Inside TSTA>Locals

Workshops We Can Provide

Contact us at 877-ASK-TSTA to inquire about the following workshops:

Center for Teaching & Learning Programs

• A Better Beginning :Helping New Teachers Survive & Thrive (emphasizes mentoring programs – surveys, contract language)

• I Can Do It: exciting classroom management system that offers educators a systemic way to improve classroom management

• Cooperative Discipline:  Provides educators with the skills necessary to create a positive, learning environment by providing appropriate intervention techniques for misbehavior and preventive measures that stop most misbehavior from occurring.

• Diversity in the Classroom:  Students will benefit from discussing and learning about diversity issues when educators create a safe, cooperative learning environment in the classroom and the school.

• Paraprofessionals & Teachers – Building a Winning Team (emphasizes personality differences, appreciating & valuing differences, conflict management, communication & listening skills (2 days)

• Is Your School Healthy? (Emphasizes the “sick school syndrome,” (environmental illnesses) and what the association can do)

• Staying in the classroom and Out of the Courtroom (emphasizes “how to decrease your legal liability in the classroom)

• Defensive Teaching: Don’t Be a Target (emphasizes “tips for interacting with students,” using good judgment,” “maintaining classroom order,” “thinking before acting,” “how to avoid becoming the next target”)

• The Texas Code of Ethics & You (emphasizes SBEC policies & procedures; provides the “code”; discussion regarding filing a complaint; timelines; questions & answers)

• Chapter 37: Making Your School Safe (emphasizes actual language of the law; provides steps for the teacher relative to enacting chapter 37; forms & sample memos; how the law should work at the campus level)

• Hey, Can “They” do That? (emphasizes the Education Code and how to “break” it; reviews important sections of the code; personnel files and the law; paying for lost textbooks)

• Safe Schools

NEA Programs 

• Sexual Harassment in the Work Place

• Stress in the Workplace

• BATS: (Building Association Teams-The Key to Internal Organizing & The Ten Minute Meeting)

• Building Organizational Consensus (emphasizes community building & various necessary role players)

• Thinking Organizationally (training program for local association presidents: emphasizes identifying local situations, working with case studies, identifying priorities, determining ramifications of positions)

• Planning for Collective Action (emphasizes the relationship between classroom planning and organizational planning, achieve coordination among the local association’s sub-systems for moving into collective action)

• Community Relations & Action (emphasizes the “what, why, how”; details what community relations and action is & is not; examples & samples, surveys)

• Organizing for Leaders (emphasizes union & US labor history, basic organizing principles; barriers to organizing)

• Program Development (emphasizes program cycles and related steps; program implementation & evaluation; forms for the local to use when planning; includes a TSTA/NEA needs assessment tool)

• Vital Link

Local Association Structure, Roles and Advocacy 

• Local Association Structure & Management (emphasizes the president’s roles & responsibilities; checklist for presidents; sample agenda for meetings, basic progress of a motion)

• The Local Treasurer & Expectations (emphasizes the six roles of the treasurer: recording keeping, reporting, reimbursing, recommending, retiring documents, monitoring; sample treasurer’s reports & vouchers)

• Effective Meetings & Parliamentary Procedure (emphasizes a dozen criteria for an effective meeting; techniques for conducting a successful meeting; order of a business meeting; simplified parliamentary procedures)

• Rules of Parliamentary Procedure (emphasizes important terms; five basic principles of PP; defines a “motion,” “getting the floor,” discussion centers on “recognizing the speaker,” “making the motion,” “seconding,” “restating,” “discussion,” “voting,” “announcing,” –includes a chart)

• Team Building (emphasizes how individuals become an effective board; explores team problems and what to do about them; questionnaire, “Building a Strong Board”; principles of effective teamwork)

• Finders-Keepers: Building a Volunteer Program (emphasizes “why I’m not a volunteer”; what is a volunteer? Principles for organizing & leading volunteers; elements of an effective plan to recruit & motivate volunteers; tips for recruiting & retaining)

• Roles of the TSTA Area Representative (emphasizes qualities necessary to becoming an AR; explores various roles AR’s might take)

• Basics of Investigating Members Concerns: Gripe or Grievance? (emphasizes the complete “nuts & bolts” from terminology to defining a grievance, to writing a grievance)

• Grievance Representative Training (emphasizes “grievance awareness,” “developing advocacy positions,” “ converting complaints into grievances”- how to manage a grievance – case studies – examines the “people factor”)

Leadership 

• Leadership (emphasizes six skills; leadership style questionnaire; qualities of an effective leader; managing vs. leading; looks at three types of leaders; discussion tool, “Qualities of an Effective Leader,” – examines four tests of becoming a leader)

• Images of Leadership (a) (emphasizes “acting the part,” “image killers,” “tips when speaking,” “dressing for power & authority,” “power robbers,” “color may make the difference”)

• Images of Leadership (b) (emphasizes “self-image,” “being in charge of your personal power signals,” “who are you?” “tips for specialized speeches”)

• Time Management (emphasizes “time robbers,” examines “time & Texas Education Law,” explores “kinds of time,” strategies for “creating more time,” examines “enablers”)

• Steps in Problem Solving & Conflict Management

• The Leader of 2000 (emphasizes “myths of leadership,” “communications & leadership,” “assertive leadership behaviors,” “ten steps to gain respect”)

• Assertiveness (emphasizes needs for being assertive; surveys participants’ assertiveness quotient; examines blocks to becoming assertive; presents “power & victim” language)

• It’s About Time

Other OCALD Programs 

• Listening or I’m Sorry.  What was that you just said? I wasn’t Listening (emphasizes practicing active listening; examines active listening techniques; explores barriers to effective listening; surveys; keys to better listening)

• Empowerment (emphasizes the process of empowerment; checks individual empowerment levels; empowerment assessment tool)

• The Ten Minute Association Building Meeting (emphasizes sample agendas; explores the elements of the ten minute meeting)

• Developing Effective Communication Systems for your Local (emphasizes the “sharing” system; ten basics of good communications; steps necessary to achieve a good communications system)

• Do You See What I’m Saying? (emphasizes using “message” to reconnect; elements of the message; relevance; the message box concept; practice developing messages; six important rules to be persuasive; message traps)

• Communication Style Inventory (emphasizes finding your communication style; examines the four communication styles)

• Proposal Writing for the Local Association (emphasizes writing proposals; activities related to proposal writing; approximating costs; examine sample school district balance sheets)

• Opening Doors to Your Future (emphasizes resumes & portfolios; helpful hints about building an effective resume; examines different styles; how to write a cover letter; what your portfolio should include)

• Fish Philosophy

• Organizing for Political Action

• Image Is Everything

• Vision and Mission

• Membership Plan-Effective Local

• How to Plan for Success

• Identifying and Recruiting New Leaders

• Successful Internal-External Communication

• Political Action 

• Successful Advocacy

• Planning for Successful Membership

• So Where Is Your Local

• Local Finances and Membership

• Roles

• Membership Advocacy

• Grievance Processing

• How To Recruit

• Team Building

• Communication Workshop

• Western Region

• Membership Recruitment 

Center for Legislative & Political Action Programs 

Getting Involved in Local Politics (emphasizes “what is politics?” “why politics?” candidate recommendation processes; mounting a successful campaign; lobbying the local school board)