‘Best way to cope with stress and
hopelessness is to get involved’

by Chris Guinther, MNEA president

These are critical times for public education in Missouri and for Missouri NEA. Changes are being suggested, legislated and imposed. Demands and expectations sometimes seem to have no connection to the conditions and needs in our classrooms and to our jobs. Feeling uncomfortable, stressed and occasionally angry? You’re not alone.

Following are a few suggestions on how you can relieve some of the stress by staying informed and getting involved in MNEA to make a positive difference for our students and education.

• In your local (a great place to start!), contact your local president or building representative to learn where your local affiliate needs help. There are always year-long or short-term jobs available.
• At the state level, consider signing up at www.mnea.org for our “Activist” and “Legislative” listservs that keep you up to date on MNEA activities, calls to action and volunteer opportunities.
• Another way to get involved at the state level is to sign up for an MNEA committee. Committees meet on weekends three or four times a year. There are committee assignments that appeal to the many skills of our members. The dates of next year’s meetings as well as the volunteer form are located on MNEA’s Web site.

MNEA members help us define MNEA’s position on “change” issues, from charter schools to MNEA’s vision for the future.

Charter schools are being touted as the latest “silver bullet” that will solve all of the problems in public education. We don’t particularly agree. In anticipation of moves to expand charter schools in Missouri, including legislation, a special MNEA taskforce was formed to define MNEA’s position. Last fall, the MNEA Representative Assembly approved the Charter Schools Position Paper. Please take some time to become familiar with the document our members created and adopted. Find it at www.mnea.org in the “Members Only” section. (See article on page 4.)

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education submitted Missouri’s Race to the Top grant to the U.S. Department of Education Jan. 19. The U.S. Department of Education had called for the proposal of ideas that are “bold and innovative.” Some of the plan DESE submitted has promise, but other portions cause me great concern. MNEA members attended focus group meetings, participated in DESE’s online survey and provided feedback to DESE as the grant was written. We believe that we influenced the final draft, and we stand ready to work with our locals and DESE to implement responsible, meaningful changes.

We have held meetings with new teachers across the state to listen to their concerns and ideas. After-school gatherings have given the opportunity to listen to the hopes, dreams and frustrations of our new teachers. Theirs is a critical voice for our Association as we revise our mission/vision statement and implement programs to involve and serve our members. Job stress continues to be a top issue that affects recruitment and retention of talented educators.

“Today’s NEA: Transformation, Innovation, Hope” was the theme of the NEA Midwest Regional Leadership Conference held in Minneapolis this January. Sixty-four MNEA members attended. This annual opportunity for networking and professional development experiences will be held in Kansas City next January where many more of our members will be able to attend.

The best way to cope with stress and hopelessness is to be a part of the solution. MNEA offers opportunities for each member to make a difference in educators’ working environments and to make our public schools great for all of our students.

sb, spring '10

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