Committees
Our members can directly engage within our spheres of influence through participation in community spaces, committees, and work groups.
More information about our committees and their membership requirements can be found in the SEA Bylaws and in our Certificated, Paraprofessional, and SAEOP CBAs.
If you are interested in consideration for appointment to any of our SEA committees, delegations, and work groups please fill out our Member Interest Form.
The following committees, work groups, and delegations are seeking interested members leaders for the 2024-2025 school year
Martin Luther King, Jr. County Labor Council is the central body of labor organizations in King County, Washington. MLKLC is affiliated with the National AFL-CIO, the central labor organization in the United States, representing more than 13 million working people. The MLKLC mission is to unify all labor organizations in King County to build power and strength for all workers. Meets monthly after work hours.
Membership Committee is an internal SEA committee. Membership Committee supports meeting enrollment, participation, and activation goals through NEA, WEA and SEA initiatives and in conjunction with the Board of Directors and bargaining unit departments. Meets monthly after work hours. President Meesh Vecchio is the governance lead for this committee.
Special Education Task Force is a joint labor management group, see page 99 of the Cert CBA for details. The Special Education Task Force builds on previous work of the Special Education Task Force and continue to work on a plan of implementation to transition to a more inclusive resource services continuum and more inclusive practices for all pathways K-12. The Task Force will identify and recommend changes to institutional practices, programs, and policies. Meets during the work day; sub release provided. President Meesh Vecchio is the governance lead for this committee.
Special Education Relief Committee is a joint labor management group, see page 95 of the Cert CBA for details. The Relief Committee will review staff relief requests and make relief decisions to approve/not approve. The Relief Committee will review staffing overage notifications and will notify HR of staffing adjustments needed per the overage chart. Meets monthly after work hours. President Meesh Vecchio is the governance lead for this committee.
Assessment Committee is a joint labor management group, see page 25 of the Cert CBA for details. Assessment Committee makes recommendations on which standardized or common assessments are used at the building, regional, or district-wide level. In the process, the committee reviews the district’s proposed Districtwide annual assessment calendar for the upcoming academic year. The committee also works to address a range of issues related to the annual assessment calendar such as minimizing disruptions to learning and ensuring students with IEPs and multilingual students’ needs are met. Meets monthly after work hours; members paid extra time for participation. Vice President Girard Montejo-Thompson is the governance lead for this committee.
Nomination and Elections Committee is an internal SEA committee. The Nomination and Elections Committee handles both nominations and elections process and procedures including recommending to the Board of Directors timelines and rules governing elections for Officer positions, Board of Directors positions, and SEA delegates to WEA and NEA RAs consistent with the requirements of our Bylaws and Department of Labor laws that govern our elections. Meets on an irregular schedule after work hours.
Educators for Public Education Committee (EPEC) is an internal SEA committee. EPEC interviews and endorses candidates running for Seattle School Board and City of Seattle elected positions, takes positions on City of Seattle levies, initiatives, and referendums, and makes endorsement recommendations to the WEAPAC board for state level and county races. EPEC is part of the Washington Education Association Political Action Committee (WEAPAC). Meets on an irregular schedule after work hours. Elizabeth Ward-Robertson, CRSJ Director, is the governance lead for this committee.
Bylaws Committee is an internal SEA committee. The Bylaws Committee is a standing committee that is charged with reviewing and updating our SEA Bylaws and Standing Rules documents. Their charge is to update our governing documents to be compliant with state and federal laws, to make our rules and procedures more equitable, and to address confusing or even conflicting language. It’s the SEA Representative Assembly that has the final authority to adopt any changes to our bylaws or standing rules. Changes are adopted by a two-thirds approval of Association Reps. Meets monthly after work hours. President Meesh Vecchio is the governance lead for this committee.
Grievance Review Commission (GRC) is an internal SEA committee. The GRC determines whether members continue with their grievance to the final arbitration step. The GRC makes this decision based on whether there is a contract violation, what SEA will gain or lose by going to arbitration, is the grievance frivolous, and is success low due to vague language, past practice. The GRC shall inform the membership about their rights and responsibilities, promote high standards of professional ethics, work for fair and professional treatment for all members of the profession, assist individual and groups found to be unjustly treated, and consider problems brought before the Commission. Meets monthly after work hours. Elizabeth Ward-Robertson, CRSJ Director, is the governance lead for this committee.
