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NEA Gears Up for Annual Meeting

The 145th Annual Meeting and 86th Representative Assembly runs June 30 through July 5 in Philadelphia.

More than 9,000 delegates, including more than 100 from NEA higher education, will gather June 30 through July 5 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia for the Association’s 145th Annual Meeting and 86th Representative Assembly.

The Representative Assembly (RA), NEA’s highest decision-making body, convenes every July during the Association's six-day annual meeting. The first two days are devoted to discussions, conferences, and exhibits—but the highlight is the Representative Assembly itself.

During the RA, delegates debate issues that impact American education, elect top officers, and set policy for the 3.2 million-member Association.

In addition to the RA, highlights of the Annual Meeting include the Joint Conference on the Concerns of Minorities and Women, which this year includes two sessions devoted to higher ed issues, the National Council of Higher Education summer meeting, as well as summer meetings for the other NEA constituency caucuses, and the annual NEA Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner.

Keep up to date on Annual Meeting activities at www.nea.org/annualmeeting.

James Rice, a professor of English at Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester, has been elected president of the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE), the higher education caucus of NEA. He will be sworn in as NCHE’s sixth president following the Annual Meetingin July.

Rice, who served as Massachusetts Community College Council/MTA/NEA president for 10 years, is currently the higher education representative on NEA’s Resolutions Committee. He succeeds Kathy Sproles, an English professor from Hartnell College in Salinas, California, who served as president for the past four years.

NCHE is the advocate for higher education services, programs, and funding within the NEA. For more information, see www.nea.org/he/nche.

NEA President Reg Weaver received the honorary degree of Doctor of Public Service this May during the annual spring commencement ceremony at South Carolina State University. Weaver, who delivered the commencement speech to the graduating class, was recognized for his unwavering lifelong commitment to public service.

“We are proud to honor Reg Weaver for his work on behalf of public schools, students, and educators,” said SCSU President Andrew Hugine. “We recognize and lift up his example of service that benefits us all.”

Weaver was also awarded the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund Excellence in Leadership Award at the organization’s 6th Annual Awards Dinner on April 19. MALDEF recognized Weaver for his outstanding service and leadership to the Latino community, as well as NEA’s extensive outreach programs to minority communities.