Union Organizing & Statewide Policy: How SDEA members are shaping the big picture

Union educators can do more than just protect their profession - they can transform it.

This past year, SDEA members have been involved in conversations and advocacy that go beyond our classrooms here in San Diego. SDEA educators organized to fight for a contract with better staffing, pay, and stability, aligned with the demands of educators across the state, coordinating their bargaining through the We Can’t Wait campaign. SDEA members showed up and held our District accountable - and will continue to do so! - but it’s clear that we need more than they can give us on their own. 

Even with San Diego Unified spending down reserves to the legal limit, we are still fighting for what our students and educators need. The good news: We know that more is possible in the wealthiest state in the country, and union solidarity gives us the opportunity to fight for big picture demands, too. As SDEA educators, we have plenty of examples of educators who are already engaged in transformative work at the state level. Teach Plus is one example of how state-level advocacy can also spark transformation within our union.

SDEA members shaping the big picture through Teach Plus

This Spring, SDEA members who are Teach Plus Policy Fellows volunteered to share their experience with their fellow members. Teach Plus is a highly competitive statewide fellowship that trains educators as policy advocates and connects them to a national network of teacher leaders influencing education. Their focus is on using policy, organizing, and storytelling to improve outcomes for students: engaging directly with lawmakers, delivering public testimony at the California State Legislature and the State Board of Education, sharing messages through op-eds and speaking with the media, and organizing and mobilizing educators. This includes policy work to advance Ethnic Studies and culturally relevant curricula, support for multilingual learners, and ensuring that diverse student populations are taught by diverse teachers.

Teach Plus Fellows participate in in-person trainings and monthly virtual sessions throughout the year, with all travel and a stipend funded by the fellowship. New fellows collaborate in workgroups focused on specific policy areas led by experienced fellows. For example, this year’s working group focused on multilingual learners advocated for extending EWIG funding, which has supported educators across the state in implementing the EL Roadmap, culturally responsive and research-backed best practices for multilingual learners and programs. Another working group focused on advocating for mental health and wellness supports in schools. 

Current SDEA members involved in Teach Plus:

Advocacy that changes educators and education itself

Multiple Fellows described their experience with Teach Plus as transformative. “You go in not knowing your worth as a teacher, and it ignites a spark,” said Jillian Salazar, a Marvin educator who is currently leading a working group as a Teach Plus California Senior Policy Fellow. “It changes how you see yourself and how you see education.” Fellows described how Teach Plus helped them transform their classroom expertise into statewide influence, connecting educators to the decision-makers who so often create policy disconnected from the realities that teachers and students face every day. That’s what educator unions are all about, too: Ensuring that leadership decisions are grounded in what educators and students actually need.

Some Fellows joined with a clear vision for their individual focus, while others brought a broader passion that they could define and expand through collaboration with other Fellows. After participating in the Fellowship, many educators were able to shift their individual advocacy to pursue systems-level change: Running for school board, pursuing doctorates, getting admin credentials… and getting more active in their unions! 

SDEA members advocating at the state level with Teach Plus

Beyond diversity: Environments that cultivate equity

Fellows described the fellowship as a truly diverse group of educators, guided by facilitators who helped them build structures to translate diversity into equity, because diversity alone isn’t enough to disrupt systems of oppression. “They actually coach you through how to understand yourself and how you relate to others,” said Monique. “They give us space for uncomfortable conversations, and space to sustain them. Skilled facilitators push you to ask the questions necessary to figure out where you can fit into the work.”

Within a diverse group that has the necessary structures to navigate uncomfortable conversations, the result can be what several fellows described as finding your people. “Something that many Teach Plus fellows have shared is a feeling of being ‘too much’ or ‘extra’,” said Jillian. “Then we got to this fellowship and realized we’ve found our people… we’re not too much, we’re just all hearing the same call!” 

Teach Plus fellows were hearing the same call, and some of them were even members of the same union! 

