Benefits of Belonging

Belonging to our Association is an investment in your career and your future. When you belong, you get support for your interests as an educator. You join with more than three million fellow members to promote quality public education. And you help all of us make gains for educators and for students by organizing for positive change in public education.

When you belong, you get superb benefits for your dues investment. Your benefits include representation at the local, state, and national levels, direct services for you and your family, and CEA-NEA support for your Local Association.

Supporting Public Education – Belonging to our Association gives you a strong, unified voice with education policy makers. You can count on our leadership to help you achieve your goals for public education and educators.

Strategies to attract and keep quality licensed teachers in every classroom and quality, skilled employees in every public education job
Full time lobbyists representing you and speaking up for your interests in the Legislature and Congress
Grassroots campaigns to elect Friends of Public Education to school boards, the Legislature, the State Board of Education, Congress, and the White House
Campaigns to build the public’s support for education and educators, and to advance our education agenda
Local Association activities to engage parents and community leaders in working with us to protect and improve public education

Supporting You in Your Workplace – Belonging to our Association gives you peace of mind through quality representation. You can count on us to support you where it matters most: in your job and your workplace.

An equal voice in determining your salary, benefits, and working conditions through local negotiations with your employer
Legal assistance from Association leaders and UniServ staff for employment related problems
Representation by experienced CEA attorneys who specialize in education and labor law
Personal protection with NEA’s $1 million professional liability insurance
Access to workshops and seminars to help you improve your professional practice
Opportunities to volunteer, learn more, get involved, and organize to effect positive change in public education for yourself and your students

Supporting Your Profession – Belonging to our Association gives you information you can use in your job. You can count on us to help you get the professional growth opportunities and resources you need to succeed.

Education news from your Local Association, CEA, and NEA
The NEA Professional Library, NEA Foundation, and NEA Health Information Network resources and grants, along with many online opportunities to learn and grow
NEA Member Benefits with a variety of affordable insurance, annuity, financial, and investment programs that help you save money and save on your dues investment
The Attorney Referral Program to help you save money if you need legal services for a personal problem
The honor of belonging to the oldest, largest, and fastest growing member-owned association in the world

Check out your National Benefits

Reasons to Belong

By becoming a member of AEA you join together with nearly 5,000 teachers, librarians, counselors and other licensed employees of the Aurora School district that are taking ownership of our profession so that we can provide real results for students. We believe that the only way we can achieve real results for students is ensuring that we have a quality teacher in every classroom, accountability for everyone and the ability to provide a 21^st Century Education so that our students can compete in the global economy.

Through advocacy, bargaining and collective action members of AEA are strengthening our schools, the teaching profession and our community by:

1. Ensuring that every student in Aurora is taught by a quality teacher. We advocate for::

Support for individual teachers throughout their careers. Effective professionals in law and medicine have access to strong preparatory education programs and on the job training. Effective teachers require similar opportunities.
Support for building schools that attract more quality teachers into the profession. Strong professionals gravitate to work in environments where they can have a chance to succeed.
A professional compensation system that has the best chance of attracting top college student candidates into the profession.

2. Collaborating with key stakeholders and policy makers to build a community where everyone is accountable for quality public schools.

A quality public education system is a key factor in building strong communities, therefore all stakeholders including, parents, teachers, students, principals, business owners, elected officials and community members must play a role in ensuring students in Aurora can achieve real results. AEA works closely with all stakeholders to find creative ways to improve accountability at all levels.

3. Working with policymakers and education administrators to create an education system where teachers are able to provide a 21st Century Education so that our students can compete in the global economy.

As educators we understand that schools need to be institutions of learning not institutions of testing. Unfortunately, we have been so overburdened with unfunded mandates that we struggle to find the time to teach the skills that students will need to compete. Belonging to our Association gives you a strong, unified voice with education policy makers.

We are working to create an environment where teachers have the flexibility to:
Build a well rounded public education experience that is multifaceted and multi-dimensional and one that integrates curriculum with practical career applications.
Teach problem solving, collaboration and analytical skills.
Utilize testing to inform instruction and measure growth, but realize that schools should be institutions of learning, not institutions of testing.

Resources for Members

Belonging to our Association gives you a strong, unified voice with education policy makers. You can count on our leadership to help you achieve your goals for public education and educators

Initiatives to increase education funding, reduce class sizes, and improve student achievement, including Believe in a Better Colorado
Strategies to attract and keep quality licensed teachers in every classroom and quality, skilled employees in every public education job
Full time lobbyists representing you and speaking up for your interests in the Legislature and Congress
Grassroots campaigns to elect Friends of Public Education to school boards, the Legislature, the State Board of Education, Congress, and the White House
Campaigns to build the public’s support for education and educators, and to advance our education agenda
Local Association activities to engage parents and community leaders in working with us to protect and improve public education

CEA and NEA Benefits of Belonging

Visit CEA’s website to learn more about the benefits and opportunites when you become a member.

Visit NEA’s Member Benefits website to learn more about exclusive discount programs and member benefits.