“No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow.”   ~Proverb

We have made it to the last week before Spring Break! Celebrate report cards are now done for second trimester and we have a week of ‘me-time’ right around the corner!

Appraisal Feedback

In April, the District 54 Appraisal Committee will be meeting. Members of the SEA will be convening with some of the Cabinet members and principals to review our current Appraisal Plan. We are looking to gather some feedback from you our members to see what the strengths and challenges are with the current appraisal practice. Here is the link to the Appraisal Survey. Please take a few minutes this week to complete a short survey. The survey will close at the end of the day this Friday, February 22^nd. Thank you for your time as our members’ input is valued.

SEA Building Elections

Please stop by your designated voting location in your buildings today to vote for the delegates who will be sent to the National Education Association Representative Assembly in Dallas, Texas, this July.

Building Rep Nomination Forms

Today is the due date to submit your nomination forms to be a SEA building representative for the 2019-2020 school year. If you have not submitted one yet, email it today to Kelly O’Reilly or give it to your building rep to bring to today’s rep meeting. Here is the link to the Building Rep Nomination forms.

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

March 18^th: National Awkward Moments Day

March 19^th: National Let’s Laugh Day

March 20^th: THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING!

March 21^st: National French Break Day

March 22^nd: National Goof Off Day…great way to kick off spring break!

Important Dates in March/April:

March 18^th: SEA Building Representative Meeting 3:30-5:00 PM in the Board Room; Report Card Comments/Grades need to be completed by 8 AM
March 19^th: Report Card Website closes

March 20^th: Parents can access report cards

March 25^th – 29^th: SPRING BREAK ~ Enjoy the week off!

April 1^st: School Resumes

April 2^nd: Students/Staff Non-Attendance Day

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org

“When it comes to luck, you make your own.” ~Bruce Springsteen

Top o’ the morning to ya’! Happy St. Patrick’s Day Week! This has to be one of the biggest holidays celebrated regardless of whether or not you are Irish, but do go pull out something green to wear and maybe check out the Chicago River if you have never seen it dyed green. It is quite the site in person!

Building Rep Nomination Forms

Whether you are wishing to continue being an SEA building representative or you would like to start getting more involved in our association by being a building rep, we are in need of your nomination forms for the 2019-2020 School Year. As a reminder each building is allowed one rep per 15 members.   These nomination forms are due to Kelly O’Reilly by next Monday, March 18^th. Here is the link to the Building Rep Nomination forms. Feel free to contact me or your current building representative to find out more about this year-long commitment.

Accessing IEA’s Members Only Page

Have you ever visited IEA’s Members Only page? This is where you can access membership forms, discounts & deals, and the Online Learning Portal (FREE clock hours on your own time). Go to www.ieanea.org and click on the Members Only link above the red banner in the right corner. Login or register on the following page. If you need you IEA number, registration, or login information, use IEA Connect located in the lower right hand corner of every screen.

Out of the District

I will be out of the district this Friday at the NEA Leadership Summit. If you are in need of anything, don’t hesitate to contact your building representative or our Vice-President Victoria Mikos (vamikossea@gmail.com).

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

March 11^th: National Johnny Appleseed Day (do we still have the Johnny Appleseed books in our school libraries?)

March 12^th: National Girl Scout Day (time to enjoy more of those Thin Mints!)

March 13^th: National Open an Umbrella Indoors Day (isn’t that bad luck?)

March 14^th: National Pi Day (3.1415926535…time to find my ∏ t-shirt)

March 15^th: National Everything You Think is Wrong Day (huh? I think that’s wrong…)

Important Dates in March:

March 18^th: Report Card Comments/Grades need to be completed by 8 AM;
SEA Building Representative Meeting 3:30-5:00 PM in the Board Room

March 19^th: Report Card Website closes

March 20^th: Parents can access report cards

March 25^th – 29^th: SPRING BREAK

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”   ~Aesop

We have officially made it to March, it’s just about the end of trimester two, and Spring is getting closer and closer, despite another wind chill advisory! What is more exciting is that we have Spring Break just right around the corner.

