Virginia Journal of Education

Tools and Opportunities from Equity, Justice and Learning August 4, 2026 VEA members don’t just fight for school funding improvements and workplace protections for educators—we make members’ professional growth a top priority, too. We know how committed our members are to being the best they can be for their students and communities, and your union is ready to help you do exactly that.

4. You’ll Find Your People Being part of your local union, the VEA, and the NEA, as part of your unified membership, will put you in touch with like-minded educators in your community, across the Commonwealth, and across the nation. The networking and support possibilities are endless. 5. You Can Fight for What’s Right You’ve seen first-hand the inequities that many students face.

Public education serves the common good, which the Southern Poverty Law Center defines as “institutions and systems provided to all members of a society to meet obligations to care for the common interests of the whole.” The benefits of public schools extend to everyone. Even if you are not a student or a caregiver sending their child to public school, you are neighbors, coworkers, or friends with someone who went to public school.

Virginia Journal of Education: June 2026 Full Issue June 30, 2026 Please Log In This content is restricted to VEA members. If you are an existing member, please log in.

Members from across the Commonwealth gathered in Richmond at our union’s Summer Organizing Institute to spend three days immersing themselves in winning strategies to elevate their organizing. To provide the most targeted and effective training, members were first given an assessment to match them with the most appropriate track: building member power, worksite power, or local-level power.

Did You Know? According to the Economic Policy Institute, teachers in Virginia earn 67 cents on the dollar compared to other (non-teacher) college-educated workers. Virginia’s teacher wage penalty is the worst in the nation. Learn More

Did You Know? According to the Economic Policy Institute, teachers in Virginia earn 67 cents on the dollar compared to other (non-teacher) college-educated workers. Virginia’s teacher wage penalty is the worst in the nation. Learn More

A Louisa County music teacher who began as a VEA student member now leads the nation’s largest labor union, becoming the second VEA president in history to rise to the NEA presidency RICHMOND, Va. The Virginia Education Association today celebrated the election of Princess R. Moss as president of the National Education Association, the three-million-member union that represents educators across the country.

Did you Know? Teacher shortages are a serious issue across the country. Here in Virginia, there are currently over 3,648 unfilled teaching positions. (FY23)

“Virginia educators and school staff fought hard for the investments included in this budget, and there are real wins here for students and public schools. The 4% salary adjustments will help school employees keep pace with the rising cost of living. Major investments in special education, teacher preparation, and school funding formula modernization are meaningful steps forward. But keeping up with inflation is not the same thing as providing a real raise.