Elections
We are holding elections for Unite Summit leadership! Our elected Bargaining Team will stay in place through contract negotiations, but we will also be electing a President, Vice President, and Treasurer before the end of the school year in order to formalize our structure and improve communications. We will also be electing a representative from each building and team (including separate representatives for middle and high school faculties).
Here is the timeline for elections:
- Elections committee: Create a three-member elections committee (please email if you’d like to volunteer to be on the committee — volunteers cannot be running for any position) by Tuesday, May 5.
- Nominations: Nominations open on Tuesday, May 5 and close on Sunday, May 10.
- Candidate statements: Nominees will be notified of their nomination no later than Monday, May 11. Nominations must be accepted or declined by Friday, May 15; short candidate statements are also due on May 15 and will be released to members to read over the weekend.
- Voting: Ballots will be released on Tuesday, May 19; voting will be open through Thursday, May 21. (Voting will be virtual.) Results will be released on May 22.
If you would like to volunteer to be a part of the elections committee, please email us at unitesummitteachers@gmail.com.
Look out for further information regarding nominations before May 5.
Responsibilities and Time Commitment for Positions up for Election
Representatives from each building/team:
- Attend one hour-long virtual Rep Council meeting once a month.
- Meet in-person 1-2 times per year.
- Keep their sites informed and involved in our union and bring any site concerns to our union’s leadership.
President, Vice President and Treasurer:
- Attend one hour-long virtual Rep Council meeting once a month.
- Attend one hour-long Executive Board meeting once a month.
- Meet in person 1-2 times per year.
President:
- Act as the chief spokesperson of our union.
- Prepare agendas for meetings.
- Conduct other duties as necessary.
Vice President:
- Step in if President is unavailable.
- Keep updated and accurate list of members and their contact info.
- Distribute information (newsletters, etc.).
Treasurer:
- In charge of the union’s finances.
- Since we won’t be collecting dues (and thus won’t have any money) until we ratify our first contract, the Treasurer’s duties are minimal right now.
Bylaws
In preparations for elections, we are also formalizing our bylaws. These bylaws outline election procedures and delineate officer duties. You can read the draft bylaws here. If you have questions or comments, please send them to bylaws@unitesummitteachers.com. Our elected Bargaining Team will be voting on these bylaws on Monday, May 4.
Bargaining Update
Our next bargaining session is Monday, May 4. Our aim is to present our remaining original contract proposals and to present a counter proposal regarding the calendar for next year. Summit’s current proposal for next year’s calendar includes a 21-day extension of the school year. To be clear, our bargaining team will not agree to any extension of calendar days for next year. We will continue to push for a reduction in required meeting times in order to increase sustainability. See previous update for more details.
We will send out a bargaining session summary on Monday evening.
Virtual School Concerns?
If you have any concerns related to the implementation of Virtual School that you would like to bring to our attention, please reach out to us at unitesummitteachers@gmail.com. We want to make sure that we are advocating for teacher and student needs now and planning ahead proactively for the fall semester.