Education Minnesota’s 2022 MEA conference will be held Thursday, Oct. 20.

This year, we will have both our traditional, in-person conference at the Saint Paul RiverCentre and a virtual conference option. Courses are also available year-round on Education Minnesota’s MEA Online for members to complete at their own pace.

https://educationminnesota.org/events/annual-events/mea-conference/

Education Minnesota members will soon have access to a free online training which they will need in order to have teacher candidates in their classroom. https://educationminnesota.org/news/minnesota-educator/free-online-class-provides-support-for-cooperating-teachers/

“I have no words to describe what it is like to be a teacher right now.”

That is what I tweeted at the end of a day earlier this month, sitting on the couch while COVID-19 cases surged everywhere. As a writer and a teacher, I had no words to describe what was happening. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinion-stress-hypervigilance-and-decision-fatigue-teaching-during-omicron/2022/01

A Garlough teacher is included among the candidates for the annual Minnesota Teacher of the Year award. The teacher, Anne Bolsem, teaches kindergarten at Garlough Environmental Magnet School in West St. Paul. https://weststpaulreader.com/2022/02/02/teacher-of-the-year-candidate/

Pre-existing educator shortages, made worse by the pandemic, have turned each school system into a precarious house of cards.

https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/omicron-exacerbating-school-staff-shortages

Teacher morale and mental health are suffering as school board meetings intensify and the pandemic rages on. A high school teacher explains why it's crucial that we find ways to support our educators. https://www.parents.com/news/americas-teachers-are-facing-a-mental-health-crisis-too/

WASHINGTON—The executive council of the American Federation of Teachers last night unanimously passed a resolution guiding the union on workplace vaccination policies. The resolution is one of several passed by the board since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, designed to protect the health and safety of AFT members and the communities we serve. It was brought to the council in light of the significant change in circumstances with the delta variant and rising COVID-19 cases, infections in children(link is external), and an ongoing effort by the union to educate members and communities on the

School districts across the United States are hiring additional teachers in anticipation of what will be one of the largest kindergarten classes ever as enrollment rebounds following the coronavirus pandemic.

As they await the arrival next fall of students who sat out the current school year, educators are also bracing for many students to be less prepared than usual due to lower preschool attendance rates. https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-kindergarten-preschool-surge-enrollment-95d6ce871622f527f16588c68dff3371

We Need To Be Nurtured, Too': Many Teachers Say They're Reaching A Breaking Point. More...

https://www.npr.org/2021/04/19/988211478/we-need-to-be-nurtured-too-many-teachers-say-theyre-reaching-a-breaking-point

 Educators use union power to ensure safety for students, staff

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot of the ways in which teaching and learning happens in and out of school buildings. For the 2020-21 year, local school districts were allowed to make decisions for their schools and communities on which learning models would be used and how. This left many local educator unions stepping in. Using the power of negotiations, many unions came to agreements with districts, making sure that the safety and health — both physical and mental — of staff and students were at the forefront of those