VEA Staffers Talk About their Transitions from our State’s Classrooms to UniServ Offices
October 10, 2025
October 10, 2025
Several members of VEA’s UniServ staff came into those positions directly from doing union work as members and serving as leaders in their locals. We asked some of them about that career transition, and here’s what they had to say:
Tell us about your career in Virginia schools.
I spent 18 years as a secondary English teacher: seven years in Fairfax, five in Prince William, one in Manassas Park, two years on a leave of absence as I cared for my daughter while she battled pediatric brain cancer, and I also spent three years at Trinity Christian School in Fairfax.
How were you involved in union work when you were a member?
I’ve been a VEA member since the 2004-05 school year but didn’t get involved as a leader until 2019-2020. That year, I ran for executive board secretary, and for the next two years I was incredibly active, leading advocacy campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic. My union siblings and I organized rallies and advocated before county leadership and the school board to ensure the safety of our colleagues during such an unprecedented time.
When did the idea of coming on VEA staff appear on your radar?
In 2021, I was nominated for and accepted into the NEA Pre-UniServ Program and graduated that spring. After that, I knew I wanted to transition to staff and serve my colleagues in that capacity.
What do you enjoy about being on staff?
I adore working with our members and helping grow them as leaders. While assisting employees with member rights cases is rewarding, there’s nothing like the joy of seeing a leader learn and evolve. I have members who have gone from barely knowing Robert’s Rules to serving on the VEA executive committee in my three years as their UD, and that makes me a proud Mama Bear.
Tell us about your career in Virginia schools.
I was a business education teacher at Honaker High School in Russell County Public Schools for 11 years, including three as an administrator. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to work. Honaker’s staff are still like family, and students whom I still call my kids to this day, many of whom are now educators and members themselves.
How were you involved in union work when you were a member?
I served in various roles while a member of the Russell County Education Association, eventually becoming president. During my time in governance, I sought to learn as much as possible about VEA and how to be an effective member and leader for my local. I was a delegate to the convention each year, attended lobby days, instructional conferences, the Local Officers Retreat, and the Reggie Smith Organizing School, and was also a member of the Professional Rights & Responsibilities Committee.
When did the idea of coming on VEA staff appear on your radar?
When longtime UniServ Director Doris Boitnott began considering retirement, she started intentionally acclimating me to her work. This was part of Doris’s giftedness in being able to walk side-by-side with anyone along their journey, providing them with the information and encouragement they needed at just the right time.
How did that transition happen?
Doris retired and, sadly, passed this past January. I will never fill her shoes or have her legacy, but I’m thankful for all she taught me and the connections she facilitated with people that helped make my transition to the UD role much easier. My daughter, Hannah, graduated from Honaker High in 2020, and it was a perfect time for me to “graduate” from Honaker High as well.
What do you enjoy about being on staff?
As a staffer who has been a member and local leader, I have special insight and relatability into the roles they play that others who don’t come from the governance side of an education union may not have. Working for an organization with diverse individuals and diverse perspectives has been great. I continually learn from them in the work we do, as well as from their experiences as they live their lives. I couldn’t stay away from serving in a leadership capacity, so I currently serve as president of one of VEA’s staff unions, the Virginia Professional Staff Association.
Anything else?
Get involved in your local union. You are the Union! Attend district and state events. Every member has a UniServ Director that is just a phone call or email away to ask for assistance with employment matters, but also for more information on how you can get involved, event information, professional development opportunities, member benefits, and a wide array of information. Tap into their knowledge. If we don’t know the answer, we will connect with each other, other VEA departments, and elsewhere to assist you.
Tell us about your career in Virginia schools.
I began as a long-term substitute high school choral director, and, after two months on the job, I was offered a regular contract for the next school year. I then spent three years in Portsmouth and the rest of my 21 years of teaching in Chesapeake, working as an elementary general music teacher, and a middle and high school choral director. The highlight of my teaching career was being named the 2017 Virginia Teacher of the Year. I most enjoyed my engagement with students from diverse cultural backgrounds. I got to spend time shaping and molding students in other areas besides music. Some of my students have successful professional careers and some are in the teaching profession, attributing this to the experiences we’ve shared in my classroom.
How were you involved in union work when you were a member?
I was recruited by my building rep in Chesapeake to become a building rep when she needed to give up the position to create time for graduate school. I became more engaged in VEA as I attended some of the statewide activities, including the Reggie Smith Organizing Institute, and eventually became a VEA trainer under Beblon Parks and Cheri James. I served as both president and vice president of the Chesapeake Education Association for two terms, as District N president, and a VEA Board member.
When did the idea of joining the VEA staff appear on your radar?
One year prior to COVID-19, based on the number of issues and concerns that were coming up in my school division, the idea circulated in my mind to consider becoming a UniServ Director. I was CEA president at the time and we’d been without a UD for over a year. During that time, VEA’s then-Director of Field Support and I dealt with these concerns.
