The National Education Association Representative Assembly
(RA) is NEA's highest decision-making body. With over 9,000 delegates, it is
also the world's largest democratic, deliberative body.
Delegates
will gather June 30 through July 5 in Washington, DC for the Association's 150th
Annual Meeting and 89th Representative Assembly.
The RA is convened every July during the Annual Meeting. The
first two days are devoted to discussions, conferences, and exhibits—but the
highlight is the Representative Assembly itself. During this important
event, delegates debate issues that impact American public education, elect
top officers, and set policy for the 3.2 million-member Association.
In balloting conducted by NEA affiliates throughout the
country, NEA members elect their peers to represent their concerns at the
RA.
Delegates to represent NEA-New Mexico local affiliates are
elected on the basis of one delegate for each 150 members or major fraction
thereof. These elections are conducted by Local Associations and the results
are reported to NEA-New Mexico and NEA.
Any local with 76 or more members is entitled to elect
at least one delegate for this summer's Representative Assembly. The
elected delegates determine NEA's strategic plan and budget, legislative
program, and resolutions. Delegates also vote, by secret ballot, on proposed
amendments to the NEA constitution and bylaws and elect NEA's executive
officers, Executive Committee members, and at-large members of the NEA Board
of Directors.
NEA bylaw 3-1(g) states that it is the policy of the Association to
work to achieve
ethnic-minority delegate representation at least equal to the proportion of
identified ethnic-minority populations within the state. NEA-New Mexico has
a plan to achieve a total state and local delegation to the
Representative Assembly that reflects its ethnic-minority proportions. Part
of that plan is the encouragement of Local Associations to elect their full
contingent of delegates to the Representative Assembly. Presidents in
locals with more than one delegate candidate will be encouraged to meet the 3-1(g) numerical goals.
NEA-New Mexico exceeds its ethnic minority delegate goals
year after year in the election of State and Cluster Delegates. However,
many local Associations do not choose to elect RA delegates or those who
elect delegates, do not choose to fund and encourage their attendance at the
RA. The failure of Local Delegates to come close to meeting our census
generated goal is the major reason for NEA-New Mexico’s failure to meet our 3-1(g) goals.
Local Associations must report delegate election results to
the NEA-New Mexico president no later than April 10, 2011. Presidents will
also be asked to submit a report to the NEA-New Mexico president concerning
delegate nominations and elections pursuant to the 3-1(g) implementation.
Contact your local president if you are interested in
running as a local Delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly.
Encourage your local to conduct its election in a timely manner so that the
results can be reported to NEA-New Mexico by April 10. Local delegates
do not receive national or state funding to attend the Representative
Assembly. Many Local Associations provide full or partial funding for
delegates. Ask your Local President about your Local's funding.
Most of NEA-New Mexico Governing Regions also provide some funding for
delegates from the region. The NEA-New Mexico Minority Caucus also
provides some funding for minority delegates. |
