Recently, the National Education Association/National Council of Urban Education Associations presented a grant, 2017-2018 Urban Grant to the Malden Education Association. As stated by President of the Executive Board of the Malden Education Associations, Deborah Gesualdo, “The Malden Education Association, Massachusetts Teachers Association, and National Education Association are the professional associations/unions at the local, state, and national level in which Malden has professionally certified faculty (educators, principals, assistant principals, program managers and etc.)”.The National Education Association is known for being a teachers union.
The Urban Grant is given to twenty-five applicants annually. The grant amount goes up to five-thousand dollars. On the National Education Association website, it lists the “strategy plan” with five requirements that a program must meet in order to be awarded with the grant.
One requirements is Membership Organizing which serves to enhance membership growth or enlarge the number students and teachers. Another requirement is that a program must be able to “implement strategies to support new and/or younger educators in the transition from Student to active involvement in the Association” in the Early Career Educators and Young Member Engagement. Leadership Development is exactly what it implies. Examples of this includes, “creating Building Association Teams; worksite organizing teams or an Association Organizing Committee. Community outreach Engagement is meant to increase outreach to underrepresented communities. Also, creating a committee for parent on educational issues. Lastly, Enhance Public Education is meant to protect members rights.
Specifically for large urban locals, it helps to be able to organize and strengthen the Association in order for the local Association to be able to be a stronger collective advocate for working families, educators, students, and the schools that students deserve.
