21Today’s oEa | october 2012Credits:

Name here

s p e c i A l i n s e r t

Throughout our history, oeA has demonstrated a remarkable ability to meet great and diverse chal-lenges, because we have not been afraid to change. the oeA formula for doing this has been consistent. we have turned to our members — you. we have

assessed the internal and external challenges and evaluated our programs, policies and structures. we have highlighted and embraced those things that work and have been able to change and discard those things that impeded the roads to success. underlying it all have always been our shared, core values — the dreams that drive and inspire our members and bring us together in the oregon education Association.

oeA’s strategic Action Plan is a new way of approaching how we do our work as a union. this plan started over four years ago when the oeA began defining its core mission,

vision, values and goals. last April, rA delegates approved a comprehensive strategic Action Plan that will move us down this new road: where educators and our allies will, once again, lead the way in re-building a great public education system for the students of oregon.

everything we do – at every level – will be driven by a shared commitment to increase member participation and activism; capture our members’ passions, commitments and dreams; and develop the programs, policies and structures that help organize and activate our members to achieve the power to control their professional practice and transform public education. we sincerely look forward to sharing in the work detailed on the following pages with you.

richard sandersOEA Executive Director

Everything You Need to KnowAbout OEA's Strategic Action Plan

TIMELINE TO LAUNCH OEA'S STrATEgIC ACTION PLAN

Grassroots politics powerful locals educator-led innovationcommunication & technoloGy

orGanization-wide processes

OCTObEr 2012FALL 2012• Council Meetings plan for 2013 SAP work

• Union School: Leadership Academy catalogue developed/published

• Powerful Pilot Locals announced

• OEA-GPS and OEA members drive collaboratively-designed evaluations

• Statewide Education Canvass Day

NOv. & DEC. 2012ELECTION DAY: NOv. 6, 2012• Kicker for K-12 on the ballot. Get out the

vote!

END OF 2012• Results of Technology audit complete and

available for review/implementation

JANUArY 2013BEgINNINg OF 2013• Design of achievement compacts, driven

by OEA members, will be completed with support from OEA's Center for Great Public Schools

• Selected Pilot Locals begin identifying, recruiting and training members in core union areas

››

FEbrUArY 2013LEgISLATIvE SESSION • Grassroots Politics program launches in 2013

session

• Achievement Compacts submitted to school boards

BEgINNINg OF SPRINg• Plan reviewed at Pre-RA Meetings

APrIL 2013SPRINg 2013• Engage members around local campaigns

OEA-RA 2013• Members review work of Strategic Action Plan and

decide whether to continue work moving forward

››

››››››

AND bEYOND...

21Today’s oEa | october 2012

22 Today’s oEa | october 2012

Powerful Pilot Locals Take Flight!

these are challenging times for educators and our local associations, with fewer resources for our public schools and community colleges, attacks on unions

and the labor movement, and members who feel stretched too thin. oeA’s Pilot locals Program is an education, training and organizing initiative that will develop the skills and strategies for local leadership teams to transform their locals into more strategic, member-driven and powerful unions.

oeA’s Powerful Pilot locals Program is a one-year program designed to bring together a cross-section of oeA local associations to develop and execute plans that will launch our union on a new path, and provide models for other oeA locals to do the same. the first round of selected locals to participate in the Powerful Pilot locals program will be announced this month.

locals who participate in the program will plan to:

n effectively assess and respond to changes and challenges in internal and external environments

n recruit and engage new leaders

n better communicate with and engage members

n create a local strategic action plan

n become actively involved in politics and have substantial membership base involved in political actions

n Develop strong, mutually valuable relationships with parents, community organizations and other public education stakeholders

OEA's New Union School

oeA’s new union school is a cornerstone of the oeA strategic Action Plan’s (sAP) ‘building Powerful lo-cals’ priority. the school will provide a comprehen-sive continuum of member education and training

to support and grow strong union leaders and member-activists at every level of the organization.  the union school will have primary responsibility to build off of existing effective oeA trainings, as well as to develop new curriculum and train-ing tools based on best-practice and emerging technologies. 

Welcome Helen Lee, OEA’s New Union School Director!

