The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) represents more than 187,000

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, educational support professionals, counselors,

curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...

specialists,

librarian A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time, ...

health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

workers, school nurses, school

dental hygienist A dental hygienist or oral hygienist is a licensed dental professional, registered with a dental association or regulatory body within their country of practice. Prior to completing clinical and written board examinations, registered dental hygien ...

school nurse School nursing, a specialized practice of public health nursing, protects and promotes student health, facilitates normal development, and advances academic success. School nurses, grounded in ethical and evidence-based practice, bridge the gap b ...

s, school

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

s, school

social worker Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social work ...

s, vocational-technical instructors,

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...

and

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

educators, students and retirees in the state of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. PSEA represents the labor, policy, and professional interests of its members. PSEA bargains

compensation and benefits Compensation and benefits (C&B) is a sub-discipline of human resources, focused on employee compensation and benefits policy-making. While compensation and benefits are tangible, there are intangible rewards such as recognition, work-life and de ...

, protects members’ rights, and advocates for their professions.

Composition

According to PSEA's Department of Labor records since 2005, when membership classifications were first reported, around 80% of the union's membership are classified as "active" or "life" members, with eligibility to vote in the union. Other, voting ineligible, classifications include "retired," "student," "reserve" and "substitute/associate." PSEA contracts also cover some non-members, known as

agency fee An agency shop is a form of union security agreement where the employer may hire union or non-union workers, and employees need not join the union in order to remain employed.Pynes, Joan. ''Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofit Organi ...

payers, which since 2005 have numbered comparatively about 3% of the size of the union's membership. As of 2014 this accounts for 27,809 "retirees" (15% of total), 7,902 "students" (4%), 816 "reserve," and 552 "substitutes/associates" (both <1%), plus 5,662 non-members paying agency fees, compared to 142,406 "active" members.

Mission

The stated mission of the Pennsylvania State Education Association is "To advocate for quality public education and our members through collective action." Its stated vision is "To be the preeminent voice for education and the leading force for labor in Pennsylvania."

Leadership

PSEA is a member-driven organization, headed by elected Officers, an Executive Director, and a Board of Directors. * Rich Askey, PSEA President, teaches Music in Harrisburg, PA. * Aaron Chapin, PSEA Vice President, is a social studies teacher in the Stroudsburg Area School District. * Jeff Ney, PSEA Treasurer, is an elementary teacher in the Wilkes Barre, PA. * Jim Vaughan is PSEA Executive Director.

References

External links

* National Education Association Education in Pennsylvania Organizations based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Statewide trade unions in the United States Trade unions in Pennsylvania {{US-trade-union-stub