Welcome from our President

On behalf of your Blount County Education Association allow me to welcome you back to your schools. Summer was short as usual but I trust you had a very restful and peaceful time off.

As we begin a new school year let us all vow to concentrate on providing our students the best opportunity to learn that they can find anywhere! It really is up to us to create the proper environment in which our kids can feel safe, loved, and ready to learn. Each school is a unique place linked to all others by common goals. Let our goal for the 2010-11 school year be not to stress about standards so much but to concern ourselves with students learning and progressing. We should remain focused on taking our students from where they are and growing them to fulfill their potential. If the students are learning and making progress the rest of the stuff will take care of itself.

Thank you for your support of BCEA over the years. Over the summer the BCEA leaders were busy with the TEA sponsored Political Academy at Paris Landing, the Leadership Academy at Franklin, and the NEA Representative Assembly in New Orleans. We were also busy with BCEA business such as preparations for on-going negotiations and building level concerns. Upcoming issues are going to have dramatic impact upon each and everyone of us. As you may know by now, the step salary schedule has been changed and the retirement incentive has been removed from the contract by the board. These are items that should have been negotiated at the bargaining table and we will be looking at this but we need your support! It is your salary,benefits, and contract that are being affected.

If you have questions or if you want to know how to help, contact your building representative or contact a BCEA officer. Contact information is on our website.

Thank you and have a great year. We are there, working on your behalf, even when you don’t realize it.

On behalf of your BCEA Leadership,
Lynn Eubanks, President