Learn About the Local Only Union Option
Please check out a new page posted here on Independent Teachers with information specific to how Colorado teachers can explore adopting the local only union option for their school district.
Union Dues
The annual cost of full-time membership in the teachers union depends on the school district in which you work. For 2008-09, each full-time member pays $363 to the Colorado Education Association and $158 to the National Education Association headquarters. The local portion of union dues vary by location. Here is a sample of the TOTAL dues costs for 2008-09:
- Westminster (Adams 50): $812
- Aurora: $735
- Littleton: $726
- Jefferson County: $725
- Lewis Palmer: $712
- Canon City: $708
- Academy 20: $707
By comparison, members of the Douglas County Federation of Teachers (Colorado’s largest local affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers) pay $431 in dues for 2008-09.
Annual membership to join the Professional Association of Colorado Educators is $180.
Annual membership to join Christian Educators Association International is $139.
Ed News Colorado Highlights Teachers Union Political Contributions, Member Refunds
The Independent Teachers website is not the only place keeping tabs on political contributions made with the professional dues money of Colorado public educators. This week, Ed News Colorado ran a great story by Nancy Mitchell documenting the recent history of campaign-related giving by the Colorado Education Association and its affiliates:
The CEA and its local unions gave more than $600,000 directly to state legislative candidates over the five years, often piling on in tight races. Sen. Bob Bacon, D-Fort Collins, the chair of the Senate Education Committee and one of the top recipients of teachers’ union donations, hit the contribution limit from the statewide CEA and from each of the Denver, Fort Collins and Jefferson County unions in his hard-fought 2004 election victory….