The Colorado Springs Education Association, CSEA, is the professional organization representing over 1,500 public school educators in Colorado Springs School District 11.
We are a local affiliate of the Colorado Education Association (CEA) and the National Education Association (NEA), America’s oldest and largest organization dedicated to advancing the cause of public education. Founded in 1857, NEA proudly claims 3.2 million members who work at every level of education, from pre-schools to universities. NEA has affiliates in all states, as well as in 13,000 towns and cities across the U.S.
No one person or small group sets policy for CSEA, CEA or NEA. The members of the local, state and national affiliates chart the Association’s course through democratically elected representatives and officers.
At the local level, we are governed by Association Representatives (ARs) from every building and by our CSEA Board of Directors. ARs are elected by members in their buildings, and members of the Board of Directors are elected by the membership at large. All CSEA members may participate in elections and are encouraged to run for an elected position.
Members are invited to observe their elected governance bodies at work. ARs meet the second Tuesday of each month at the Tesla school. AR meetings provide a forum to learn about issues impacting public education, participate in training in member rights and the Master Agreement, receive updates on legislative issues, and learn what’s going on in the District. The Board of Directors meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at the CSEA office.
Membership in the CSEA, CEA and NEA provides many benefits. To learn more about the benefits of belonging, visit the websites for the Colorado Education Association and NEA Member Benefits.
CEA policy is established by a 650 person assembly of members from across the state that convenes each spring. At CEA Delegate Assembly, representatives make decisions regarding school reform issues, legislative agendas, philosophical resolutions and member rights advocacy.
The NEA is the largest professional organization in the United States, with over 3.2 million members. The NEA Representative Assembly (NEA RA) is the largest democratic gathering in the world and brings together more than 10,000 delegates representing every state each summer.
CSEA’s representatives to both the CEA Delegate Assembly and the NEA Representative are elected annually by the membership at large.
CSEA has a full-time released President, Joe Schott, and employs a UniServ Director, Thad Gemski, and a Business & Operations Manager, Laura Zeitz. The office is located at 2520 North Tejon Street in Colorado Springs, Colorado. CSEA may be contacted at 719.471.1190.
To learn more about the history of our organization, click here.