Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1509126
Accolades Kudos for members and chapters around the state Public Pensions Help Close the Wealth Gap A N E W R E P O R T finds that defined benefit pensions, especially public pensions, provide a key buffer against economic hardship for women, Blacks, Latinos and those without a four-year col- lege degree, and narrow the wealth gap among older families. NEA partnered with the National Institute on Retirement Security and UC Berkeley to support a research project on retirement inequality titled, "Closing the Gap: The Role of Public Pensions in Reducing Retirement Inequality." (NEA will hold a webinar about the report on October 19; at press time, details were not known but can be found at nea.org) Defined benefit plans offer guaranteed retirement benefits for employees. The report finds that public pensions play an outsized role in the retirement income security of older adults and reduce wealth inequality by race and gender. As private pension coverage declines, according to the report, public sector retirement benefits form a bulwark of middle-class retirement security, particularly for marginalized communities who have been shut out of other wealth-build- ing opportunities. Read the report at nirsonline.org/reports/closingthegap. High Tech Honor The San Diego Labor Council recognized High Tech Education Collective (HTEC) as Organizer of the Year at its annual dinner in the summer. The event, attended by local elected and labor leaders, bestowed the honor because of HTEC's "unrelentless efforts to organize teachers across San Diego and Imperial counties." The award was photographed with various HTEC members in the following days. Dressed for the Occasion Madera Unified Teachers Association member Beth Morris was recently named the 2023 Teacher of the Year at her school, Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School. The teacher librarian was congratulated on social media by Naqiba Gregory, CTA Board advisory chair for the Ethnic Minority Early Identification & Development program and NEA Board director. Gregory noted that EMEID alum Morris is a member of the indigenous tribe Delaware Lenape of Canada, and wore her regalia for the award celebration. She lauded Morris' "wealth of knowledge" and dedication to her students and community. Gone Global Science teacher and San Ramon Valley Education Association member Teresa Butler-Doran won't be in her classroom come January. Thanks to a prestigious Fulbright Distinguished Teacher Award, she will instead spend the second semester in Finland designing curriculum that connects students across borders. Follow her journey on Facebook, under Teacher Teresa Gone Global. 53 O C T O B E R / N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 3 C