NEA Announces $60 Million Fund to Invest in Educators’ Best Ideas
By Tim Walker and Celeste Busser
On Thursday, National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel announced the establishment of a $60 million fund to invest in state and local initiatives to improve student success and strengthen the teaching profession. Over ten years, the Great Public Schools Fund (GPS Fund) will support innovative projects and ideas proposed by educators, including peer assistance and review programs, Common Core implementation, teacher mentoring, school safety, and technology.
“Nobody knows better than educators what their students need to succeed in the classroom,” Van Roekel said. “Through the new GPS Fund, we are providing the resources to put these plans in action and help ensure opportunity, equity, and success for every public school student in America.”
The GPS Fund is one of the many initiatives NEA has launched in recent months that is designed to create a new generation of educator leaders. Last week, NEA and BetterLesson launched a new web site that provides more than 3,000 classroom-ready lessons. In addition, NEA, the Center for Teaching Quality, and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards unveiled the Teacher Leadership Initiative. Last October, NEA partnered with TeachPlus to launch a selective fellowship that will empower teachers to advise union leadership on teacher engagement and retention.
NEA President Dennis Van Roekel discusses the Great Public School Fund and other NEA initiatives at the Center for American Progress on Thursday, January 23. Photo: Sewell Johnson
These initiatives were the focus of a panel discussion at the Center for American Progress (CAP) in Washington D.C. on Thursday that looked at the changing role of teachers unions. Joining Van Roekel was Paul Toner, President of the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA), Tammy Wawro, President of the Iowa Education Association (IEA), Elena Silva of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and Richard Lee Colvin of Cross and Joftus.
Van Roekel explained that the relentless pace of change that has gripped our public schools demands new innovative thinking on the part of