Ethnic Minority Affairs Commission (EMAC) is an internal committee. EMAC is committed to supporting Educators of Color by providing a safe space and a support system focused on professional interventions and solutions to meet our needs. This provides Educators of Color a voice in our workspaces and allows us the means to share the needs of our communities for our scholars, families and colleagues. EMAC also promotes and supports ethnic minority members’ involvement by providing opportunities to participate in all levels of Union activities and by providing a strong voice for input into decisions affecting EOC members. Meets monthly after work hours. Pam Davis is the EMAC Chair. Paraprofessional President Otis Goldenr is the governance lead for this committee.
Professional Growth and Educator Support (PGES) is a joint labor management group, see page 22 of the Cert CBA for details. PGES monitors & guides the implementation of the evaluation system. Specifically, this year the PGES would be monitoring the rollout of the new Student Growth Goals Rubric and the rollout of the new induction plan we developed last year. Meets during the work day; sub release provided. Vice President Girard Montejo-Thompson is the governance lead for this committee.
Professional Development Steering Committee is a joint labor management group, see page 18 of the Cert CBA and page 17 of both the Paraprofessional and SAEOP CBAs for details. PD Steering Committee identifies SPS initiatives that require professional development to support implementation and determines if there is sufficient time and follow-up support allocated to the initiative to create sustainable progress in increasing student achievement. Meets during the work day; sub release provided. Vice President Girard Montejo-Thompson is the governance lead for this committee.
Center for Social and Racial Justice (CRSJ) Committee is an internal committee. The CRSJ’s vision is to provide a safe network for educators to advocate for the advancement of racial equity in changing the narrative and experiences of public education across Seattle. The CRSJ Committee will provide guidance to the CRSJ Director on how to achieve the CRSJ’s strategic goals. Meets monthly after work hours. Elizabeth Ward-Robertson, CRSJ Director, is the governance lead for this committee.
Waiver Committee is an internal SEA committee. The Waiver Committee reviews waiver requests submitted by schools. A waiver request is when a school wants to waive part of their CBA or MOU (contract) rights. The Waiver Committee recommends to the SEA Board of Directors whether we should approve the waiver request or not. Meets on an irregular schedule after work hours. President Meesh Vecchio is the governance lead for this committee.
The following committees have been appointed for the 2024-2025 school year:
Partnership Committee is a joint labor management group, see page 10 of the Cert CBA for details. Partnership Committee provides guidance to district leadership to ensure racial equity in our educational system, to unapologetically address the needs of students of color who are furthest from educational justice, and to undo the legacies of racism in our educational system, consistent with Board Policy No. 0030 – Ensuring Educational and Racial Equity. Meets during the work day; sub release provided. Elizabeth Ward-Robertson, CRSJ Director, is the governance lead for this committee.
Multilingual Task Force is a joint labor management group, see page 103 of the Cert CBA for details. The ML Task Force is charged with improving service delivery to students and creating more equitable access to ML services in neighborhood schools. The ML Task Force will also review DLI student progress and equitable program access in content area courses in students’ home languages. Meets during the work day; sub release provided. Elizabeth Ward-Robertson, CRSJ Director, is the governance lead for this group.
Pre-K Committee The Pre-K Work Group is a joint SEA-SPS committee defined by our Cert CBA in Appendix R. The Pre-K Work Group will meet quarterly to establish clear goals and a focus for this group including outlining the work of a Developmental Pre-K coach with consideration of publishing options to support student peer modeling in Dev Pre-K and giving enrollment assistance. Paraprofessional President Otis Golden is the governance lead for this work group.Budget and Finance Commission is an internal committee. The Budget and Finance Commission shall prepare the annual budget; develop policies relating to the SEA budget and finance, monitor expenditures and report to the Board of Directors and Representative Assembly. Meets on an irregular schedule after work hours. Davina Diaz, Treasurer, is the governance lead for this group.
