’t say, ‘OK’ when something’s not right. Choose to stand up for yourselves and each other.” She has the same advice for anyone who thinks of becoming a leader but shies away from doing it. “Don’t be afraid. Reach out to the people who’ve been doing it. Get yourself into ESP conferences and any of the MEA trainings, because you’ll network. You’ll meet friends and realize you’re not alone. Just ask, and you’ll be amazed at the number of people who are willing to help at the drop of a hat. I’ve been amazingly lucky that way.”
MEA VOICE 29
AWARDS & HONORS
‘It’s Magical’: New Teacher of the MEA member Leah Porter knows the power she holds as an early childhood educator to spark a love of learning in students that will stay with them forever. She remembers one who lit hers. She still gets choked up thinking of her second grade teacher at North Elementary School in Lansing, Mrs. Henderson, who simply made her feel seen—a lesson Porter took to heart and carried into her own classroom in Holt 15 years ago. “My uncle was in the Persian Gulf War, and he was stationed in Baghdad, and the night the war started Mrs. Henderson called my mom to check on her. I’ll never forget that moment when I realized— oh my goodness, a teacher sees and knows and cares about the personal lives of her students.” It’s the special ingredient for a kindergarten teacher named the 2021-22 Michigan Teacher of the Year in May. Along with the award, more change is on the way for Porter, who will transition to third grade this 30 AUGUST 2021
fall—a change she has considered for some time, she said. For her MTOY year, Porter will co-teach with a colleague and focus her attention on struggling readers. “Winning an award at this scale is such an honor, but it’s humbling after all of the collaboration and work of this past year. As teachers we went back to the drawing board and together we rebuilt what education looks like in ways I couldn’t have imagined when schools closed down last March.” Under the strain of the pandemic, working closely with colleagues was essential, “to be able to make as robust and powerful and as rich of an experience that we could possibly provide. I just hope I can represent all of the incredible teachers I’ve known and be a voice for us as teachers and our students.” As is customary, former state teachers of the year have reached out to offer congratulations and advice for finding balance with all of the demands that come with the role.
Embrace the journey, they said. Take advantage of opportunities. Welcome the learning and growth you will experience as you see new things and meet new people. We’re here to help. “The education community is just so wonderful,” she said. Community is valued by Porter, who understands the importance of building connection with and among students. She begins every day outside of her classroom, greeting every student by name with a personal salutation chosen by the child—like a wave, fist bump, or high five. She builds time into her class schedule for a morning meeting, where a general check-in with each student is followed by them greeting each other, “so every child is seen and talked to by their peers,” and a short team-building activity, such as a question, survey or team game. Porter also values movement to help children learn to emotionally regulate and get ready for the day, “so we do lots of singing, lots of dancing. We’ll do breathing exercises and stretches or things to get our minds ready to learn.”
Year Sparks Learning Love Porter thrills at helping children discover a love for books, and tries to balance increasingly rigorous state standards with the need for children to “get their hands into objects, to be able to play and explore.” A typical day has included whole-class read-alouds and small group reading during center time when students rotate through stations that also include hands-on activities, story retelling, and social play built around a theme, such as farmer’s market, post office, and bakery. “We’re engaging so much of those academic standards in math, literacy, writing, and oral language by embedding them in play.”
For the past year, Porter has served on her district’s equity and access team, and she runs a committee developing K-6 lessons on character and leadership built around social justice standards and embedded with diverse texts centering empathy, perseverance, celebrating differences, and advocacy. “I see a lot of my work this year stemming from these questions. How do we provide equitable experiences for our students, and how are we helping students build lifelong skills and traits that will give them tools to be active, outspoken citizens who stand up for what they believe in and work to improve systems around us?”
During the school year, her love of science translates into outdoor experiences focused on the five senses as students become nature “spies” and explorers, writing and drawing observations.
Before the pandemic, Porter and other volunteers from Wilcox Elementary School brought summer enrichment to neighborhoods, particularly in under-served areas.
In summer many of her passions merge in outreach programs she has worked on for several years, and those interests will be her focus as Michigan Teacher of the Year: literacy, science, equity.
