Union Engagement

Bargaining Council and Trainings

Collective bargaining can be an intimidating experience — but with IEA on your side, you'll be empowered with the skills to negotiate the best contract for your colleagues. The IEA Collective Bargaining Council offers free, online training based on current issues, changing laws and proven practice. There's no need to travel, and classes are offered from 6-8 p.m. Mountain Time to better fit your schedule. Check IEA's Collective Bargaining Council page for information on the next batch of weekly training sessions. 

Education Support Professionals Committee

The ESP Committee is charged with increasing and engaging education support professional members across the state to help create a strong, vibrant organization through trainings. This includes regional SPARKS retreats, member organizing and other activities. 

Chair: LiseAnn Mills

Staff liaison: Brent Nichols

EMBERS Committee

This group is charged with providing professional development, peer mentoring and leadership opportunities to help late-career educators remain engaged and motivated in their final years in the classroom. The committee provides workshops on financial planning and transition support to help educators navigate the path to retirement. 

Chair: Vacant

Staff liaison: Vacant

Growing Engaged Members (GEMs)

IEA's GEMs program helps build strong local unions by training educators to have meaningful one-on-one conversations that grow membership and develop leaders. Through a two-day training, GEMs participants learn how to energize colleagues, strengthen their local's presence and foster relationships that lead to better contracts, improved working conditions and policy wins at every level. 

Each GEMs contract lasts 8-12 weeks, with four cycles per year, all focused on the same powerful goal: building solidarity and strengthening public education through personal connection and collective action. 

GR/Political Action Committee for Education

The GR/PACE Committee is charged with leading IEA's work to build political power through relationship building and by lobbying policymakers, endorsing and supporting pro-public education political candidates, fundraising for the Government Relations/Political Action Committee for Education and overseeing how those donations are spent. 

Chair: Layne McInelly

Staff liaison: Chris Parri

Human and Civil Rights Committee

This committee is charged with creating activities, resources, and other actions that support learning, education and activism in helping to eliminate institutional racism in Idaho. Leaders for Just Schools, a three-year program that gives participants the tools to transform policy and practice at the local, state and national levels, is administered through this committee. 

Chair: Julia Smulkowski

Staff liaison: Caitlin Pankau

IGNITE Committee

This group is charged with planning and implementing an early career educator professional development conference in each IEA organizing center (north, east and west). The committee works with IEA locals to identify and engage new early career members and develop recruitment and retention efforts for educators new to the profession. 

Chair: Vacant

Staff liaison: Pamela Craig

Library Committee

This group aims to increase support and visibility for public school librarian across the state through regular meetings, book chats and events. Meetings take place on Zoom and are open to members and non-members alike. 

Chair: Heidi Robbins

Staff liaison: Julie Sarasqueta

Membership Committee

This committee is charged with developing and executing a plan to increase active IEA membership. 

Chair: Peggy Hoy

Staff liaison: Beage Atwater

Resolutions Committee

This group develops the union's Resolutions, which are IEA's "formal expressions of opinion, intent, belief or position of the Association." The committee meets twice a year to review current resolutions, make recommendations for revisions that are considered, debated and adopted at IEA's annual Delegate Assembly. 

Committee Chair: Vacant

Staff Liaison: Mike Journee

The Retired Council

You can participate in leadership long after you enter your well-earned retirement! The Retired Council handles the business of IEA's retired members, meeting twice yearly to provide recommendations for membership materials and report on membership organizing efforts and region meetings. The Retired Council is made up of members from each of IEA's retired chapters. 

SPARKS

Every year, IEA hosts several SPARKS retreats with one goal in mind — giving new educators in their first five years in the profession the skills, techniques and training they need to be successful. Past participants say these informative and fun sessions were a turning point in giving them the skills and confidence they needed to help students and to advance their careers. 

SPARKS trainings are done in small group settings and are facilitated by experienced IEA members and staff. We emphasize interaction and collaboration as we get you comfortable with topics such as:

• Classroom management
• Coping with stress
• Advocating for students
• Special education accommodations and modifications
• Technology integration
• Managing difficult conversations
• Association essentials