Weingarten Rights

As a reminder to all of you, if you are ever in a meeting with administration without representation and you feel you need a member of the SEA to be sitting there with you, you can invoke your Weingarten Rights. This will then allow the meeting to stop mid-discussion and be rescheduled to a time when SEA representation can be present. I have asked for our UniServ Director Crystal Bush to provide us with more of the Weingarten Rights cards, so if you are in need of one, let your building representative know. You do not need this card to use your Weingarten Rights, but many members keep this card tucked in behind their IDs.

Common Ground

As I mentioned last week, anytime between March 1^st and May 1^st, tenured teachers on year two of the evaluation cycle will be having their summative meetings with their administrators. It does not state anywhere in our appraisal document when you need to have your information in to Common Ground by. After talking to our Appraisal Chair, Cynthia Dressler, we agreed that it would be to your advantage to have all your evidence in prior to March 1^st. So, if you do not have everything updated, it would be to your advantage to make sure your evidence from the past two years is up-to-date and ready for your administrator.

Visit IEA’s Website to Voice Your Opinion

At your building level SEA meetings, reps have been sharing with you to visit IEA’s Website to sign the 3% Salary Cap petition. There is a great “Explainer Video” to watch which helps to understand why it is important for us to be taking action.   Our profession continues to be under attack and we have to make sure to contact our legislators as well and ask them to support SB60 and HB350 which would repeal the 3% salary cap.

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

March 4^th: National Pancake Day…time to head to IHOP

March 5^th: Mardi Gras – Fat Tuesday

March 6^th: National Oreo Cookie Day

March 7^th: National Be Heard Day

March 8^th: National Proofreading Day

Important Dates in March:

March 4^th: Member Benefits visit to Campanelli (during lunch) & Nerge (afterschool); SEA Executive Board Meeting 3:30-4:30 PM in the Board Room; SEA/SEEO General Meeting Planning Committee 4:30-5:30 PM in the Board Room

March 8^th: End of Trimester Two

March 18^th: Report Card Comments/Grades need to be completed by 8 AM;
SEA Building Representative Meeting 3:30-5:00 PM in the Board Room

March 19^th: Report Card Website closes

March 20^th: Parents can access report cards

March 25^th – 29^th: SPRING BREAK

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org

“When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.”
~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Just a few reminders for the week ahead…

SEA Nominations Forms Due TODAY

If you are interested in being a delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly this summer in Houston, Texas, nomination forms are due TODAY. Also, we have five open positions (both one-year and two-year terms) available to our Region 35 Council which you can apply for. Please give your nomination forms to your SEA Building Representative to give to our Elections Chair. As a reminder to building representatives, we will be meeting today afterschool from 3:30-5:00 PM in the Board Room. As always, all members are welcome to attend.

Message to Our Non-Tenured Teachers

Just a reminder to our non-tenured teachers that your third observation of the year should be completed by this Friday, March 1^st. Your Student Growth ‘Ending Meeting’ should be completed prior to March 1^st as well. Administrators have until March 15^th to give you your “Summative Appraisal Report”. If you haven’t already done so, make sure you have your evidence in all of the components on Common Ground. It is so important to advocate for yourself, especially in the areas that are not directly observed by your evaluator. For any other questions about your appraisal and the timelines, you can refer to our online Teacher Appraisal Plan.

Message to Our Tenured Teachers on Year Two of the Evaluation Cycle

If you are on your second year of the evaluation cycle, your two observation should be complete by March 1^st. There is a minimum of one formal and one informal observation that be completed. Your Student Growth ‘Ending Meeting’ should be completed prior to May 1st. Administrators have between March 1^st and May 1^st to give you your “Summative Appraisal Report”. And I encourage you as well to make sure you have your evidence in all of the components on Common Ground. You are your best advocate!

Grade Reporting Timeline

Just a reminder, the grade reporting timeline has been revised to reflect the emergency days used. The report card window opened last Friday, Feb. 22^nd. The new end of trimester two is Friday, March 8^th. Comments/grades need to be completed by 8 AM on Monday, March 18^th. The website will close on Tuesday, March 19^th. Parents will be able to view report cards on Wednesday, March 20^th.

