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National School Counseling Week
Let’s celebrate our school counselors who provide students with invaluable academic, career, social, and emotional development each day. We're grateful for the work our school counselor colleagues do to help all our students learn
National Board Candidate Support Sessions
Are you a candidate for National Board Certification and you could use some support with the process? SDEA members will be coming together for guided NBCT candidate support sessions for members working on National Board Certification. These sessions are an opportunity for candidates to bring their written work, component directions, ask questions and receive feedback. Sessions are open to union members only. If you're not a member, you can join here Choose one (1) session and register NOW!
February 16th from 4 - 6 p.m. – Register Here
March 2nd from 4 - 6 p.m. – Register Here
March 30th from 4 - 6 p.m. – Register Here
April 20th from 4 - 6 p.m. – Register Here
May 4th from 4 - 6 p.m. – Register Here
Questions can be directed to Stacy Begin (CTA Staff) NBCT: sbegin@cta.org
Calm app available for all CTA members and dependents
Have you heard the exciting news? The Calm mobile app is now available to all CTA members (active and retired) and dependents, at no cost.
We are all facing challenges that can lead to stress and even burnout. The Calm App is a tool to improve our mental health and well-being. Whether you have 30 seconds or 30 minutes every day, Calm’s resources are designed to seamlessly integrate with your schedule and needs. Your Calm subscription gives you unlimited access to their full library of resources at calm.com and in the Calm app including:
- Calm’s Masterclasses taught by world-renowned experts
- Guided breathing exercises such as the Breathe Bubble
- Music tracks designed to promote focus, relaxation, and sleep
- 100+ guided meditations that cover anxiety, stress, gratitude, and much more
- Brand new daily meditations and movement sessions as part of their Dailies series
- The entire library of Sleep Stories which contains soothing bedtime tales for all ages (new stories added every week!)
As a CTA Member, you can activate your FREE Calm subscription by:
- Logging into www.CTAMemberBenefits.org/calm
- Follow the instructions - you will need your 10-digit CTA Individual member ID 0007993294 (this is on your monthly Educator magazine mailing label, add zeros in front if your ID number is less than 10 digits)
- Download the Calm app and log into your new account. It’s that easy!
IFT Grant Program: Applications Now Open
CTA's Institute for Teaching grant program has transformed classrooms, schools and school communities. All members are eligible to apply for an Educator grant (up to $5,000) or an Impact grant (up to $20,000) which can be used to engage members and support strength-based, teacher-driven creativity, passion and innovation. Read more at cta.org/ift. Applications accepted through March 31, 2023.
Pregnancy Leave
An overview of Pregnancy Leave
The California Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) Law requires employers to provide up to 4 months of
leave for employees who are disabled by pregnancy, with or without pay. However, certificated
employees are eligible under the union contract to receive paid leave before and after their delivery,
through use of their accumulated sick leave, and up to an additional 100 work days of half-pay sick leave
once they exhaust their full-pay sick leave.
Parental Leave
What are the new laws concerning Parental/Bonding leave?
As of January 2016, all certificated employees now have the right to take 12 workweeks of paid parental
or bonding leave. Employees are eligible for this leave if they have worked for the school district for one
continuous school year. This law applies to mothers, fathers, adoptive parents, and foster parents. For
Virtual CTA Retirement Trainings
You’re never too young or old to learn about your CalSTRS benefits, programs, and services. Our union, through CTA, conducts retirement training throughout the school year. At these trainings there will be materials and discussion of the CalSTRS retirement benefit formula, options, Defined Benefit Supplemental program, survivor benefits, legislative changes, and Social Security Offsets. The next trainings are on Tuesday, February 7, Tuesday, March 7, Thursday, March 9 and Tuesday, April 4 from 4:30-6:30 pm. Follow this link for more information about how you can sign up for this upcoming training.
NEA Teacher Grants
Innovate your teaching instruction in 2023 with a grant from the NEA Foundation. Check out their Envision Equity, Student Success and Learning and Leadership grants for union members today. Apply by February 1 to receive a grant from $1.5k to $5k. For more info see the NEA Foundation website and the How to Apply for A Grant video.
CTA Scholarships and Grants
It's that time of the year again! The following scholarships, grants and awards are currently available to SDEA members and their dependent children.
Deadline: January 27, 2023
The CTA Scholarships offer scholarships in the following categories. Scholarship funds must be used for education-related expenses only.
Dependent Children
This program offers up to 35 scholarships of up to $5,000 each to a dependent child of an active member of CTA, CTA/NEA-Retired or a deceased CTA member and be claimed as a dependent on the member's current year's IRS form.
Dependent Children in Honor of Del A. Weber
This program offers one scholarship of up to $5,000 to a dependent child attending or attended continuation high school/alternative education programs.
Members
This program offers up to five scholarships of up to $3,000 each to active members of CTA (including members working on an emergency credential).
CTA Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Scholarship
Deadline: February 10, 2023
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Scholarship Program encourages Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) students to become educators, school nurses, school counselors or school therapists and to promote professional growth for BIPOC teachers and Education Support Professionals (ESP) members.
César E. Chávez and Dolores Huerta Education Award Program
Deadline: March 3, 2023
This award program provides recognition for educators and their students who demonstrate an understanding of the vision and guiding principles embraced by César E. Chávez and Dolores Huerta.
The NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence
Deadline: March 3, 2023
The NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence recognize, reward, and promote both excellence in teaching and advocacy for the profession. The awards are presented jointly by the National Education Association (NEA) and the NEA Foundation.
LGBTQ+ Safety in Schools Grant & Scholarship Program
Deadline: May 31, 2023
The grant program will support groups, projects and presentations that promote understanding of and respect for LGBTQ+ persons. In addition, the scholarship program will support self-identified LGBTQ+ members enrolled in a teacher/counseling credential or graduate program who are pursuing a career in public education and who understand the importance of LGBTQ+ educators as role models in our public schools.