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Describe your Capstone Challenge and how it was Identified

In the spring of 2021, I was elected to be the president of our local union. From my own experience as a member of our local, I had some of my own ideas of what needed to be improved to maintain and gain new membership. We are currently sitting at 54% of membership which is drastically lower than the other AA districts in the state. Our membership is disengaged and we have lost more members than we have gained the past couple of years (Evidence 1). From my own perspective as a union member, I feel a part of our disengaged membership is a result of lack of communication. I had also heard from many members that they felt their voice was not being heard at the district level and didn't feel supported by the union. Because I had only talked with a small sample size, I felt it was important to hear from current members as to what they felt like was needed of our union. I created a Google Survey that I sent out to membership to help determine how best to strengthen our union engagement and increase our union membership (Evidence 2).

From the survey (Evidence 3), I learned that our members feel our union is important to our district and see it as a way to meet their needs through negotiations and a collaborative relationship with administration. Our members feel that, while it is important to have a collaborative relationship, they would like to ensure their voice is being heard and advocated for when the district is making decisions. We have a diverse group of members under our contract with various needs including new teachers, veteran teachers, general education, special education, counselors, psychologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, nurses etc. It is the hope of our members that all positions are represented and supported in our contract. Members have a desire to be engaged, but are hindered by time. Members would like to have regular communication from the union about important news, events, etc.

I established 3 priority needs:

1. Negotiated Contract Language that is representative of all stakeholders.

2. Ongoing communication to inform members of union work

3. Collaborative and respectful partnership with administration

Since we are currently not in a negotiation year, I am going to use this year to plan focus groups for the following year to start to address the challenges that unique individuals or groups of people under our contract face in their positions. That being said, we are negotiating our extra duty stipends and I would like to ensure we are representing all members effectively within our extra duty stipends. For my capstone challenge, I will be focusing on establishing consistent and ongoing communication and building a collaborative and respectful partnership with administration.

Describe your diverse stakeholders and how you selected them, such as colleagues, parents, students, association members, community members, state or local partners, etc.

I sent the survey out to current members. I selected our current membership as I felt it was important to hear directly from members as to the direction they wanted our local union to go. Our current membership includes a diverse group of members including new teachers, veteran teachers, general education, special education, specialist teachers (music, p.e., etc.) counselors, psychologists, Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, nurses etc.

Why is it important for your diverse stakeholders that the Capstone Challenge be addressed?

Members did not feel that they had received much communication from our local and felt that their needs were not being addressed with administration. Having consistent communication and developing a respectful partnership with administration will support these needs.

In what ways will addressing the Capstone Challenge promote or support the foundational competencies?

Establishing a collaborative partnership with administration and acting as advocate for our members will allow me to ensure I am collaborating purposefully with all stakeholders. It will also ensure that I am meeting the needs of our diverse stakeholders and being a positive advocate for their needs. By providing our members with consistent communication about our union work and information relevant to our members, our members will hopefully feel more engaged and empowered in our union work. I plan to hold regular meetings with administration, attend all board and committee meetings to ensure we are engaged in the district and have a voice at the table, regularly problem solve with administration when any problems or concerns arise, and ensure I maintain communication that is respectful and builds consensus rather than division.

Is it your intention to broaden the existing vision, values and/or culture of the association or to create a cultural shift? Explain.

From the results of the survey, it would appear that our members share the same vision and values that I do as a union president - the need to hear from and advocate from all stakeholders, ensure we have consistent communication, and build a positive relationship with our administration. Because of this, I believe my intention is to broaden the existing vision, values and culture rather than create any cultural shift.

Why might this strategy be a viable solution for your Capstone Challenge?

I feel that establishing a system for communication (newsletters) and ensuring regular meetings with administration will help to engage our membership and ensure we are able to act on the needs of our members.

On which two Overarching Competencies will you focus in addressing your Capstone Challenge? Why are they relevant?

Overarching Competency #1: Interpersonal Effectiveness. I will be working with stakeholders (members, administration, trustees) to create a shared vision and seek to cultivate relationships with these stakeholders. Ultimately, I would like to find other leaders within our membership and build our capacity. Interpersonal effectiveness is imperative when working to establish positive relationships.

Overarching Competency #2: Communication. I will be working to articulate messages sent to members which will help engage our members in the work being done by our local union.

Which Leadership Pathway competency will you focus on in your Capstone Challenge? Why is it relevant?

Leadership Pathway: Association Organizing and Advocating. Our local union engagement has been declining in the past 3-4 years. As the current union president, I would like to ensure our current members are engaged and work to grow our membership. I would also like to ensure we maintain and build a positive working relationship with our administration and our board of trustees so that we have a voice in decisions and I can better advocate for our membership.

With whom will you work in addressing your Capstone Challenge? Who else might you recruit beyond your own cultural and/or professional identity group?

I will be working with local union members and leadership, state union leadership, district staff and administration, and the board of trustees. I will be reaching out to members who have diverse perspectives (high school teachers, elementary teachers, specialists, veterans within the district, etc.).

Which resources (such as, people, money, programs, time and space, etc.) do you have to address in your Capstone Challenge? What resources will you need? How will you obtain them?

Time: I will be taking one day a month of union release time to hold meetings with administration. I will also be working after school hours to hold meetings and attend committee meetings/board meetings. The biggest challenge with time is that I am also a full-time teacher. I will need to ensure I am still maintaining a healthy work-life balance and not over work myself.

People: To build relationships, you need people. I will need to be flexible to work around the schedules of individuals I need to meet with.