The Professional by EGEA

It was wonderful to see district leaders, union members, and EGEA leaders come together in a spirit of comradery. New educators had the opportunity to build relationships with colleagues, while also learning more about the benefits of being an EGEA and district member. The evening was a great reminder that our new teachers are welcomed, valued, and supported as they begin their journey with us.

A special thank you to all of our table hosts, guests, and new educators for spending the evening with EGEA and helping make the reception such a success. We are excited to welcome our newest members to the EGEA family! Here are some snapshots from this special evening!

Mission

• Provide a safe space for honest conversations among educators.
• Provide educators with resources and opportunities related to equity and social justice.
• Develop local and statewide partnerships.

Are you interested in joining the Equity committee?

Thank you to our members who stopped by the Equity Committee table during the New Educator Reception. The Equity Committee is open to all EGEA members. If you would like to join, please complete the interest form.

Our meetings are the first Thursday of each month. The first meeting of the school year will be virtual on October 1st from 4:15 - 5:15.

Please let us know if you need equity-related support by clicking HERE.

CTA Resources

https://www.cta.org/our-advocacy/social-justice/social-justice-resources

https://www.cta.org/for-educators/scholarships-awards

Delisa Foster, Ed.D.

Equity Liaison

(delisa@elkgroveeducators.org)

T.B.D

Racial Equity At Large Director

See what EGEA is up to this year. We have site rep trainings, member events, and all member trainings as well.

Check out the calendar HERE.

Jennifer Hart currently teaches social science at Toby Johnson Middle School. Jennifer has been involved with EGEA union work for over a decade, but is in her first term as a CTA Representative for EGEA. The 2026 NEA-RA in Denver was her first national union event.

As a first time delegate at the NEA Representative Assembly this summer, I arrived full of advice from past attendees but lacking any experience to guide me. Following advice from others, I went shopping shortly after arriving at the hotel in Denver for some breakfast basics. NEA does not provide food for delegates, so the least expensive breakfast option was purchasing yogurt, fruit, and some granola for breakfast for the week.

At 6:30pm the night of arrival, I met a friend from Indiana for dinner. She is on the NEA Constitution, Bylaws and Rules Committee and had already been in Denver for a day. This was the only independent social activity I was able to enjoy the entire week, as the RA keeps you very busy.

Each morning began with the California Caucus from 7-9am. During caucus time, we discussed the various New Business Items (NBI’s) and Constitutional and legislative amendments likely to be voted on in the general assembly that day. California delegates are encouraged to vote with the caucus, but are permitted to vote their conscience once in the general assembly. Each day, we had about an hour to get from the California Caucus to the Denver Convention Center for the NEA RA General Assembly at 10am.

It is hard to describe the scale of the Convention Center and the general assembly itself with words. The meeting space held over 6,000 delegates from all 50 states with room to spare. Each state was seated together in sections. Because of California’s size, CTA is organized into Service Centers. Our service center, Capital, was located at the back of a seating section about ⅔ the distance from the main stage. Fortunately, numerous large screens projected images of the speakers from the stage and assembly microphones, making it easy to see despite being so far back. Although delegates can come and go from the general assembly at will, leaving before the lunch break meant you might risk missing a vote, so most people stayed in the assembly until President Pringle dismissed us daily for a one hour lunch. Lunch typically occurred around 1 or 2pm. After lunch, we resumed the work of the RA until the end of the day’s business, which usually fell between 6 and 7pm.

As a history teacher and lover of representational democracy, I found the democracy in action of the California Caucus and the RA exciting and inspirational. Any delegate can take to the mic to speak for or against the items up for vote. Although this process sometimes made for long debates and even longer days, I truly enjoyed listening to the impassioned arguments of delegates from all over the country, even when I didn’t agree with their positions. Over the course of five days, the delegation allocated spending for dozens of items and over a million dollars of NEA funds. This year, the delegation also had the privilege of voting for our next NEA President, Vice-President, Secretary-Treasurer, and members of the NEA Executive Board.

Most nights, I was too tired to do anything after the General Assembly ended, but I did attend the Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner, and participated in California Night at the Denver Aquarium, an experience which was provided free of charge to California delegates.

The week was, in a word, exhilarating. I left Denver energized despite my exhaustion. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

If you are interested in being a delegate to the NEA-RA, nominations for candidacy will begin in January 2027. The NEA-RA will be held June 30th - July 4th, 2027 in Indianapolis, Indiana.