Local Support: Questions, Answers,
Friendly Voices, Friendly Faces
Support.
Who do you turn to when you need it? In your personal life the answer is probably crystal clear: family and friends who you know will be there for you when you need guidance or reassurance; someone real. But what about in your professional life? Who's there for you when you have a question about something that happened in the classroom, something that was said in a parent conference, or something that you were asked to do by a supervisor that just didn't make you feel right? Have questions about your contract, or working conditions, or due process rights; who will help you with those? Surely, not a 1-800-number.
Who do you turn to when you need it? In your personal life the answer is probably crystal clear: family and friends who you know will be there for you when you need guidance or reassurance; someone real. But what about in your professional life? Who's there for you when you have a question about something that happened in the classroom, something that was said in a parent conference, or something that you were asked to do by a supervisor that just didn't make you feel right? Have questions about your contract, or working conditions, or due process rights; who will help you with those? Surely, not a 1-800-number.
Our full-time local UniServ staff are a benefit of CEA membership, and their salaries are paid through our members' dues, not some large, impersonal, corporate entity. Sarah, Vashti, and Diane are invested in our members' interests and well-being not only because they work in Chesterfield, but because they live in our community. More than just the voices on the telephone, they are also the faces in the grocery line, at the library, on the little league field.
Most importantly, because they live and work locally, they know our issues personally. They don't have to look up the school board members on the internet to read about their positions on our issues, or to research local policies. Sarah and Vashti have built personal relationships with Chesterfield school board members, the superintendent, central office administrators, and building principals. It's these relationships that allow our UniServ Directors to work constructively with CCPS to resolve members' issues with the least disruption to the classroom environment and the members' lives.
For information on how to become a member of CEA and gain access to all of our support services, just follow the link to our Membership page, or call or visit the CEA Office right here in your community; ask for Diane. CEA - We Do Professional Support.
CEA Professional Support Staff
Karen Olivares, UniServ Director
Karen has come to the CEA/CHEA UniServ Office as a result of changes in the VEA statewide service delivery plan that took effect in January 2013. She has been a UD in Virginia for the past nine years, working out of the Valley UniServ Office in Harrisonburg where she provided support to nearly a dozen local associations! Prior to coming to Virginia, Karen worked for the Florida Education Association where she had a front row seat for the many iterations of school reform that privatizers have tried to impose on public education. She brings to our office a diverse background with strengths in workplace rights and issue organizing.
kolivares@veanea.org
Karen has come to the CEA/CHEA UniServ Office as a result of changes in the VEA statewide service delivery plan that took effect in January 2013. She has been a UD in Virginia for the past nine years, working out of the Valley UniServ Office in Harrisonburg where she provided support to nearly a dozen local associations! Prior to coming to Virginia, Karen worked for the Florida Education Association where she had a front row seat for the many iterations of school reform that privatizers have tried to impose on public education. She brings to our office a diverse background with strengths in workplace rights and issue organizing.
kolivares@veanea.org
Diane Shrader, Administrative Secretary
For almost two decades, Diane has been the heart of the CEA Office. For thousands of members over that span, hers has been the first voice they heard, and often the only one they really needed to. Diane knows the benefits of CEA membership, and can help you navigate all the opportunities for involvement, from what's going on where and when, to why it matters, and how you can help.
dshrader@veanea.org
