Phase II: Grassroots Organizing!

In my last post, I documented how one-on-one meetings were key to building a “coalition of the willing” - teachers in my building who want to stay in teaching but want to see working and learning conditions improve.  

The article was written after my 10th on-on-one meeting.  After that, I recruited a veteran colleague to join me in arranging and doing these meetings; I decided when we were 20 strong, it would be time to hold a meeting.  

The hardest part about getting the coalition together is that they are REALLY busy.  Some have kids to pick up after school, others lead meetings every day after school, and others have second jobs.  I decided the best time to meet was for a potluck lunch during a teacher workday. Luckily, bad weather hasn’t hit us quite as hard as past years, and we still had one in February.  

Since I now have emails and cell phone numbers of everyone in the coalition, communication is fairly easy.  I emailed them about the details for the potluck and everyone coming declared what they would bring. I thought a lot about the agenda.  I wanted it to be inclusive, informative, and set us up for next level action. Here’s the notes from the meeting:

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On large poster paper, we each recorded a problem / solution we have identified and innovated since 1/1/2019, either in our work or home life.  While some did that, others filled their plates and vice-versa.

We started the formal meeting by processing the stuff on the poster board.  Things we noticed: our job takes over our.lives, it can keep us from basic self care, we solve problems all the time, etc.

Then I made some comments:

• Big picture:  we are relearning what actual people power looks like in a new Gilded Age. where business is very big and government is disfunctional.  We have all developed collective amnesia about this kind of collective civic work (that builds people power) since about 1980.
  
  • We are walking in the footsteps of exhausted coal miners, factory workers, migrant laborers, Cesar Chavez.  This is classic grassroots labor organizing we are doing. Pushing against the machine that is making us feel like machines.
    
  • It is slow and steady work and about building capacity.
    
  • Organizing principles: Meet people where they are at.  Love and support them, then we all stretch one inch (taking an action that is new to us).  Rest (summer). Repeat.
    

• First and foremost these gatherings must feed your soul- connection and support
  
  • Not gripe sessions, but a contextualizing of what you are experiencing.  
    
  • For now (like the rest of the school year) we will focus on micro-level problem solving and inviting people into this group.
    

• There is also something going on at the state level, and I propose that we send signals that we are “warm” to those efforts.  Here’s an update:
  
  • Four statewide teacher orgs (NCAE, Organize 2020, Red4EdNC, NCTU FB group) have merged efforts.
    
  • Four regional meetings held in January and early Feb.- 350+ teachers from 57 school systems.  You can access regional meetings time capsule here and use password: inittowinit
    
  • There are statewide organizing calls every Monday night on Zoom at 8pm.
    
  • We are launching a renewed focus on Red4Ed pics - new twist.  It's about signaling to the other 2500 schools in NC that we are "awake" and attending to the statewide  movement.
    
  • Your "stretch one inch" for this school year / campaign will be declared on a card that you are provided.  
    

• My proposal: let's focus on distributive leadership, offering lots of ways to connect and assessing what works:
  
  • Planning period teams - we picked captains. Those folks will text people the time / location of first Red4Ed pic.
    
  • We will make a weekly 4 pic photo collage  and all share it.
    
  • The period that grows their pics the most throughout the semester, consistently, the founding members of the coalition will all get new Red4Ed shirts : )
    
  • Invite people to join us.  How do you join? Provide your private email and cell #.  
    
  • There will be four ways to stay connected to the coalition:
    
    • A monthly after school meeting
      
    • Teacher Workday potlucks
      
    • A monthly Zoom call in the evening
      
    • after payday Friday happy hour
      

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We will be tracking which events get the best attendance and building our organization from there.

Our first “capacity building” action was our first Red4Ed picture the Wednesday after the meeting.  The four planning period captains texted their teachers that day and told them the time and location of the picture.  They took the pics, sent them to me, and I made the digital collage for posting / sharing. It went well! During my planning period, I pulled two people into the pic, quickly brought them up to date, and one joined the coalition right there and then!

The next event was “happy hour” at a nearby pub on a Friday after payday.  Eight people attended in the driving rain, and we had a great time. I decided not to have an agenda / formal meeting at that event, but we did talk about organizing in general and opportunities for collective action in the future.  

Our next event will be an after school meeting.  I’m going to “take back” the teacher’s lounge - it’s a space we used to use all the time but have neglected as the pace of our days have become more and more frenetic.  And then, the Zoom call will hopefully allow people to engage who just can’t make the after school / workday events, largely because of childcare issues.

My current takeaway:  so far, so good! I feel like we are building “people power” in my building, slowly but surely.  There will be lots of opportunities this spring to flex the capacity we are building and I’m looking forward to it!