When Bigger Is Better

Boosting NEA membership means added clout—from the bargaining table to the halls of Congress.

Photo by Christopher Berry

Darlene Stinson, a second-grade teacher and building rep at North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina) Elementary, knows an organizing opportunity when she sees one. So when the ramifications of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the so-called No Child Left Behind law, began to hit her district, she went to work signing up concerned teachers and education support professionals.

"A lot of kindergarten assistants and special education assistants were worried" about new ESEA provisions for paraeducators that require new levels of training and preparation, says Stinson. "We had tons of information to give them," she says, including study guides to prepare them to meet the new standards. "When I signed up one person to be a member, they'd share that information with another, and they'd say, 'I need to sign up, too.'" Altogether, Stinson recruited 40 new members last year, making her one of the South Carolina Education Association's top recruiters in 2003.

Stinson's successful organizing is well-timed. Membership in the South Carolina Education Association (SCEA) had dipped in recent years, and the organization lacked visibility in school buildings and also in the state legislature, says Peggy Potter, manager of membership and organizing and UniServ manager for the SCEA.

That's changing—with help from a solid cadre of UniServ staff and involved, energetic members like Stinson. "We've recruited 1,700 members already this year," says Potter, and the SCEA has raised its retention rate for new members from 57 to 84 percent.

Those numbers drew kudos from NEA President Reg Weaver, who spoke at a membership workshop held at the SCEA's headquarters in March.

"Our top three priorities must be membership, membership, and membership," he told 145 local Association members, who came in small teams to share organizing strategies. "We cannot advocate effectively in the halls of Congress or in State Houses without membership. We cannot bargain without membership. Membership makes the difference!"

The organizing strategies being used successfully in South Carolina are no secret:

Set tangible goals. Last year, the SCEA set a goal of 1,250 new members signed up during the summer months. They got 1,300. This year, they're shooting for at least 1,775. Each local at the SCEA's recent workshop set their own goals, which will be tracked. After setting goals, "we take the numbers and break them down—how many we're going to recruit each season, each month, or each week," says Potter. "If you have a definite goal, you're much more likely to reach it."

Start early and ask everyone. Try to get at least four or more members to staff a recruitment table at any new staff orientations, says Potter, and make sure to ask everyone about becoming a member. "I get a list of all the new teachers before school begins and spend that first week [prior to the first day of classes] getting to know them," says Stinson. She answers questions they have about membership—and signs up as many as she can before school starts. She's also persistent. "There's one teacher I've asked every year for 10 years, and I'm still hoping, because I feel everyone should be a member."

Focus on results. Nothing makes a better pitch than proof that membership brings results. Norman Belton, a bus driver and member of the Richland County Education Association, points out the increased respect ESPs have now that they've gained numbers—as well as tangible pocketbook issues. "Before, if an error was made on our paychecks, they told us they'd straighten it out but we had to wait two weeks," says Belton. "Now, they'll cut a check for us in one or two days." The message must be paying off—Belton signed up 45 new members last year.

Stay in touch. "Our local meets regularly with the superintendent to talk about concerns and questions our members have, so I make sure to send an e-mail to the whole staff every few weeks to let them know what we're doing," says Stinson. "You need to regularly remind people who you are and what you can do for them."

Weaver told those at the SCEA workshop that NEA aims to boost its numbers—and its activism—as part of the Association's Great Public Schools for Every Child Action Plan. A vital piece of NEA's plan, which ultimately will benefit members and schoolchildren alike, is building support for pro-public education candidates in this fall's elections.

"You don't want to see what another four years will do with an anti-public education Administration and Congress," said Weaver, citing recent Administration efforts supporting vouchers and cutting funds to valuable school programs. "We can't allow that to happen."

—John O'Neil