Helen lee, new director of oeA’s union school, comes to oeA with over 30

years experience in the labor movement as a union organizer and labor educator, in-cluding directing evergreen state college’s labor education and research center for 15 years.  At evergreen she worked extensively with the wash-ington education Association focusing on teacher’s response to the disinvestment of public schools.  she also worked for the california Nurses Associations as their education Direc-tor.  more recently she directed the organizing campaign of 3,000 nurses for the  oregon Federation of Nurse and Health Professionals. Helen has a master’s degree in public policy and political economy from New york university.  she has a great deal of passion for the efforts of oeA to transform public edu-cation in the state.

Contact the OEA Union

SchoolPhone: 541.743.4145

Email: training@oregoned.org

the union school offers training for and by oeA members.

23Today’s oEa | october 2012

OEA-gPS welcomes Dr. Colleen Mileham

Dr. colleen mileham has been hired to serve as the school and system

transformation strategist in the center for Great Public schools, where she will provide guidance and research on educa-tion policy and practice issues, including assisting leaders and staff with district-level design processes around achievement compacts and federal grant programs. mileham is a teacher and teacher educator with a distinguished career working with educators and districts locally and statewide on school improvement.

Contact the Center for great

Public Schoolsoea-gps@oregoned.org

503.684.3300 ext. 2135

need a Training on Professional skills & Practice?contact the center for Great Public schools at oea-gps@oregoned.org. Provide your name, contact information, local and uniserv council and your preferred dates for training.

New Name and New Priorities

It’s official:  oeA’s center for teaching and learning is now the oeA center for Great Public schools (GPs). the cen-ter will support the leadership of oeA members as the driving force for innovation, professional excellence and

quality teaching and learning at every level of public educa-tion in oregon.

GPs will focus on support for educator leadership in local quality education initiatives.  In the coming school year, this means helping teacher leaders shape evaluation systems to support professional growth and instruc-tion.  GPs has kicked off its work by devel-oping training tools for local leaders to col-laboratively develop local achievement

compacts with their school districts that strengthen public schools, while supporting student and educator success.

the center for Great Public schools will also serve as a re-source for professional development.  this includes tools, re-sources, and direct training to support members in their professional practice.  Areas of support include school-wide collaborative professional learning; mentorship and peer assistance; educator evaluation; equity and diversity; special education and more.

the center continues to provide direct support for educa-tors on licensure and advanced certification. 

Two New Institutes to Support Your Workn institute for Professional skill and Practice will sup-port members in their professional and leadership devel-

opment through expanded training and support, at the local level and statewide.

n institute for Education innovation will be the hub for education policy, practice and research and will actively promote quality education initiatives at the lo-cal and state levels.

oeA-gps works to develop collaborative evaluation systems around oregon.

New gPS Evaluation Tools Coming!

In september, the center for Great Public schools premiered its Teacher Evaluation and Support System Guidebook, developed

with the goal of providing local education association and school district leaders a comprehensive resource to utilize in work-ing collaboratively together in designing a teacher evaluation and support system.

the Guidebook provides information and best practices around:

n state and federal requirements for educator evaluationsn model core teaching standards n measures and evidence of effective teachingn research and resources to ensure evaluation systems are valid, reliable and fairn tools to guide you in the design process, including models for collaboration and consensus-driven decision-makingn critical questions to keep in mind as you design, pilot and implement your new teacher evaluation and support system. request a hard copy by emailing oea-gps@oregoned.org.

24 Today’s oEa | october 2012

Taking Our Political Show on the road

oeA’s Public Affairs team has worked with members across the state at uniserv council retreats over the past month, rolling out options and planning guidance for moving forward with

the political organizing components of oeA’s strategic Action Plan. 

each uniserv council was given copies of the “Growing our Power” toolkit for planning activities and structural im-provements with an eye toward the fall election season and the 2013 session, as well as oeA-PIe fund raising and cre-ation of political committees at the local level.  our strategic goal is to support local organizing to build on and strengthen oeA’s current statewide political program, as well as to expand member engagement in local political activities.

through oeA-PIe and lAc, the Public Affairs team is also continuing the work of creating political action teams in each uniserv council.  the oeA-PIe passed a resolution to include this as a part of their responsibilities at the local level.  to assist in the creation of these Political teams, Public Affairs is holding regular conference calls with oeA-PIe board members to exchange ideas and provide shared support.  Please be sure and ask your oeA-PIe board member how you can be involved!

center for public Affairs seeks to bring more educator stories to salem.

