NEOEA-Retired Organizing Committee

Featured

Posted on May 10, 2021 by HankHaynes

The NEOEA-Retired Organizing Committee promotes the welfare of retired members of the North Eastern Ohio Education Association (NEOEA) by identifying particular concerns of retired members as topics for training workshops and social opportunities, by serving as a link between northeastern Ohio retired members and those in other districts, and by fostering communication within OEA-Retired. Also see the the OEA-R page on the OEA Website and the NEA-R page on the NEA website. Join our NEOEA Facebook group.

Our goal is to provide you a resource to locate people and resources to assist you and keep you informed. Please consider volunteering to serve on one of our Sub-Committees. NEOEA-OEA-Retired members may use the Contact Us page to update their contact information or request Spring Conference information. We need your input to help the website evolve to better assist you. Submit your comments, questions, or contact updates on our Contact Us page.

LANDMARK Victory! GPO and WEP Repealed

Posted on December 21, 2024 by dennislewis

A win forty years in the making, NEA secures full retirement benefits for educators

https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/landmark-victory-gpo-and-wep-repealed

A bill to repeal the decades-long Social Security penalty on teachers, police and other government retirees won final passage on the night of Friday, December 20 after the Senate voted overwhelmingly to grant nearly 3 million Americans their full benefits. The bill will now be sent to President Biden’s desk, where it awaits his signature to become law.

This bill repeals provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for individuals who receive other benefits, such as a pension from a state or local government.

The bill eliminates the Government Pension Offset, which in various instances reduces Social Security benefits for spouses, widows, and widowers who also receive government pensions of their own.

The bill also eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision, which in some instances reduces Social Security benefits for individuals who also receive a pension or disability benefit from an employer that did not withhold Social Security taxes.

These changes are effective for benefits payable after December 2023.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/82

https://apnews.com/article/social-security-congress-565aaf221de6d607f207e286655eef25

Action Alert – GPO/WEP

Posted on December 14, 2024 by dennislewis

We are so close to giving retired educators, both current and future, the full benefits they earned.

For too long, the government has taken away Social Security benefits from millions of educators, first responders, and other public service workers—Social Security they paid into when they worked other jobs.

But that’s about to change.

The Senate will vote as early as Tuesday or Wednesday to fully repeal both GPO and WEP.

Please call both of your senators’ offices right now and tell them to vote YES on H.R. 82, the Social Security Fairness Act.

Call Your Senator ➤

We have worked for decades to get to this moment. NEA members have sent hundreds of thousands of messages and calls. We have met with our representatives in Congress. We have shared our story and the hardship these penalties place on current and future retirees—on ourselves.

Our advocacy forced a vote in the House. It passed by an overwhelming bipartisan margin, 327-75. Now, the Senate has an opportunity to correct this injustice once and for all.

We are close, but we’re not there yet.

I’m asking one more time: Please call your senators and urge them to VOTE YES on the Social Security Fairness Act.

Thank you for your advocacy and all you’ve done to get us to this moment.

Let’s get it done.

In solidarity,

Becky Pringle
President
National Education Association

…And From OEA-R…

Earlier this week, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced he plans to bring H.R. 82, the Social Security Fairness Act, to the floor of the U.S. Senate for a vote. The bill fully repeals the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). These are provisions of federal law that unfairly punish public service by reducing the earned Social Security and spousal/survivor benefits of millions of Americans who receive public pensions from states like Ohio where they did not pay into Social Security while working in the public sector.

H.R. 82 passed the U.S. House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support (327-75) with all members of the Ohio delegation voting in favor. Ohio U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) is a lead sponsor of companion legislation in the Senate and has been a champion of this issue. Vice President-elect, U.S. Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) is also a cosponsor of that bill.

With Congress set to recess on December 20th, time is short to get this issue across the finish line. The activism of OEA members and other public employees across the country has gotten the issue to this point. Continue to make your voice heard! Click here to send your Senators a letter urging them to vote for repeal. Please also consider calling them, to do so please fill out this form or dial 1-844-912-1779.

Happy Holidays

Posted on December 14, 2024 by dennislewis

Getting to Know SERS

Posted on December 14, 2024 by dennislewis

Join us for an online presentation on Zoom to learn more about how SERS works for you to help you prepare for retirement. All OEA members are welcome to attend.

SPEAKER
Cameron Vaughn, Member Education Coordinator
School Employees Retirement Systems (SERS) of Ohio

DATE
Wednesday, January 29, 2025

TIME
5pm

WHERE
Online, you can join on your phone or own your computer

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
or visit
https://tinyurl.com/ym8a3at6

2025 Delegate Elections – OEA-R Advisory and NEA Representative Assembly

Posted on December 14, 2024 by dennislewis

Your voice is important, and you have an opportunity to have your voice heard on the state and national level. The Ohio Education Association will conduct elections early in 2025 to elect representatives to the OEA Retired Advisory Council and Retired Delegates to the NEA Representative Assembly.