The program offered science experiments, STEM activities, and community service experiences— paired with related reading—free to neighborhood kids. At the end of each week, children selected books
to take home and keep, thanks to grant money the team secured. Although COVID forced cancellation for the last two summers, Porter looks forward to resuming the program next summer. “It was such a fabulous time to connect with kids in ways we can’t always do given the pressures of the school year.” She worries about the growing emphasis on standardized test scores since time spent on mandated assessments cuts down on developmentally appropriate social, oral language, and play experiences. Teachers know where kids are strong or struggling, and they meet students where they are because children don’t all learn in the same way or at the same pace, she said. “Being a child’s first teacher is magical, helping them build the confidence to dive off the cliff and take risks in their learning as an author, a mathematician, a scientist, and reader. I want kids to know this is a place where they can be themselves, and I’ll always be there to support them and help them grow.” MEA VOICE 31
MyStressTools provides stress management help to MESSA members Anyone who reads this column regularly knows that the mental health of teachers and school support staff is a top concern for us at MESSA. That’s why we’re providing MESSA members free access to MyStressTools, a powerful suite of stress management and wellness resources. MyStressTools offers podcasts, videos, webinars and articles on topics such as resilience, wellness coaching, stress tracking and more. Users can access the tools from any web-enabled device. MyStressTools uses a “Stress Profiler” to identify sources of stress and anxiety. Based on the user’s answers within the profiler, MyStressTools
provides individualized resources and strategies. To get started, MESSA members can log into their MyMESSA member accounts at messa.org and select “Wellness Resources” in the left menu, then “MyStressTools.” Mental wellness is an essential part of overall health. High levels of stress and anxiety can lead to long-term health complications and chronic illness. MESSA is here to support our members’ overall health by providing resources to help manage and alleviate stress and anxiety.
By Ross Wilson, MESSA Executive Director
To learn more, visit messa.org/ mystresstools.
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WHY I BELONG: HIGHER ED IN FOCUS
A series exploring who makes up MEA's Michigan Association of Higher Education (MAHE).
Dr. David Jesuit professor, department chair Political Science & Public Administration Central Michigan University past president, CMU Faculty Association president, 12 F Coordinating Council
WHY UNION NOW
Jesuit developed an interest in languages and cultures growing up the son of two bilingual education teachers in Chicago. As a young man, he was drawn to explore answers to big political questions— the very issues today driving debate and concern over the health of American democracy. “My dissertation focused on how voter turnout affects policy outcomes. And I can tell you, in my research and the overwhelming consensus of political scientists, ‘It matters, and we have evidence.’ The reason we care about who votes is because who votes affects public policy. So now these latest efforts to restrict voting are about preventing poor people from participating. Overwhelmingly, they’re targeting underrepresented groups and minorities, and that will affect the shape of public policy outcomes. That kind of issue drew me into politics, and ever since I’ve focused on income inequality and poverty and its relationship to political participation.” 34 AUGUST 2021
“Politics is about power. One of the most famous definitions is that it’s about who gets what, when and how. Solidarity, too, is about power, and we’re more powerful as teachers, as workers, if we have solidarity. I’m working on building a relationship between different units on campus through our joint union council, and strengthening the coordinating council (of various MAHE faculty and ESP units) so we have more solidarity across our ‘neighbors’ in higher ed. I have no doubt that greater coordination and collaboration is in our interest as teachers, as union members.”
FOR PROTECTION “Academic freedom is under asssault. That’s clear—we’ve seen an example with the new law in Florida, and it’s happening at the K-12 level as well with this debate over critical race theory. I’m an academic in higher ed, and I have an idea of what the term means. We’re talking about history, right? Racism is embedded in the U.S. Constitution—just read it or read the notes that James Madison took at the Constitutional Convention. There’s no doubt
about it, and yet there are serious efforts underway to undercut our academic freedom to tell the truth. That’s when you need a union. Only a union can ensure due process for members and respect for rules and fairness. A union can point to a bargaining agreement that’s legally binding. A labor union has rights and protections under federal and state law.”
BREAD AND BUTTER “A union is about more than bread and butter issues—although data show that pay and benefits are better at a university that has a union—that almost goes without saying. But I think we also need to organize politically to ensure that our state elected leaders return to supporting public education, including higher education. It’s deplorable to see how we’ve stopped investing in the public good and shifted the burden to students and families—just this tremendous debt for families. That shouldn’t be a partisan issue. We need to build solidarity to advocate for public support of universities if we want a more prosperous society, a more just society, and a better functioning democracy.”
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