Find your people: Transformational advocacy in your union

Many San Diego Teach Plus fellows got plugged into opportunities like Teach Plus through fellow union members who are leaders in their school communities, and now the fellowship has provided inspiration to SDEA leaders to make sure that those great teachers are also great union members - maybe even leaders. “My whole thing is: How can I get folks who are really good teachers into our leadership?” said Monique Barrett, current Teach Plus fellow and SDEA Vice President and SDEA’s next president. “How can I be a better union leader, listening to their voices on the ground? How can they get more involved in their unions as leaders in their field? They can drive their unions to do more. And there are avenues to advocate and get involved beyond just being a site rep or getting elected to the board.” 

Marvin Elementary showed up #UnionStrong in October 2025 for our "Seeing Red" action

The same kind of educator-driven advocacy that Fellows explore and cultivate through Teach Plus is also at the heart of our union organizing. When educators gather around collective goals, they can ignite a spark that transforms education within our school buildings and beyond. For some members, being active in their union means stepping into leadership roles, but the beauty of a democratic union is that our collective power isn’t limited to leaders. Our power is in everyone playing a role, no matter how small it may feel on the surface. There are seeds of our power everywhere, shaping our schools and beyond:

• A teacher venting in the copy room might hear from a colleague about contractual rights they weren’t aware of, and can better stand up for themselves.

• A staff meeting full of red shirts might remind an administrator that leadership doesn’t equal dictatorship.

• A student who joins their teachers on a picket line might not hesitate to sign a union card at their first job.

Meaningful transformation starts with participation, no matter how small. Every member has a place in our union.

What’s your next step? 

• Are you looking to get more involved in your union? Talk to your site rep about attending Union Academy at the end of your summer break - SDEA’s annual kickoff to make sure all our sites and programs have the information and training they need to start their school year #UnionStrong!

• Are you interested in statewide policy through the Teach Plus fellowship? Applications for the Teach Plus California Policy Fellowship are open until July 10! You can also sign up for the Teach Plus newsletter to learn more and stay informed on this important policy work.

• Are you interested in learning more about the Teach Plus Emergent Bilingual Change Agent Network? Register for the EBCAN Cohort 5 Showcase taking place on Zoom June 17th from 5:00-7:00 PM (PDT) 

• Share this with a colleague! If reading this article makes you think of a colleague (maybe someone who is always just a little “too much”) consider passing on this information to them!

by Sara Kennedy

SDEA 2026 Scholarship Recipients

Congratulations to all the recipients of SDEA’s 2026 scholarships!

SDEA offers scholarship opportunities for members and members’ dependents each year. The number and amount of the scholarships depend on the funds available from member contributions - these are scholarships for and from members! You can read more about the process the SDEA Scholarship Committee uses to award scholarships, and sign up to contribute to the scholarship fund today!

by Sara Kennedy

Celebrating 100% Union Membership!

This year, we built to our peak collective power - strike readiness! - and that would not have been possible without the local organizing in sites and programs across our District. Our solidarity is strongest when it is cultivated with the people we work with every day!

At the May 2026 Rep Council, the following sites and programs were recognized for 100% Union Membership:

• ADAMS E.S.
• ALCOTT E.S.
• BAKER E.S.
• BALBOA E.S.
• BEHAVIOR SUPPORT SERVICES
• BENCHLEY/WEINBERGER E.S.
• BETHUNE E.S.
• BIRD ROCK E.S.
• BIRNEY E.S.
• BOONE E.S.
• BURBANK E.S.
• CABRILLO E.S.
• CARSON E.S.
• CARVER E.S.
• CHOLLAS/MEAD E.S.
• CORREIA M.S.
• CRAWFORD H.S.
• CROWN POINT E.S.
• CUBBERLEY E.S.
• CURIE E.S.
• DE PORTOLA M.S.
• EB SCRIPPS E.S.
• ECSE (INFANT/TODDLER)
• EDISON E.S.
• ERICSON E.S.
• EUCLID E.S.
• FARB M.S.
• FAY E.S.
• FIELD E.S.
• FLETCHER E.S.
• FOSTER E.S.
• FRANKLIN E.S.
• FULTON UTK-8
• GARFIELD H.S.
• GOLDEN HILL UTK-8
• HAGE E.S.
• HAWTHORNE E.S.
• HEARST E.S.
• HOME & HOSPITAL / JACKSON ANNEX
• HORTON E.S.
• IHIGH VIRTUAL ACADEMY
• IMC
• INNOVATION M.S.
• JOHNSON E.S.
• JONES E.S.
• JUAREZ E.S.
• KNOX M.S.
• LEWIS M.S.
• MANN M.S.
• MARVIN E.S.
• MCKINLEY E.S.
• MILLENNIAL TECH M.S.
• MIRAMAR RANCH E.S.
• MONTGOMERY M.S.
• MOUNTAIN VIEW UTK-8
• MUIRLANDS M.S.
• NIPAQUAY E.S.
• NORMAL HEIGHTS E.S.
• OAK PARK E.S.
• OCEAN BEACH E.S.
• PACIFIC BEACH E.S.
• PACIFIC VIEW LEADERSHIP E.S.
• PARADISE HILLS E.S.
• PENN E.S.
• POINT LOMA H.S.
• RODRIGUEZ E.S.
• ROLANDO PARK E.S.
• ROSS E.S.
• ROWAN E.S.
• SAN DIEGO M.E.T. H.S.
• SESSIONS E.S.
• TAFT - TEACHER PREP & STUDENT SUPPORT
• TIERRASANTA E.S.
• TOLER E.S.
• VISTA GRANDE E.S.
• WEGEFORTH E.S.
• WHITMAN E.S.
• ZAMORANO E.S.

by Sara Kennedy

Letters in Solidarity: We Ratified Our New Contract. Now We Must Organize

We Ratified Our New Contract: Now We Must Organize

Fellow SDEA members, did you hear the news? The votes are in and our 2025-2027 contract has been ratified! An overwhelming 93% of SDEA members voted to ratify our tentative agreement, with over 5000 SDEA members participating. The contract will go into effect as soon as the District signs off at next Tuesday’s school board meeting.

This contract includes improvements to staffing, pay, and stability including:

• Concrete fixes for Special Education staffing
• 5% pay raise over 2 years – see what that looks like for you with this calculator 
• Locked in fully-paid family healthcare (including Kaiser $10 co-pay)
• Side Letter for no layoffs 
• No fall excessing at Title I schools – that’s 150 out of 175 schools
• Restored Early Childhood Education Teacher stipend
• Seniority for summer school hiring
• Protections for immigrant and LGBTQ+ educators and students
• …and more! 

See more details of what has changed and answers to frequently asked questions in our 2025-2027 Contract Resources.

This historic new contract did not come without a fight. Each collective action we took together, from walk-ins, to pickets, to rallies, built solidarity and pushed district leadership closer to saying "yes" to the union contract we wanted. SDEA members participated in every step of this contract process, and the improvements that we won are because members showed up to fight for them, including getting strike-ready for the first time in 30 years in our district!

So what’s next? Once the SDUSD board signs off on our new contract, all of the improvements that we won can be implemented. The key piece that will be on hold, however, is our 5% salary increase that we need to be able to remain competitive with surrounding districts and staff hard-to-fill positions like Special Education (not to mention afford to live near our schools in one of the most expensive cities in the country). Our 5% raise is being delayed because it’s tied to the Prop 98 funding that our district receives from the state. With Governor Newsom playing hardball in negotiations with the state legislature over the education budget and holding hostage $5.6 billion in Prop 98 funds (including about $80M from San Diego Unified), our 5% raise might not be paid until NEXT year.

But this is bigger than just our raises: our schools need these funds! In the wealthiest state in the country, we can and should invest in our future by investing in our public schools. Just as we demonstrated with our contract campaign, by mobilizing as SDEA union educators, together with families and community allies, we can leave the powers that be with no other choice but to do the right thing for our students and our schools. Sign and share our SDEA school funding petition today to be part of this movement as we take our first steps toward advancing education justice in our district!

by Sara Kennedy