OEA-Retired Advisory Council Positions

The Following Positions will be elected:

OEA BOARD OF DIRECTORS – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

CAPITAL – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

HIGHER EDUCATION – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

NEOEA – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

SWOEA – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

WOEA – OEA-RETIRED ADVISORY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

If interested you must file a Declaration of Candidacy form by February 10, 2025. Contact William Baird at OEA (800) 282-1500 or (614) 227-3169 for more information.

Click here for declaration of candidacy form for Advisory Council Positions

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Retired Delegate To The NEA Representative Assembly

For more information on the NEA RA, visit the NEA website: https://ra.nea.org/about/ra-101/

If you wish to be a candidate for NEA-Retired delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly, you must file a Declaration of Candidacy form by February 10, 2024. Contact William Baird at OEA (800) 282-1500 or (614) 227-3169 for more information.

Click here for declaration of candidacy form for NEA delegate

Happy Thanksgiving

Posted on November 28, 2024 by dennislewis

2024-2025 OEA-R Delegate Election Results

Posted on November 6, 2024 by dennislewis

The OEA-Retired Guidelines state that the following members of the OEA-Retired Advisory Council shall serve as automatic delegates by virtue of office:

OEA-Retired Advisory Council
Chair, Mary Binegar
Vice Chair, Phil Long
Secretary, Judy Buschle
Past President/Chair, John Hoyes
CAPITAL Representative, Carol Dixon
CENTRAL Representative, Barry Alcock
ECOEA Representative, Kathleen Purdy
EOEA Representative, John Lee Gillison
NCOEA Representative, Becky Radel
NEOEA Representative, Donna Smoot-Walters
NWOEA Representative, Lisa Scott Marshall
SEOEA Representative, Jeff Slattery
SWOEA Representative, Becky Brown
WOEA Representative, Joni Watson
At-Large Representative, Carol Kinsey
ESP At- Large: Vacant
OEA Board of Directors Representative, Deloris Rome Hudson
Higher Education: Vacant

Congratulations to the NEOEA-R Delegates and Alternates!

Marti Franks

Bill Lavezzi

Peg Ham

Hank Haynes

Nancy Wonson

Debbie Bernauer

Jené Wilson

Karen Carney

Steven D. Mitchell

Alternates – OEA-R

Cheryl W. Hill

John A. Veverka

Valenta G. Ward-Gravely

OEA-R Webinars

Posted on November 5, 2024 by dennislewis

Senior Scams

November 20, 2024

Join us on Wednesday, November 20th at 5pm.

*The Ohio Attorney General’s office does not specifically endorse or recommend OEA-R or any products or services affiliated with OEA-R

OEA-R Webinar Schedule

https://oea-r.ohea.us/events-programs/webinars/

January 22, 2025—SERS for Actives and Retirees

February 26, 2025—Kickoff for Read Across America

March 30, 2025—Overcoming Barriers Among Immigrants by Empowering Adults with Literacy

May 28, 2025—Listening to Building Understanding

Past Webinars

Moving From Land Acknowledgements to Action in the Buckeye State

Join the OEA-Retired Racial and Social Justice Committee Book Study

Posted on November 4, 2024 by dennislewis

For another year of exciting discussions, all OEA members are invited to join us on this journey. We aim to inspire engaging conversations in books that relate to everyday experiences on the topics of racial and social justice. This will help us learn from each other and grow in understanding.

All sessions will be virtual on Zoom and will take place the third Monday of each month from 7pm-8pm (unless otherwise stated).

Please contact Makia Burns, OEA-Retired Liaison, burnsm@ohea.org with questions.

Book Reading Schedule:

Oct 21 & Nov 18 – Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Dec 16 & Jan 27 – One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon
Feb 24 & Mar 17 – How the Word is Passed by Clint Smith
Apr 28 & May 19 – The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Jun 16 & Jul 21 – Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Aug 18 & Sep 15 – Frederick Douglass by David Blight
Oct 20 & Nov 17 – Four Hundred Souls by Ibram X. Kendi

Program Flyer

OEA’s Public Education Matters Podcast

Posted on November 3, 2024 by dennislewis

Season 5 of the Ohio Education Association’s award-winning Public Education Matters podcast is now underway, and we’re excited to bring you our most valuable content yet!

Over the summer, OEA invited members to share their feedback on the Public Education Matters podcast and on podcasts in general to help shape this new season.

We’ve taken your feedback to heart, and based on your responses, we are moving back to shorter episodes and back to a weekly format. At your request, we’re working to bring you more practical content on everything from AI in the classroom to discounts you can’t afford to miss.

And those are just a couple of the episodes we have in the works in the next couple of months alone! New episodes drop every Thursday morning this season.

As always, Public Education Matters is designed to be your source for insightful conversations with the people who are shaping Ohio’s public education landscape every day.

Make sure you subscribe to Public Education Matters on your favorite platform, so you don’t miss an episode this season! (For links to the podcast on some of the most popular listening platforms, click here)

You can listen to the first episode of the new season right now, and you can catch up on all of the past episodes anytime here.

You can share your thoughts on the podcast anytime, too, by emailing us your feedback and ideas for future episodes at educationmatters@ohea.org

Happy listening!