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ROCKFORD – The Rockford Education Association (REA) voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. On Saturday, REA held an all-member meeting and conducted the vote. The vote gives the REA bargaining team the authority to call a strike.  “We have done everything we can to try to avoid this vote, but…

RIVER FOREST — The River Forest Education Association (RFEA) is taking steps to prepare for a strike after the River Forest School District 90 administration signaled an unwillingness to bargain any further on the teachers’ contract. District 90 initiated what’s known as the public posting process with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, which means the District 90 administration will send the…

Teachers will ask the board to commit to improving morale  ALTON – Alton teachers plan to attend tonight’s Alton Community School District 11 Board of Education (BOE) meeting after several actions by the board and administration that disrespect and devalue educators, including one board member openly referring to teachers as “peons.” The Alton Education Association (AEA) President Sara Carter plans to speak at tonight’s meeting. “The current…

ROCKFORD – Rockford teachers and community members will rally outside tonight’s Rockford Public School (RPS) District 205 Board of Education (BOE) meeting and then pack the meeting to demand a fair contract that respects teachers and fully supports students. “Our teachers are underpaid, their workloads are increasing and we don’t have…

Please attribute the following statement to IEA President Karl Goeke: “The Trump administration’s announcement just before the holidays that it will cut Full Service Community Schools funding on Dec. 31 puts 19,000 students across the state at risk. The grant money funds mental health, tutoring, food assistance, extracurricular and after-school…

Western Community Unit School District 12 Supt. Darin Powell is the former administrator of the school district in Missouri where he wants to send Western students. BARRY — Western teachers, parents and community members plan to attend tonight’s Western Community Unit School District 12 meeting to speak out against a proposed plan to outsource students to Missouri Schools. District 12 Supt. Darin Powell is pushing to bus Western students out of state to Missouri for classes. The move…

Please attribute the following statement to IEA President Karl Goeke: “The U.S. Department of Education has quietly removed the “professional” designation from careers like teaching, social work, nursing, and therapy. This should concern every educator, parent and community member. These are the very people who hold our classrooms, our students and our communities together. And…

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Education Association (IEA) Board of Directors has elected Gladys Márquez, a high school English language learner (ELL) teacher from Eisenhower High School in Blue Island and two-term member of the National Education Association (NEA) Executive Committee, as the next secretary treasurer of the organization. Márquez is a veteran educator and nationally recognized advocate for immigrant rights and public education. A former…

SPRINGFIELD – Please attribute the following message to Karl Goeke, president of the Illinois Education Association: “Dismantling the U.S. Department of Education and parsing its duties out to various agencies allows our neediest students and all students’ rights to be ignored. It’s insulting, frankly, that this plan would be presented…

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Education Association (IEA) Board of Directors has elected Gina Harris, a culture and climate coach from Oak Park School District 97, as the next vice president of the organization. Gina Harris was the IEA secretary/treasurer before being elected to serve as interim vice president of the…

SPRINGFIELD – The following statement can be attributed to Karl Goeke, president of the Illinois Education Association: “As we see attacks on our immigrant communities intensify in Illinois and across the country, specifically the weaponization of our nation’s military against our unarmed citizenry in Chicago and other metropolitan areas, we…

SPRINGFIELD – With great sadness, the Illinois Education Association (IEA) shares that IEA President Albert J. “Al” Llorens died Thurs., Sept. 25, at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. Llorens, who spent more than 30 years as a high school math teacher and head girls’ track and cross-country coach at Thornridge…

SPRINGFIELD – The following statement is attributable to Illinois Education Association (IEA) President Al Llorens: “The Illinois Education Association (IEA) firmly believes that all educators have the right to speak out on matters of public concern. Like all Americans, teachers, higher educators and school support staff do not surrender their rights…

SPRINGFIELD – The following statement is attributable to Illinois Education Association (IEA) President Al Llorens:  “As educators, we are committed to creating safe, welcoming and inclusive environments for all our students and their families, regardless of immigration status. That is why we stand firmly against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids…

SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Education Association (IEA) mourns the passing of former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar over the weekend. Edgar, a Republican from downstate Charleston, was the IEA-recommended candidate for governor over Neil Hartigan, a Democrat, in 1990. Edgar said after winning, “It was a close election, and IEA helped put…

RIVER FOREST — River Forest teachers, parents and community members will pack the River Forest School District 90 Board of Education (BOE) meeting tonight. They are calling on the board to reach an agreement on a fair contract. Former River Forest teachers will speak and share their stories about why…

NAPERVILLE – The Naperville Unit Education Association (NUEA) voted overwhelmingly to ratify its new contract with the Naperville Community Unit School District 203. The District 203 Board of Education (BOE) met tonight and also voted to ratify the contract, which means the new contract is officially approved. “We continue to…

NAPERVILLE – The Naperville 203 Board of Education and the Naperville Unit Education Association (NUEA) reached a tentative agreement on a new contract. This avoids a strike and classes will not be disrupted. “Our priority has always been to provide students with the high-quality education they deserve, and this agreement…

NAPERVILLE – The Naperville Unit Education Association (NUEA) set its official strike date for Tues., Aug. 26. This comes after NUEA and the Naperville Community Unit School District 203 Board of Education (BOE) met for a third time this week to bargain with a federal mediator in the hopes of…

ALEDO — Tonight, the Mercer County School District 404 Board of Education (BOE) voted to ratify the contract with the Mercer County Education Association (MCEA). The MCEA voted to ratify the agreement on Sunday. Now that both parties have voted in favor, the contract is officially in place and no…