A letter from Joe Reed

Take Back AEA from NEA

To: AEA Members

From: JoeL. Y*QFALRetired Ass{fiate Executive Secretary

Date: October 30,2015

RE: Proposed Changes to the AEA Constitution and Bylaws

STOP, READ AND THINK!

For 42 years Paul Hubbert and I worked for you to make AEA great. We never lied to you,

never misled you and never betrayed your trust. We supported you and you supported us. Paul is now

dead. I ask you to trust me and join in the fight to save AEA.

The NEA is deceiving us and has taken over AEA. They have sent a man from Minnesota,

called him a Trustee, and claim that he alone runs the day-to-day operations of the AEA. He claims

absolute control over our rules, regulations, bylaws and policies including the Delegate Assembly,

President, Board of Directors, the budget and the Headquarters Building. Even though the AEA

Constitution and the Merger Agreement require the Associate Executive Secretary (AES) to assume

the duties and functions of the Executive Secretary (ES) when the ES is absent, this has not happened.

Upon the resignation of Dr. Mabry as Executive Secretary, the ES position became vacant. It is still

vacant but they will not let the current AES, Gregory Graves, assume the duties. I wonder why? The

Trustee and some others are working feverishly to circumvent undermine, and weaken the Merger

Agreement. This agreement has withstood the test of time for 45 years unintemrpted and undiluted but

now because NEA wants AEA to operate like a union, it is proposing a union model i.e., Secretary-

Treasurer, change the title of the Executive and Associate Executive Secretaries to Executive

Directors. You know what will be next; a merger with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).

You must oppose all of these arnendments that weaken the Merger Agreement, establish a union

model, or keep AEA under endless Trusteeship.

Two of your brave board members, Bonita English, a classroom teacher from Mobile and

Darryl Traylor, a support professional, from Bimingham have liled a lawsuit to Take Back the

AEA from NEA. Don't let them down; they are fighting for you; they are frghting for AEA. The

same AEA that has been there for you for the past 45 years.

The Trustee is spreading misinformation. He has most of the ofFrcers and board members

scared 'to hell and back." They think that the Trustee can replace them. He has fired employees

(Curtis Travis) on "grapevine gossip." He is telling you and anybody else who will listen ttrat ttre

Headquarters Building is being threatened and only he can save it. That is NOT TRLIE. That

building does not have a mortgage. We paid for it when we built it. The best thing for AEA is for

NEA to send the Trustee back to Minnesota and stop rying to run AEA from Washington and forcing

NEA's policies and views on AEA. None of you asked that the Constitution be changed; that is a

demand from NEA. There is no basis for NEA or the Trustee to confiol and direct us.

Our Legislative Session was a grand failure; $80"000,000 was taken from the Education Trust

Fund by the legislature and AEA is calling that a major victory. That's a major LIE! All the gains and

advances we made under the Merger Agreement will be lost if we don't wake up and fight back! We

must encourage all Delegates to the Delegate Assemb$ in December to VOTE NO on these

bylaws and amendments. We must take back AEA from IYEA!

Vote NO on these Bylaws and Amendments