NEA’s Read Across America Day

Did you know every March 2^nd is Read Across America Day? The National Education Association (NEA) first brought up to have a special reading day in 1997. Because this idea was well-liked, a year later in 1998, the first Read Across America Day was held. This date was chosen as it also is the birthday of Dr. Seuss. Because March 2^nd is a Saturday this year, schools across the nation will be observing Read Across America Day this Friday, March 1^st. Time to pull out your favorite Dr. Seuss books or engage the students in some extra “Drop Everything and Read” times. What else can you do to celebrate reading with your students on Friday? Check out NEA’s Read Across America Day 2019 Online Toolkit for more information.

NEA Member Benefits Meetings

Thank you to our NEA Member Benefits representative, Justine Sallee, for scheduling visits to all 28 of our schools. She will be wrapping up her visits this week and her schedule is listed below. If you were unable to attend her presentation, be sure to check out the NEA Member Benefits website for more information on how you can be saving money with your membership.

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

February 25^th: National Clam Chowder Day

February 26^th: National Tell a Fairy Tale Day

February 27^th: National Strawberry Day

February 28^st: National Chili Day

March 1st: National Read Across America Day (Dr. Seuss Day)

Important Dates in February:

February 25^th: Member Benefits visit to the ELC & RAC (during lunch) & SEA Building Rep Meeting

February 26^th: Member Benefits visit to Fairview (during lunch); Retirement Meeting for TRS Employees @RAC (contact Diana Peters if you are attending)

February 27^th: Member Benefits visit to Eisenhower (during lunch)

February 28^th: Member Benefits visit to Einstein (during lunch)

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org

“Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow.”
~A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Hope everyone is enjoying their President’s Day and has had a nice long weekend after completing last week’s student-led conferences!

SEA Nominations Forms Due Next Week

If you are interested in being a delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly this summer in Houston, Texas, nomination forms are due next Monday, February 25^th. Also, we have five open positions (both one-year and two-year terms) available to our Region 35 Council. For more information about Region 35, contact our Region Chair, Kara Zielinski, or Vice-Chair, Adriana Caballero. Copies of the nomination forms have been attached to this email. Nomination forms may be submitted by interoffice mail, fax, or scanned into an email with actual signature, and sent to Kelly O’Reilly at the Rafferty Administration Center.

3% Salary Cap Repeal
Thanks to educators across Illinois for taking time to sign the 3% Salary Cap Repeal Petition. The House Personnel and Pensions Committee moved the 3 percent repeal bill out of the committee last week, so it can now be heard on the floor of the Illinois House of Representatives. No date has been set for that debate. The committee vote was 6 to 3. It’s not too late to sign the petition. Visit IEA’s website for more information.

SEA Awards
We are still accepting nominations through the end of February for the following SEA Awards: The Felicia Cichy Award, The Friend of SEA Award, and The Lifetime Achievement Award. The Felicia Cichy Award is given to recognize SEA members who have demonstrated service and leadership in SEA, IEA, and/or NEA. Their names appear on a plaque displayed outside the Board Room at District Office. The Friend of SEA Award honors an individual who is not a member of SEA, but who has contributed or assisted members of our association in a meaningful way. Finally, the Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to an individual who has been an integral part of SEA, IEA, and/or NEA during their career in District #54. It is meant to show appreciation for a lifetime of dedication, leadership, and service to our members. The award is given when the individual is retiring, or has retired, from teaching. Here is the link to if you have someone in mind to nominate: SEA Awards Form.

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

February 18^th: President’s Day

February 19^th: National Chocolate Mint Day (Have your ordered your Girl Scout Thin Mints yet? I’m picking up my Girl Scout troop’s cookies tonight!)

February 20^th: National Love Your Pet Day

February 21^st: National Sticky Bun Day

February 22^nd: Skip the Straw Day

Important Dates in February:

February 19^th: Member Benefits visit to Hoover (during lunch) & Frost (afterschool)

February 20^th: Member Benefits visit to Hanover (during lunch)

February 21^st: Member Benefits visit to Enders-Salk (during lunch) & Fox (afterschool)

February 25^th: Member Benefits visit to the ELC & RAC (during lunch) & SEA Building Rep Meeting

February 26^th: Member Benefits visit to Fairview (during lunch); Retirement Meeting for TRS Employees @RAC (contact Diana Peters if you are attending)

February 27^th: Member Benefits visit to Eisenhower (during lunch)

February 28^th: Member Benefits visit to Einstein (during lunch)

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org

“Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.” ~Lucille Ball

You made it to your second round of conferences of the year! Enjoy preparing your students to get ready to show off some of the work they are most proud of this year. Consider taking a moment to allow your students to share some gratitudes towards their loved ones accompanying them at conferences. And when it’s all over, take some time for yourself on this long weekend!

