Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1537217
San Diego Education Assn. (SDEA) members turned up the volume this spring with pickets across 125 schools in the San Diego Unified School Dis- trict, combining organizing power with new art skills! SDEA is one of the 30+ local unions participating in the "We Can't Wait" campaign, uniting educa- tors statewide to demand fully staffed schools, competitive wages and ben- efits, and safe, stable schools. To help fuel the momentum, Bay Area artist David Solnit teamed up with several locals to create eye-catching visuals. In March, he spent a full day with SDEA's organizing committee and community allies, teaching screen-printing and large-scale banner making. These sessions led to broader community art builds where members connected, built solidarity and prepared bold visuals for pickets in the spring. The results: A tentative agreement with San Diego Unified that included a 1.5% retroactive raise, and increased statewide pressure to finally fund the schools our students and communities deserve. Cajon Valley Education Assn. set a high bar for membership recruitment to build union power to fight back against an extremist school board that has created chaos in Cajon Valley. CVEA leadership recruited 314 new members, increasing their membership by 45% over the last two and a half years! CVEA used all four available CTA grants this year (site visit, local planning, member engagement and community engagement). The site visit grant was focused on a listening tour for bargaining, while the local planning grant helped the executive board to create their membership recruitment goal. CVEA demonstrated its power at board meetings and beyond. 19 S U M M E R 2 0 2 5