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From Our President

Becky's Journal of Joy, Justice, and Excellence, May 2024

What's your why? NEA's president asks members to consider their motivation, speaks with educator Keith Kelsey about the impact of community schools, and invites you to celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week in May.
NEA President Becky Pringle poses with First Lady Jill Biden and several educators at a political rally Sam Wolfe
Everyone in this photo—including Jill Biden!—believes public education is the foundation of an inclusive democracy, and will support Joe Biden and candidates like him who stand up for educators.
Published: April 29, 2024

DEAR NEA MEMBERS,

I am honored to serve as  your president. United, we will reclaim public education as a common good and transform it into a racially and socially just system that actually prepares every student—not one, not some, but every single student—to succeed in a diverse and interdependent world. Onward!

Face to Face With NEA Members

“What’s your why?” That’s the question I asked Adriana, Alissa, K’Sean, and other members of The Student South Carolina Education Association (The Student SCEA) this winter when I traveled to Columbia, S.C., with first lady Jill Biden. Why a career in public education? Their answers inspired me, and I advised them to keep them always in mind.

When we hear about yet another book ban or voucher scheme, those reasons will fuel our fire. When we see teachers attacked for teaching the truth about our nation, those reasons will keep us strong. As NEA members, our collective “whys” tie us together and empower our union. They provide hope that we will make public education what it should be for every student. Ask yourself, “What’s your why?” And let your answer guide you in making our world a better place.   

NEA President Becky Pringle shakes the hand of NEA Aspiring Educator K'Sean Dotch
I want to thank these leaders of The Student SCEA, (from left) Adriana Perez, Alissa Pressley, and K’Sean Dotch, for their welcome and insight. Credit: Sam Wolfe

Who I’ve Been Talking With

screenshot of NEA President talking to Keith Kelsey on Instagram

A few months ago, I connected with Maryland music teacher Keith Kelsey as part of my “Honesty in Education” Instagram Live series. Keith is one of the few people who knows I played violin as a child—and made the all-city orchestra in Philadelphia! However, the main topic of our conversation was not the enormous value of music education, but rather how community schools improve educator retention and student outcomes.

“We’re the ones who know what our neighborhoods need and what our children need,” Keith told me. I know that’s right! Learn more about community schools and NEA’s efforts to expand their numbers at nea.org/communityschools

Watch a recording of the chat

FOLLOW BECKY ON X @BECKY PRINGLE

3 Things to do for Yourself and Your Union

NEA President Becky Pringle shakes the hand of NEA Aspiring Educator K'Sean Dotch

Raise Your Voice!

Concerned about book bans? About attacks on public education? Attend a Public Schools Strong Training—and join educators and parents around the U.S. in learning how to show support for well-resourced and inclusive public education.
man reading news on phone

Appreciate and be appreciated

Teacher Appreciation Week is May 6–10. Thank a teacher on social media, share the story of an extraordinary educator, and participate in other NEA activities.
cover art from the book Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh

Find Junie Kim

Celebrate May’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month with books that open windows into AANHPI culture and mirror AANHPI people. For example, try the book Finding Junie Kim by one of my favorite authors (and writing partner!) Ellen Oh.

Becky's Take On Banned Books

“Books that once lined the shelves of the library in a Jacksonville, Florida, elementary school are now stored in boxes. The school librarian spends her days vetting titles to comply with new censorship laws passed by the state....When access to these titles is lost, our students lose the opportunity to build empathy toward others who might not look, or live, like them. Every student deserves to see themselves in the books they read. It is how they learn that their stories and their lives matter.” —with co-authors Caroline Tung Richmond and Ellen Oh, in their Atlanta Journal-Constitution op-ed, Nov. 30
Read more

And Privatization

“We must—and we will—continue to unabashedly promote public education as the foundation of this or any democracy, and to defiantly protect public education from privatizers and voucherizers and eduvultures. We also must strengthen public education so it is a system designed around the joy of teaching and learning.” —Becky, at the Congressional Labor Caucus, January 30
National Education Association

Great public schools for every student

The National Education Association (NEA), the nation's largest professional employee organization, is committed to advancing the cause of public education. NEA's 3 million members work at every level of education—from pre-school to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.