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Iowa State Education Association
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| Iowa State Education Association | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Des Moines, Iowa |
| Type: | 501(c)(5) |
| Top official: | Tammy Wawro, President |
| Year founded: | 1854 |
| Website: | Official website |
The Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) is a nonprofit, 501(c)(5), education advocacy group based in Des Moines, Iowa. The organization was founded in 1854 as the Iowa State Teachers Association. The ISEA seeks "to promote and support quality education" in Iowa.[1]
ISEA represents over 34,000 members and is a member of the National Education Association.[1]
Mission
According to ISEA, the organization's mission is as follows:[1]
| “ |
Everything we do -- from lobbying for increased school resources to reaching out to build community support for our schools -- is designed to promote and support quality education. Together, we work to make sure that Iowa's public schools remain vital and strong and that our more than 500,000 students get nothing short of the best education possible.[2] |
” |
Background
Originally founded in 1854 as the Iowa State Teachers Association (ISTA), the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) is headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. In 1854, John. A Parvin served as the first chairman, and by 1863 women were allowed to join the organization. Between 1882 and 1911, ISTA lobbied the Iowa State Legislature to improve education through the passing of rigid requirements for teacher certification. Under Agnes Samuelson, the ISTA executive secretary in the late 1930s and 1940s, the organization transitioned into the ISEA. In 1948, ISEA and the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation joined together to lobby for sick leave for teachers, for augmenting state aid to schools, and for creating a state Board of Public Instruction. In 1974, the ISEA and other public employees successfully gained the right to collective bargaining.[3]
The ISEA is composed of 34,000 members, which are mainly classroom teachers but also includes school support staff workers, retired teachers, area education agency employees and community college faculty. The ISEA is a member of the National Education Association (NEA).[1] The ISEA lists six "core values," which are as follows:[1]
| “ |
We value quality public education. Democracy demands and students deserve a safe, accessible, equitable, and excellent public education. We value professionalism in education. An effective education system requires highly-qualified, respected educators focused on student learning and engaged in continuous improvement. We value teamwork through membership. Belonging to the Association demonstrates care for the collective needs of students, educators, and the community. We value advocacy for the education profession. Educators are most effective in a teaching and learning environment that provides them professional compensation, quality benefits, and respects the rights and responsibilities of all. We value strong public engagement. Effective schools require strong community support gained through sharing information, building partnerships, promoting advocacy, and influencing policy makers. We value a proactive organization. A vibrant organization requires visionary leaders and active members who advance shared goals.[2] |
” |
Work
Professional services
The ISEA, according to their website, has seven programs used to help their 400 affiliated localized associations throughout Iowa. The educational quality program provides financial resources and support through staff assistance to help teachers and communities seeking to improve education. The high standards program monitors the state's Department of Education to ensure that rules and regulations, according the ISEA, maintain the "highest professional standards."[4] The ISEA provides teachers with professional development through training and support. The organization promotes education and educational needs to the public through campaigns that aim to increase community involvement. The ISEA is also active in lobbying through their PAC, ISEA-PAC. ISEA is also an acting advocacy group and, as such, seeks to help teachers in the collective bargaining process. ISEA retains attorneys to help teachers in employment issues.[4]
Lobbying
The ISEA released their 2016 Legislative Priorities list, which outlines the organizations legislative focus for 2016. Below is a list of those priorities and the ISEA's stance on the issues.
