Boise Education Association members kickoff IEA’s 2022 Delegate Assembly at their local caucus breakfast.
Nearly 400 IEA members, staff and guests came together for the Idaho Education Association’s 129thDelegate Assembly (DA) in Boise April 22-23.
From every region and representing 52 IEA locals from across Idaho, the delegates came together for this annual business meeting to reinvigorate the IEA spirit, celebrate successes from the past year and set priorities for the year ahead. It was the first in-person DA since the 2019 gathering in Coeur d’Alene before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Throughout the two-day event, delegates caucused with others from their region, proposed the most new business items or IEA policy proposals in recent memory, approved the IEA’s budget, endorsed new resolutions and heard updates from IEA leadership and staff.
IEA President Layne McInelly opened the proceedings by noting the 130th anniversary of the founding of the IEA.
“That’s 130 years of public school educators — all of you — using their expertise and influence to create public schools Idaho students deserve,” McInelly said. “That deserves a big round of applause.”
He also recognized the challenges educators faced during the pandemic and in the post-pandemic world.
“The past two years have been a huge challenge for everyone — but especially for our profession,” he said. “Many of our colleagues are questioning whether being an educator is even worth it. Today, I’m here to say to each of you: It is worth it. What you do matters.”
McInelly and other IEA leaders emphasized the importance of IEA’s legislative wins during the 2022 legislative session and the importance of building on that momentum.