January 8
Ratification Vote Passes Unanimously!

October 19
Tentative Agreement Reached

September 10
SEA Represents at the CTA Region 1 Leadership Conference in Burlingame

SEA President D-R. Martin and 2nd year member Nicole Langsam spent the weekend with other Region 1 educators sharing information and inspiration.  It was a great opportunity to learn ways to strengthen our membership with a goal towards improving teachers' working conditions and students' learning conditions - the two are intrinsically connected! 

May 19
SEA Congratulates Hillary Ojeda of Lookout Santa Cruz, Winner of the 2022 John Swett Award for Media Excellence

The negotiations team was happy to announce to our membership today that a tentative agreement with the district has finally been reached!  This TA will go to membership for a ratification vote on August 8, but the negotiations team felt great about bringing something back to our membership that was a significantly better step in the right direction towards making our district more competitive in terms of retaining and recruiting the quality teachers our students deserve!  This tentative agreement offers an improvement in compensation, more manageable class sizes and case loads, and elementary prep time.  Having a consistent staff of highly-qualified instructors helps us maintain equity in education, work towards common goals and vision, and provide the stability that our students need now more than ever. For the teachers, it improves morale when they feel supported in their work with students, when they can afford to work in the community where they live, and when they aren't continually watching respected friends and colleagues leave for better work conditions.

SEA members have been engaging on a statewide level, attending conferences over the summer, and building community connections, and will continue to do so in the months ahead in order to foster a strong and healthy union to continue to improve the lives of students, families, and educators.

We would like to give a huge thank you to community members who supported us during our rallies, our classified coworkers in CSEA who stood by us, the parents (and students!) who gave so much of their time and energy to support our efforts, and outside labor organizations who demonstrated solidarity with us in big and small ways. 

"Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable." - Kenyan Proverb

July 19
Meeting with State Senator John Laird

Several local association presidents had the pleasure of joining with representatives from CTA at a lunch meeting with State Senator John Laird and members of his staff in downtown Santa Cruz today. Senator Laird was very interested in hearing about the experiences of local teachers and gaining their perspective.  We appreciated the time he made for us and look forward to more opportunities to meet with Senator Laird in the future!

(And thanks to those of you who have attended board meetings over the summer...we don't have photos to share, but your dedication and support is valuable and valued!)

May 11
Still Going Strong!

More rally action by our members last Wednesday, May 11!  We appreciate all the support from our community - this week's shoutout goes to the members of other unions who drive past and honk in support.  We see you and appreciate the solidarity!

SEA and CSEA continue to support each other in our efforts to organize for improved work conditions to the benefit of our teachers, support staff, and students.  

We invite members of SEA, CSEA, and community members to attend the board meeting this coming Wednesday, May 18, at 6:30 pm, in the NBMS performing arts center to show that you care about keeping our teachers. (Wearing masks encouraged!) The more teachers we lose to districts that offer competitive compensation, the more we lose out on the investment we've put in to training teachers (only to make them more desirable to other districts), the harder it is to maintain program continuity and shared vision, the less stability and equitable access to education for students, and the lower the morale as we watch our beloved colleagues make the tough choice to leave for pay that allows them to live here.

April 27
Rally and Negotiations 

SEA Members were out showing their commitment to their goals early on Wednesday, 4/27.  The negotiations team prepared another comprehensive presentation to support our position that our proposed salary increase is both feasible and necessary.  Little to no headway was made on that point in negotiations, though we did come to some agreements on contract language.

Thanks to our student supporters, parents who have been asking how to support us (and doing so!), and all the community members who honked and waved to show they stand with us!

April 13
Rally for SEA

SEA members showed up early on 4/13 to rally for increased compensation to help retain and recruit teachers in our district. We are faced with high turnover rates, due at least in part to being the lowest paid teachers in one of highest cost-of-living areas in the country.  Loss of experienced teachers with shared training and vision and the inability to fill classrooms with qualified teachers impacts students' learning experience and teacher morale.

Our rally generated many honks and waves of support! Shoutout to CSEA members and community members for supporting our efforts!