| ISEA Legislative Priorities, 2016[5] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Issue | ISEA response | ISEA stance |
| State Supplemental Aid (SSA) | ISEA "[s]upports State Supplemental Aid (SSA) of no less than 4 percent for both FY2016 - FY 2017 and FY 2017 - FY 2018 for regular program and categorical funds for teacher quality, professional development, early intervention/class size and teacher leadership." | 
|
| Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) | ISEA "[s]upports resources for the Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) system, the Iowa Mentoring and Induction program and professional development funds, and they are used to supplement SSA for public schools and educators, not supplant them." |
|
| SSA, TLC and the Iowa Mentoring and Induction Program | ISEA "[o]pposes any attempt to use existing program funds; such as the TLC system and the Iowa Mentoring and Induction Program; to supplant instead of supplement SSA. We also oppose unfunded mandates for school districts." | 
|
| Area Education Agency (AEA) | ISEA "[s]upports restoring previous special education budget cuts to the AEAs so essential services and programs may continue." |
|
| Education funding | ISEA "[o]pposes state or local tax policies that adversely affect public education funding." |
|
| Social resources | ISEA "[s]upports dedicated, long-term resources, beyond the basic funding formula that covers additional services for students living in poverty, including nutrition, health and after- school programs." |
|
| Special programs | ISEA "[s]upports adequately funding ELL [English Language Learning], at-risk and gifted programs." |
|
| Community college funding | ISEA supports "[a] general fund appropriation for community colleges of $219 million which allows all Iowans competitive tuition rates and quality instruction." |
|
| Community college funding allocation | ISEA supports "[r]evision of the funding allocation for community colleges so additional local funding is made available from property taxes, sales taxes or income surtax." |
|
| Community college resources | ISEA supports "[r]equiring community colleges to have librarian/media specialists, counselors and health programs to improve and enhance student-learning opportunities." |
|
| Adult education | ISEA supports "[a]dditional resources to adequately provide for adult literacy services and ELL support for adult learners." |
|
| Community college security | ISEA supports "[s]tatutorily requiring community colleges to have annually reviewed campus security plans that are shared with faculty, staff and students." |
|
| Teacher salaries | ISEA supports "[r]equiring all school districts to provide a competitive living wage and change the statute to allow support professionals laid off by school districts over the summer to qualify for unemployment benefits." |
|
| Teacher pensions | ISEA supports "[m]aintaining IPERS [Iowa Public Employees Retirement System] as a defined benefit system and initiate a study to find a replacement cost-of-living adjustment for post-1990 retirees." |
|
| Employee rights | ISEA supports "[s]afeguarding the rights of Iowa’s public school employees, including due process." |
|
| Teacher retention | ISEA supports "[i]ncreasing compensation to attract and retain quality candidates for all public education positions." |
|
Leadership
The following is a list of the ISEA leadership:[6]
- Tammy Wawro, President
- Mary Jane Cobb, Executive Director
- Mike Beranek, Vice President
- Tom McLaughlin, Treasurer
- Ray Feuss, NEA Director
- Joshua Brown, NEA Director
Finances
The following is a breakdown of ISEA's revenue from membership dues, total revenue and expenses for the 2010-2014 fiscal years, as reported to the IRS. (Note: The ISEA tax year is September to August.)
| Annual membership dues, total revenue and expenses for ISEA, 2010-2014 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tax Year | Membership dues | Total annual revenue | Expenses |
| 2013/2014[7] | $13,594,349 | $16,298,051 | $13,763,975 |
| 2012/2013[8] | $13,458,565 | $14,966,790 | $14,000,495 |
| 2011/2012[9] | $13,183,066 | $14,885,562 | $19,234,937 |
| 2010/2011[9] | $12,996,379 | $14,875,899 | $10,081,975 |
Affiliated programs
ISEA-PAC
ISEA-PAC is the ISEA's lobbying 527, which was established in 1970. The mission of the PAC is as follows:[10]
| “ |
ISEA Political Action Committee is a standing committee of the ISEA executive board. The PAC works to promote specific action in elections or referenda and interview candidates to determine their degree of support of legislative issues.[2] |
” |
In 2014, the PAC received almost $275,000 in contributions and made $509,750 in campaign contributions. Tammy Wawro served as the chairperson and Mary Jane Cobb was the executive director.[10]
Media
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Iowa State Education Association. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- PAC
- Nonprofit organization
- National Education Association
- Iowa Farm Bureau Federation
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 ISEA, "Who We Are," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ ISEA, "Our History," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 ISEA, "Programs," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ ISEA, "2016 Legislative Priorities," accessed March 10, 2016
- ↑ ISEA, "ISEA Leaders," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ Guidestar, "ISEA, IRS Form 990 (2013/2014)," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ Guidestar, "ISEA, IRS Form 990 (2012/2013)," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Guidestar, "ICL, IRS Form 990 (2011/2012)," accessed November 12, 2015
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 IRS, "ISEA-PAC, IRS Form 990 (2014)," accessed November 17, 2015
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