How did that transition happen?
When the pandemic became our reality, teaching middle school choral music was an extreme challenge since we were “sheltered in place.” My current position with the Tidewater UniServ Council, which covers Portsmouth and Suffolk, was open. I applied for it and here I am!
What do you enjoy about being on staff?
I enjoy my work with educators as they learn to advocate for their rights and gain a sense of dignity in doing so. Educators who are successful in resolving some of their concerns while trying to provide a quality education for their students see the value of collaborative efforts with those who share the same values. I also enjoy working with my colleagues (UDs and Organizers) who bring diverse experiences to the job, making them highly qualified to assist our educators in building their professional capacity and growing to be leaders.
Anything else?
I’m looking forward to new opportunities to grow professionally and expand my knowledge in my work. I’ve learned, served, and trained with some phenomenal professionals and groups, like the Harvard Kennedy School, labor legend Marshall Ganz, Organizing and Action, Leading Change, and Ellen Holmes with the NEA-UniServ Support Program. I’ve also learned and grown a lot from being an active member of the Virginia Professional Staff Association (VPSA), our professional staff union, where I serve as an executive board member and committee chair. This would not have happened had I not had the opportunity to serve as a UniServ Director. I am grateful and hope that I will be able to continue to effectively serve VEA member educators.
Tell us about your career in Virginia schools.
I began as a classroom aide and now my purpose in life is to aid those in the classroom (and the rest of the school). When I began my career in middle school, I was a fresh-faced 22-year-old, fresh out of Radford University, with only half a clue about what I wanted in life and an even less-defined idea of what career I wanted, if I wanted that at all. I sashayed into my hometown of Harrisonburg, wielding a degree in Physical and Health Education that was my ticket to a long and satisfying career. My confidence was shaken when I finally began teaching middle school health and physical education. Although I was prepared with content and enthusiasm, I was ill-prepared for how needy and brutally honest middle school students could be. It took my first three years of teaching just to consider myself adequate, much less a master teacher. I spent 29 years at that same middle school, and I’d still hesitate to call myself a master teacher. Teaching is the most difficult job in the world to be great at!
How were you involved in union work when you were a member?
I did manage to become masterful at a few things over the years, though. I worked hard as a member of the Harrisonburg Education Association and became a trusted leader in my building. I also became passionate about preserving educators’ autonomy and respect. Eventually, I leveraged my values and ideas and became HEA president.
When did the idea of coming on VEA staff appear on your radar?
During my tenure as a local president, Virginia passed a bill giving public employees the right to collectively bargain their contracts, and this was my opportunity to really show up for my colleagues. I tirelessly recruited members and openly campaigned for better working conditions and pay. As a result, our membership grew 25 percent, and HEA members are now on their way to using those bargaining rights. I realized then, as I do now, that my passions had shifted, from bright-eyed students who have so much to learn to those who work endlessly to give those students every advantage they can.
What do you enjoy about being on staff?
The people that dedicate their lives to their communities and their most precious resource, their children, are worth fighting for! As VEA’s Valley Uniserv Director, I am older and wiser and the lines on my face should give school employees confidence about my hard-won knowledge and experience. I pledge to them that I will support and defend all people who work to do what is morally and ethically right for public schools, students, and the soul of our nation.
Anything else?
Education has changed dramatically over the course of my career. Schools were once a place where learning was the main objective and parents were responsible for their child’s overall well-being. Now, most schools look like community centers that attempt to fill the void often left by parents, local churches, and underfunded social services. Schools now offer all types of services including medical care, psychological care, parenting classes, jackets for the needy, food for struggling families and community entertainment. However, the funding model for schools remains the same, as if nothing has changed over the last 30 years.
What do you enjoy about being on staff?
I was a longtime member of the Maryland State Education Association and a former St. Mary’s County leader there, so I never worked in Virginia’s public schools, but I’m always amazed at how educators across the country all encounter similar challenges and triumphs. Teaching was extremely rewarding for me, and now I find that assisting teachers and other school staff members is even better because I am able to help them be their best for their students.
The greatest part of what we do is empowering others to advocate for themselves. Members share their experiences and encourage others to organize around issues that make the education profession better for everyone.
Anything else?
I highly recommend that former educators, especially those with governance experience, consider becoming UniServ Directors. We are often the first people to provide guidance when our members are in crisis and need suggestions that will give them hope. I find that my past union activities and prior knowledge help me put members at ease and feel better about the circumstances they encounter. I try to offer options that they may not have thought of otherwise.
And, as an experienced educator, you already have the skill set! The active listening, effective communication, ability to adapt, empathy, creativity, patience, organization, work ethic, advocacy, negotiating, lifelong learning, problem-solving, and critical thinking you demonstrate every day are all important parts of this work.
According to the Economic Policy Institute, teachers in Virginia earn 67 cents on the dollar compared to other (non-teacher) college-educated workers. Virginia’s teacher wage penalty is the worst in the nation.
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