May 13, 2022
Hello friends,

As we approach the end of the year, it's the perfect time to start building your lists! Region 3 will be doing membership recruitment by Zone this summer. The members hired in each zone will connect with your Building Reps to discuss who has expressed curiosity about the union and who your coworkers think the natural leaders are in your schools.

The two lists we are building are:
  • People who should be asked to join
  • People who should be asked to host new hire events

Here's to another exciting summer of making our union stronger!

Kristin Lytie
Regional Director
WEAC Region 3
Upcoming Events:

May 14, Saturday, Region 3 RA, 10AM

May 19, Thursday, Organizing Committee Meeting, 5PM

June 8, Wednesday, Executive Committee Meeting (in person), 5PM
This month I chatted with Jennifer Irish, an educator and member at Lakeshore Technical College who is also on the board of a new child care center, A Million Dreamz, in Sheboygan.


How did you get involved with A Million Dreamz?
Angel Berry is the Executive Director of AMD and she enrolled in one of my Early Childhood Education courses at LTC. When she mentioned her dream of opening a center to support children and families, I knew I had to be a part of it. My job is to build the early childhood workforce by preparing dedicated, passionate, quality teachers and I wanted to ensure that this new center would have the most qualified teachers. I knew I wanted to get involved, but wasn’t sure how. That’s when Angel invited me to join the board of directors and I immediately accepted! I was especially impressed with AMD’s inclusion piece. I have an educational background and experience working with individuals with differing abilities and I feel that so much more can be done to ensure care for this population. 

How is A Million Dreamz different from traditional for profit daycare centers?
AMD is family focused and we want to be viewed as a service rather than as a profitable business. By putting the needs of the families and their children first, we will excel in quality and service. To do this in the best possible way, we are going to be open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to ensure that we meet the needs of families from all walks of life. AMD will also be 100% ADA accessible to ensure we are inclusive and accommodating to all children and their families. The family is truly at the heart of our mission and our non-profit is organized to further our mission that benefits the community.
 
What is your role as a board member for A Million Dreamz?
I serve on the board essentially as the early childhood “expert”, if you will. I provide information based on child development, developmentally appropriate practices, positive and quality environments and provide feedback on ideas for programming. I’m aware of the DCF licensing rules and YoungStar requirements set by the state and will be helping the center prepare for safe, healthy, quality environments.

What are you most excited about for A Million Dreamz? 
In addition to providing child care support and educational programming for families, I’m excited to partner with AMD in building a quality workforce. LTC plans to offer the ECE Apprentice program so employees can learn and practice while on the job. I’m also excited to place my ECE students with quality mentors at AMD so they can observe experienced teachers in action and become a part of the positive and nurturing environments they will have. In addition to the many settings we place our students around Sheboygan and Manitowoc counties, I look forward to having yet another quality site for my students to learn and practice their hands-on skills. Lastly, I’m mostly excited for the community impact that AMD will have. The child care crisis is impacting so many families right now and having an additional center to support and care for them is so necessary! This is just one essential way to help build our economy.

What do you want people to know most about the work you’re doing with A Million Dreamz?
"It takes a village to raise a child” and we are doing very important work to communicate and support that idea. We’d also like people to know that early childhood care and education should hold high value and should be recognized as a significant part of a child’s holistic development. "Our mission at A Million Dreamz is to offer quality, affordable childcare 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, in an all-inclusive and kind environment while providing resources, referrals, advocacy, and other services to encourage and support the continuing development of healthy families.” We need community support to achieve our dreams of raising healthy children and strong families.
How can the community and educators in particular support your work?
I think it’s helpful for all individuals in the community to recognize the need for early childhood education and the positive long-term impact it can have on our children’s futures. If we invest in early quality care for the birth to 5 population now, when brain development is most critical, we will be raising strong, competent, skilled individuals who will eventually contribute to our society. As I’m sure many teachers have seen or read, “Teaching is the profession that creates all other professions.” So to provide a more direct answer to your question, community members can spread the word about the positive impact that early childhood education can have on our children and families and please feel free to donate your time or money to AMD. We are currently working diligently to fundraise for the center and there are multiple ways to do so. You can visit the website, https://www.amilliondreamz.org to check out the many ways in which to support our growth as a family-oriented organization. Help us to build strong families! 

Know someone in your local union that is doing amazing things? Let us know! You can email LytieK@weac.org and I'll interview them!
Join Early at No Extra Cost
WEAC EARLY ENROLLMENT

When you become a member of your local association, WEAC and NEA,
by completing an early enrollment membership form, you pay nothing
until September 1 and immediately receive:

  • $1 million in coverage under the Educator Employment Liability (EEL) insurance to protect you if a student or parent sues you during the course of employment
  • Discounts and savings through NEA Member Benefits (www.neamb.com).
  • Savings through WEA Member Benefits (www.weabenefits.com).

