The Connecticut Education Association (CEA) is a
grassroots
A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or economic movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from the local level to effect change at t ...
organization championing for
teacher
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
s and
public schools. It has been a leading voice for teacher professionalism and
school improvement since it was formed in 1848 when 80 teachers met in
Meriden.
CEA is headquartered in
Hartford
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...
. Its members are public school teachers, including preschool through grade 12 teachers in
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
public schools as well as retired teachers and college students preparing to become teachers. It
lobbies for legislation at the state and federal levels, represents the rights of teachers, and works with state policymakers to continue to elevate the teaching profession and promote public education.
Structure and operation
CEA has more than 160 local affiliates and is governed by a board of directors of approximately 35 elected members. The board meets regularly throughout the year to set goals, approve policy, and implement specific measures adopted by CEA's highest-policy making body, the Representative Assembly (RA).
The RA meets annually each May to set policy, including approving a budget, adopting resolutions, voting on new business items, and making any amendments to the CEA constitution and bylaws.
CEA's four executive offices, president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer, are elected at the RA. Elected to three-year terms, they can serve a maximum of two terms. The president and vice president are full-time officers.
CEA's staff is headed by an executive director who oversees staff in Hartford and regional offices. Staff members include lawyers, lobbyists, trainers, field staff, policy experts, communications professionals, and more.
Accomplishments
CEA is a state affiliate of the
National Education Association
The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...
and has made teachers a force in the legislative process. CEA members take an active role at the
state legislature and in local communities across the state, advocating for education and investments in public schools. CEA's legislative successes include the following achievements:
* Helped prevent loss of school days to teacher strikes with passage of a binding arbitration law.
* Championed a bill to implement indoor air quality programs in public schools.
* Amended the State Teacher Evaluation Guidelines to prohibit school districts from using a single, isolated, standardized test score to assess educators.
Thomas, Jacqueline Rabe. "State panel: Teachers must be evaluated on multiple standardized tests." CT Mirror, 24 April 2014.
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References
External links
CEA homepage
BlogCEA
{{Authority control
Educational organizations based in the United States
Non-profit organizations based in Connecticut
Education in Connecticut