President's Corner
February 2023
March President Editorial
By Maripaz Berlin, OGEA President
Hello, OGEA Members!
March 13th, 2023 marked three years since we shut down due to the pandemic back in 2020. There are so many things that have happened during the past few years in our world, our country, our state, and our local communities. Many of us and our students and families have been forever changed since that day. Our state and national union, CTA and NEA, respectively, came through to support us and our safety by speaking out in the media and recognizing all of the support and services in addition to academics and social emotional learning that our neighborhood schools provide. They acknowledged that we, too, have families, are vulnerable to illness, and are also grappling with the pandemic.
This 2022-2023 school year closely resembles what school was like pre-COVID. We are in our physical schools and work sites, meetings have resumed in-person; students are in class, versus being in the Virtual Learning Academy. That said, we are now beginning to recognize the effects that those three years have had on all of us, our students, and families.
As we continue to move forward and perhaps gain a clearer perspective on what we have gone through collectively, it is critical to give each other grace and understanding. We will not always agree with each other; we will have students who test our limits of patience. We, ourselves, may struggle to cope with situations that seemingly have no easy or ready solutions. Please have compassion for yourself. Reach out to your trusted colleagues, friends, and family. We are still in this work of educating students TOGETHER.
There are a number of events coming up. Our last dinner for this year is next Thursday, March 22nd, for our Special Education teachers in SDC, RSP, SAI, and APE. Our goal is to learn more about their work in Oak Grove and how we can seek improvements.
We are also hosting a Community Schools discussion on Thursday, March 23rd in the Christopher Elementary School library from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Our CTA Staff Organizer will be there to facilitate and share more information about how we can get Community Schools started in Oak Grove.
Our Labor Alliance BBQ planning is underway. It will be held at Almaden Lake Park in May. The date is still TBD. This BBQ is open to all OGEA, CSEA, and AFSCME members.
The Equity and Human Rights Committee is also organizing a workshop with CTA Human Rights on Transformative SEL for our students. That is being set for the end of April.
Stay tuned!
In Unity,
Maripaz Berlin
OGEA President
president@ogea.org