Since 2010-11, the National Education Association has lost about 234,000 members, of which 201,000 are classroom teachers, according to a strategic plan and budget presented last week at the National Education Association’s 2013 Representative Assembly in Atlanta. The decline leaves the NEA with about 3 million members overall.
“The NEA, its members, and its affiliates have had a very tough four years,” NEA Secretary-Treasurer Becky Pringle said in her presentation on the union’s modified 2013-14 budget. She attributed the decline to a perfect storm of “political forces, economic forces, and education reform forces.”
In all, NEA’s revenues amount to $345 million, higher than the $339 million projected. The union still came up about $3 million short in its budget, but was able to close that gap by slimming programming and incurring fewer legal costs than anticipated.