Oregon Labor Candidate School

the oregon labor candidate school (olcs) is an important element of oeA’s strategic goal to reshape politics!  the first class of the school will include 12

participants from unions around the state.  Participants will spend their weekend at a Happy Hour with elected officials and labor leaders from around the state, drafting their “why I’m running” speech and engaging in an extensive leadership Development training, and much more.

oeA congratulates sena Norton (wy’east eA) and erick Flores (David Douglas eA)  on their acceptance into the oregon labor candidate school!  be on the lookout for their insider’s perspective on the oregon labor candidate school in upcoming issues of Today's OEA and other oeA publications.

For questions or more information, please email oea-gr@oregoned.org! 

Engaging OEA Members Online!

while on-the-ground organizing is always best, oeA recognizes the impact a strong online presence can

have on our members — particularly those in remote areas — as well as on the communities we serve. to this end, we’ve begun the important work of redesigning our oeA website to ensure it meets your needs as a union mem-ber and educator. At the back of this magazine, you’ll find a survey about what you’d like to see in a new website. Now’s the time to share your thoughts! our new website is set to launch in January 2013.

Contact the Center for Public

Affairsoea-gr@oregoned.org

503.684.3300 ext. 2165

Mark Your Calendar for These Upcoming Political Eventsn nov. 6, 2012: election Day, ballots duen dec. 8, 2012: oeA-PIe board meeting n feb. 1, 2013: oregon legislative session beginsn march 16, 2013: oeA symposium on transformation in Public educationn march 25, 2013: oeA lobby Day in salem

Contact Center for

Advocacy & Affiliate

Servicesoea-aas@oregoned.org

503.684.3300 ext. 2174

25Today’s oEa | october 2012

getting active around bargaining campaigns will become key.

Moving Toward an Organizing Culture

over its history, the center for Advocacy and Affiliate services has made significant gains on behalf of oeA members across oregon — bargaining strong contracts in tough times,

organizing oeA members to form and strengthen their own local associations, including new units of community college faculty and staff, and advocating for member’s individual rights in their classrooms and workplaces. this work will continue — but plans are in place to shift the way the work is done, moving from a service model to an organizing model, and empowering our members to take charge of their own profession and union through the process.

through the strategic Action Plan, the center for Advocacy & Affiliate services will look to build on its community action program — working alongside community groups and other labor unions in different areas across the state to engage in solidarity actions that support members, their rights, and the communities in which they live. the center will also grow its ability to organize members in

their own bargaining campaigns, ensuring contract negotiations speak to the issues members

face in their own communities. Finally, the center will be teaming up with the newly formed oeA union school to develop training that supports members in their roles as union activists.

Organizing Coordinator Joins the ranks at OEA

this month, the center for Advocacy and Affiliate services

welcomed mike morrison to its team as oeA’s new organizing coordinator. morrison, who previously worked in political and community organizing for seIu and other labor unions, will help spearhead community engagement and actions, and work with members and uniserv councils to grow their collective power.

New Faces in Different Places

It’s been a time of change and transition at oeA. you may have noticed new faces at an oeA office or heard a familiar but unexpected voice on the phone

when calling one of our centers.

In addition to welcoming the Helen lee as the Director of oeA’s new union school, oeA has also brought on new and transitioned veteran staff to different places in the organization. daryl Hemenway, formerly working with washington county locals, is the new union school training coordinator. 

Ken Volante joins oeA’’s Public Affairs team as their statewide Political organizer.   ken worked most recently in klamath Falls as a uniserv consultant.

In the center for Great Public schools, rebecca Konefal, a former oeA member-leader and uniserv staff in cascade, is now working as the educator leadership organizer in oeA’s center for Great Public schools.

being Accountable to you culture of AccountAbilitythe strategic Action Planning process will create an or-ganizational culture of continuous reflection, renewal and accountability. oeA is committed to setting goals and benchmarks, assessing and evaluating everything we do and making the changes that ensure we are achieving our goals and living our core values.