President's message

Greetings CSEA siblings,

I am thrilled to share that the future looks bright for public schools in California! More funding may be on the horizon for public education, according to the Senate’s recently released “Putting Wealth to Work” budget proposal for fiscal year 2022-23. The state’s budget surplus has soared to a record $68 billion and the Senate proposes utilizing it to make major investments in education, including support for two of CSEA’s top legislative bills this year: Senate Bill 878, Road to Success, and Senate Bill 830, Average Daily Membership (enrollment-based funding). These two bills have the power to enact changes that will provide resources to help classified employees better serve our more than 6 million students across the state. Read all about SB 878, SB 830 and all the CSEA bills working their way through the legislative process in the “From the Capitol” section of this issue of Focus magazine. We are also in the midst of exciting technological changes. At the beginning of the year, CSEA launched our new website. It is light years ahead of where we once were, giving members access to a robust catalog of content and new functionality on a mobile-friendly platform. And just a few months after the main website became available, there are now nearly 1,000 chapter websites and local microsites. What does this mean for you? You can easily find out exactly what’s going on in your chapter, region and area in a matter of seconds. But that’s not all. Even more developments are on the way, including a CSEA Member App that will launch the beginning of June, bringing CSEA resources and information to the palm of your hand. In addition, the app will include an event area to help you navigate the 96th Annual Conference July 24-28. Keep an eye out for more details in the next couple months. I am so proud of the work of our union, which wouldn’t exist without the support of members like you! You have been with us every step of the way, and it has been such a treat to have conversations and receive positive emails and phone calls about how CSEA’s new tools are helping you stay connected with your union family members throughout California. The Board of Directors is constantly looking at ways to keep up with the times. We recently approved a recommendation by the Communications Committee to continue publishing Focus magazine digitally six times a year. Delivering the magazine in a digital format presents countless positive advantages that wouldn’t be possible otherwise. We can showcase engaging videos and dynamic graphics to amplify the message of our articles and members. We can provide the most up-to-date information possible, and even update the articles after the magazine has been distributed. With the ever-increasing costs of paper and postage, this move will also save CSEA nearly $600,000 annually. And as we continue to experience a drought and with the recent recognition of Earth Day in April, the environmental impact can’t be ignored. By not printing the magazine, we are saving roughly 15,000 trees and 6,000 gallons of water each year. I stand proudly at the helm of an organization that continues to live by our mission: to improve the lives of our members, students and community. These efforts will continue. Thank you for the inspiring work you do every day which drives our upward growth and momentum.