February 1, 2019
MEMBERSHIP EDITION, Vol. 3, #5

The 10-Minute Meeting
All too often we hear, "there's no reason to hold a meeting if there's nothing to report/decide/vote on." Or, we hear, "I'm not sure we have a union because there are never any meetings." But mostly, we hear, "I don't have TIME to go to ANOTHER meeting."
 
You have an opportunity to keep members in the loop AND respect their time by holding 10-minute meetings! It's also a great time to get feedback from people in the building. 

If you feel like you're in a rut, why not try the 10-minute meeting?
For more details about how the 10-minute meeting works, click   here .
For previous 10-minute meeting topics:
December:  NEA Member Benefits
January: Retirement!

The February 10-Minute Meeting topic: Non-Renewal of Teacher Contracts
Wisconsin State Statute 118.22 governs the renewal and NON-renewal of full-time teacher contracts
 
This important deadline is approaching: 
 
For teacher contracts that a District does NOT want to renew for the 2019-20 school year, the school board must notify with a preliminary notice of non-renewal on OR before Tuesday,  April 30, 2019 .  This timeline applies regardless of the reason for non-renewal, i.e., performance, economic reasons, declining enrollment, etc. A preliminary notice of non-renewal must be voted on and issued by the school board (not an administrator).
 
Many teachers have already been given some kind of indication that the District is thinking about non-renewal. These teachers may be on a plan of improvement. For teachers under this scrutiny, the preliminary notice of non-renewal may come well before the deadline of April 30th.  Once preliminary notice of non-renewal is given to an educator, they only have five calendar days to request a hearing before the school board.

  • Union members who are fearful of a non-renewal should contact the Region 3 office as soon as possible. 
  • Union leaders and building reps who are working with teachers who may be in danger of non-renewal should contact the Region 3 office as soon as possible. 
 
Please do not wait until the preliminary notice has already been issued!

WELCOME
NEW MEMBERS in JANUARY:
11
Professional Development
Wednesday
February
20

The Science of Happiness
5:30 - 7:30 pm
WR3 Office in Green Bay
(other dates and locations available!)
Friday - Sunday
March
1-3

Restorative Practices
Wisconsin Dells

Registration is Open for March 22-24 NEA ESP Conference in LAS VEGAS!
The NEA ESP Conference is a premier professional development opportunity for Education Support Professionals throughout the nation. Attendees will enhance their skills and knowledge in order to impact student achievement, build community relations, organize fellow union members, advocate for educators, strengthen their locals, and help colleagues do their jobs better. The conference offers dozens of workshops.
GSAFE  and  Janesville Mobilizing 4 Change (JM4C)  are pleased to present Safe Schools, Safe Communities: State Conference on LGBTQ+ Youth on Friday, March 8, 2019. This year's conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Parker High School in Janesville.
If you were there, you know what a good time we had at our Professional Development conference last Saturday. We braved cold weather and learned a lot of great stuff! Don't miss next year's conference!
Political Action
Become a Public Education Advocate!
When it comes to our students and public schools, there's a lot going on. A new legislative session has begun and a new governor has taken office. WEAC is proud to introduce a new Take Action Website with resources to help you contact your legislators, track legislation and write letters to the editor. Visit WEAC Take Action.
I Love Our Public Schools Week is February 11-15. WEAC is a proud partner of the Wisconsin Public Education Network, and encourages members to start planning creative events. See the toolkit for ideas and more.
Union Dues No Longer Deductible
WEAC Region 3 has received a couple of questions regarding the deductibility of union dues. To ensure that everyone is aware of one of the changes that took place last year with the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017:
 
Union dues are no longer a deductible expense for those people who itemize on their personal tax return. Below is a link to an IRS publication if people need more information.
   
What a week!

I, for one, enjoyed hibernating in my house three days and I was thankful I was warm and had electricity and heat.

Welcome back to school!

--Peace
Kathy Rohde
Region 3 Regional Director