Composed of over 500 dedicated, professional educators serving the students and community of Glastonbury, Connecticut.
This website is designed to inform the members of upcoming events and current happenings within the GEA. Information about contacting the officers and building representatives, frequently asked questions, and upcoming meeting dates are shared using the menu options at the top of the page.
Down Home Meeting w/ Legislators
This year’s Down Home Meeting had a big main talking point: SB 381. On March 19th, GEA members Julie Veschi, Kristen Basiaga, Austin Longendyke, and Matt Zabroski (pictured below on the left) met with three of Glastonbury’s legislators to talk about upcoming bills. If passed, SB 281 would increase teachers salaries, provide COVID recognition pay, improve mandated reporting procedures, and more.
Because of its potentially high cost, the starting salary was the highlight of the talks. “I did my student teaching in Plainfield,” said Austin Longendyke, a fourth grade teacher at Buttonball Elementary. “When it came time to apply for a job, I found out that starting salaries in Plainfield were $8,000 less than in districts nearby. I’m not in it for the money, but I need to pay the rent.” Low starting salaries and WEP/GPO are two big factors contributing to the teacher shortage, and that shortage is changing how districts hire educators.
Kristen Basiaga also spoke to the importance of HJ 215, a bill from the Labor Committee that would memorialize congress to federally repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) penalties to retired educators’ social security benefits. Senator Rahman attended the meeting along with Representatives Barry and Doucette. All three congressmen have consistently joined the GEA for talks about current issues in education