Parent-Teacher Conference Hours

As a reminder, here is the information sent out to your administrators regarding the amount of time work this Thursday and Friday during Parent-Teacher Conferences:

1. At least one and one-half hours　must be worked　on Friday,　February 15　by all full-time employees except all instructional　assistants and registered nurses.
2. Everyone must get a “dinner break”.
3. The total work hours (not including meals) over　February 14 and 15　are as follows:
   1. Licensed　Staff (this includes　CIA’s, OT’s, PT’s, Floor Time Specialist　and Signing Interpreters) -at least 12 hours, but enough to complete conferences.
   2. Elementary Fine Arts and PE -　work their regular school hours on Thursday and 1.5 hours on Friday.
   3. Paraprofessionals, registered nurses – work their regular hours on Thursday.　Because this is a conference and student nonattendance day you may leave a half hour early.　Friday,　February 15　is not a scheduled work day.
   4. Secretaries, LRAs – 14 hours (Two 7.5　hour days minus 30 minutes　early dismissal on Thursday and 30 minutes　early dismissal on Friday, because these are conferences and student nonattendance days.)

SEA Awards
Each April at our SEA/SEEO General Meeting, we have like to present three awards: The Felicia Cichy Award, The Friend of SEA Award, and The Lifetime Achievement Award. The Felicia Cichy Award is given to recognize SEA members who have demonstrated service and leadership in SEA, IEA, and/or NEA. Their names appear on a plaque displayed outside the Board Room at District Office, which is currently being updated with last year’s recipient. The Friend of SEA Award honors an individual who is not a member of SEA, but who has contributed or assisted members of our association in a meaningful way. Finally, the Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to an individual who has been an integral part of SEA, IEA, and/or NEA during their career in District #54. It is meant to show appreciation for a lifetime of dedication, leadership, and service to our members. The award is given when the individual is retiring, or has retired, from teaching. We are now accepting nominations for these three awards. If you have a nomination, please fill out the following SEA Awards Form by Thursday, February 28^th.

School Visits
Throughout the months of January and February, I’ve been visiting various schools to attend SEA Building Meetings and 1^st year mentor meetings. Additionally, I’ll be visiting various classrooms to see not just the innovation taking place, but to enjoy seeing members in action doing what they love…teaching! Feel free to reach out to me and invite me to your class anytime. Have a great week!

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

February 11^th: National Clean Out Your Computer Day

February 12^th: National Plum Pudding Day

February 13^th: National Tortellini Day

February 14^th: Valentine’s Day & National Cream-Filled Chocolates Day

February 15^th: National Gumdrop Day

Important Dates in February:

February 11^th: Member Benefits visit to Armstrong (at lunch)

February 12^th: Member Benefits visit to Aldrin (during lunch) & Link (afterschool)

February 13^th: Member Benefits visit to Addams (during lunch)

February 14^th: Early Dismissal; Parent-Teacher Conferences (PM)

February 15^th: Parent-Teacher Conferences (AM)

February 25^th: SEA Building Rep Meeting

February 26^th: Retirement Meeting for TRS Employees @RAC (contact Diana Peters if you are attending)

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE:　(847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org　

“Be someone else’s sunshine when skies are gray.”   ~Unknown

Time to Thaw Out for the Time Being

Imagine that, we survived the POLAR VORTEX and the buses are now feeling better! The unfortunate news is that we all need to mark a new last day of school on our calendars. As of now our last day with students will be Thursday, June 6^th, with the student non-attendance day (formally known as “Record’s Day”) on Friday, June 7^th. Regardless of any other snow days or emergency days, Friday June 7^th will be the last day for members to attend. You may officially schedule your vacations to begin on Saturday, June 8^th.