At the start of the school year, you will enjoy the full benefits of membership
including:

  • Representation through your local and region in employment disputes
  • Eligibility for assistance through the WEAC Legal Services Program in matters related to your employment
  • Access to the Attorney Referral Program that provides for two free half-hour consultations with a participating attorney every year
Through the Just One campaign last year, we were able to quadruple the number of new members we normally recruit with Early Enrollment! Given it's success, we are continuing this program.
 
Members who successfully recruit new members through Early Enrollment will be entered to win up to ten $50 gift cards. Participants will receive weekly email updates containing wins and best practices from around the Region! The union members listed above have signed up as participants - those in green have successfully recruited one new member and have been entered to win one of several $50 gift cards!
 
Early Enrollment lets potential members join the union now and pay no dues until September. This of course excludes people seeking representation, but it does give people a great opportunity to attend union events, workshops and learn more about your unique union culture! 

Learn more HERE.
Paid Organizer Positions

WEAC and Region 3 are looking for passionate union members to work on summer organizing projects. The goal of summer organizing is to welcome new hires to your district, get to know them, and talk to them about why joining the union is important. Region 3 staff work closely with these individuals to teach them all about organizing membership drives.
 
The program will consist of a two-day training, July 20-21, and then continues for 6 weeks. The commitment is 20 hours a week with the Region 3 Directors working with the summer organizers to create a weekly schedule.
 
If you understand the importance and power of a strong union, and you love meeting new people, this is for you! You can learn more about the Region 3 summer organizing program and apply HERE.
New Contracts Issued by May 15th

While we know you are excited to turn it in, please be sure to read and review it to see if there are any changes. Some districts are adding language stating they now have the power to lay off and non-renew outside of the timelines defined by state statute.

School budgets are secured and planned the year before so to say a district suddenly does not have the funds to keep staff on for the full school year feels disingenuous. Rather, this feels like an attempt to retract their commitment to you as an employee. Especially since so many of our districts have Fund 10's in the millions of dollars.

Even though this concerning language exists in a few contracts, we have not seen districts act on this language yet. However, it's a lot easier to remove something from your contract before it's formally put in. Once the language exists in your contract for a few years, it is a lot more difficult to remove.

If you see negative changes in your contract:
  • Contact your union leadership and Region 3 Director
  • Hold off on signing them
  • Have a union meeting
Wisconsin Lifetime License Background Check

Wis. Admin Code s. PI 34.041 requires educators who hold a valid Lifetime license to submit a request to the department to have a new background check conducted and to confirm employment status at least once every five years. The request shall be made between January 1 and June 30 of the fifth year since the individual's last background check.  If your most recent background check was in 2017, you are due to submit an application to DPI in order to maintain your Lifetime license.  You must submit this application to DPI by June 30, 2022, to maintain your Lifetime license.  
 
Follow the Application Directions for Background Check to Maintain Lifetime License to submit your background check HERE .
2022 NEA Representative Assembly
July 3 - July 6, 2022
 
The 2022 NEA RA will again be held the first week of July. 
 
Please visit the NEA RA page on the WEAC website for the latest information specific to Wisconsin Delegates - click HERE.

The NEA RA website has a page dedicated to delegate resources - click HERE. 
This summer is bringing a much needed opportunity to breathe, finally. With all that educators have endured over the past two years, this summer is the time to refill our cups and take steps to ensure they stay filled throughout this upcoming school year. During this four-hour retreat in New London, Wisconsin, you’ll get to choose from multiple activities to relax and restore in a beautiful nature sanctuary. You’ll also learn tips, tricks, and strategies to add to your toolbox to keep your well-being supported all year long. Finally, time will be taken to set meaningful intentions and strong plans to ensure you’re not finding yourself burned out this school year.
 
Join others for a special summer retreat to help you restore and prepare for your best year of teaching.
 
 
More information can be found here.
 
Register now for WEAC's Leadership Academy July 25-27 in De Pere. The WEAC Equity Ambassadors program will run during the same time frame at that location.
 
If you have recently moved, gotten a new phone number or email address, changed schools or banking information, please contact Region 3 staff assistant Debbie Armitage or Sue Clauss. They will be able to make any changes to your records. This information helps us ensure that we are able to stay connected with you.
 
They can both be reached by phone at 920-496-2440. 
 
Debbie can be reached through email at ArmitageD@WEAC.org. 
 
Sue can be reached at ClaussS@weac.org.
This is an 11.0101(10)(b)(1) communication with WEAC members