From One Capitol to the Next

The cold unfortunately kept cancelling my flights last week to Washington DC where I was to attend a NEA Conference for new local presidents. However, with the change in plans, I was able to attend the Grassroots Political Activists Mini-Convention in Springfield this past weekend with several members from the SEA instead. Thanks to Michelle Mason (Frost), Region 35’s GPA, for recruiting our GoTeam which consists of Kara Zielinski (Region 35 Chair, Enders-Salk), Vicki Mikos (SEA Vice-President, Blackwell/Lakeview), Katherine Plata (ELC), Rachel Martin (ELC), and myself.

TRS Retirement Meeting

Dr. Hannigan sent out information last month regarding a presentation on the district’s current retirement guidelines being held on Tuesday, February 26^th, in rooms 105-106 of the PLC. This meeting is for TRS employees who are considering retirement, but who have not already committed to retire in 2019. Please email Diana Peters if you are interested in retiring. I will be attending (not that I am retiring anytime soon), but just to be able to get hear the information that is being presented so that we can all clearly understand our pensions.

NEA Member Benefits Visits

Justine Sallee, our NEA Member Benefits Representative, will continue to visit schools throughout the entire month of February. She is working on rescheduling her visits to the many schools that have missed her visits due to our cold weather. I will continue to post the schools she will be visiting below in the section of important dates. Please check to see when Justine will be in your building. Kuddos to Justine for making the trip in to our district from Rockford each day!

NEA Today – App

You know that magazine called NEA Today that gets mailed to you house? Let me guess, it gets thrown into the pile of bills on your table or gets thrown into the recycling bin? There are some great reads for educators available in NEA Today. As someone who has already joined IEA-Retired (in order to get the low life-time rate now), I was reading through my NEA Today for NEA-Retired Members and found an article called “Inspiring Children to Walk in their Own Dreams” which discussed the need for teachers to develop a ‘cultural competence’, as NEA calls it, to reach every student, no matter who they are or where they’re from. There was even a section that allowed me to measure my own cultural competency.

I know you are thinking you don’t get the issues of NEA Today for NEA-Retired Members, but no worries…you can download the NEA Today app now. You’ll have access to three versions of NEA Today (for K-12 educators, for Aspiring Educators, and for NEA-Retired Members). Excellent reads…all part of your membership.

Building Rep Meeting Today

As a reminder to my building reps, our meeting from last Monday has been rescheduled to today afterschool from 3:30 – 5:00 PM in the Board Room. The agenda will remain the same. See you soon!

Here are some fun ways to celebrate this week:

February 4^th: National Homemade Soup Day

February 5^th: World Nutella Day

February 6^th: National Girls and Women in Sports Day

February 7^th: National Send a Card to a Friend Day

February 8^th: National Boy Scouts Day (or is it Scouts BSA Day now?)

Important Dates in February:

February 4^th: Member Benefits visit to Dirksen (at lunch)

February 4^th: RESCHEDULED SEA BUILDING REP Meeting – 3:30 – 5:00 PM

February 5^th: Member Benefits visit to Dooley (during lunch) & Collins (afterschool)

February 6^th: Member Benefits visit to Churchill (during lunch)

February 7^th: Member Benefits visit to Campanelli (at lunch) & Nerge (afterschool)

February 8^th: Member Benefits visit to Blackwell (at lunch)

February 11^th: Member Benefits visit to Armstrong (at lunch)

February 12^th: Member Benefits visit to Aldrin (at lunch) & Link (afterschool)

February 13^th Member Benefits visit to Addams (at lunch)

February 19^th: Member Benefits visit to Hoover (at lunch) & Frost (afterschool)

February 20^th: Member Benefits visit to Hanover (at lunch)

February 21^st: Member Benefits visit to Enders-Salk (at lunch) & Fox (afterschool)

February 25^th: SEA Building Rep Meeting; Member Benefits visit to the ELC (& RAC) (at lunch)

February 26^th: Retirement Meeting for TRS Employees @RAC (contact Diana Peters if you are attending); Member Benefits visit to Fairview (at lunch)

February 27^th: Member Benefits visit to Eisenhower (at lunch)

February 28^th: Member Benefits visit to Einstein (at lunch)

Lori Mobley

Schaumburg Education Association President

lorimobleysea@gmail.com

Cell: (847) 344-5249

Office @IKE: (847) 357-5450

www.sea54.org