Annual Report of the Retired Members Committee, 2024–2025

Submitted by: Kathy Greeley and Rick Last, Co-Chairs To: MTA Board of Directors For: June 2025 Board Meeting                                                                                           

Committee Members: Ora Gladstone, Kathy Greeley, Phyllis Neufield, Rafael Moure Erasso, Rick Last, Dale Melcher, Amy Wolpin, Maureen Posner, Shelly Fraser, Kip Fonsh, Andrei Joseph, Joe Herosy, Brenda Johnson, Robin Smith MTA Staff Organizer: Lisa Lemieux

Committee Meetings  

As in previous years, the Retired Members Committee (RMC) met monthly via Zoom to accommodate members from across the state. We held our annual in-person Strategic Planning Meeting in July, focusing on:

Meeting dates and attendance records are attached.

RMC Subcommittees and Initiatives

We have structured our work through dedicated subcommittees and task forces. They report back to the full committee monthly and are open to participation from any retired member. 

Racial and Social Justice                                                                                                             

This subcommittee has taken proactive steps to engage retirees of color and expand their participation within our union. Through in-depth conversations with more than a dozen retired educators of color, the committee identified key challenges these members faced throughout their careers. These discussions sparked three important initiatives aimed at fostering greater inclusion and support.:

The May 7 session of the First Wednesday Retiree Speaker Series featured a panel from the mentorship program.

First Wednesday Retiree Speaker Series                                                                                  

Held monthly via Zoom, these 90-minute sessions draw 40–80 participants. Each features expert speakers followed by participant dialogue.

Topics this year included:

Planning for next year is underway, with a focus on broader engagement.

Retirees Against High-Stakes Testing

This group has been meeting every other week for a few years now. Involving at least 12-15 regular attendees, the group continues to lead opposition to high-stakes testing, particularly MCAS, and supports MTA’s broader assessment reform goals. More than 100 retirees played a central role in the “Yes on 2” campaign through letter writing, legislative outreach, canvassing, phone banking, and community engagement.

While members are participating in the Governor’s Graduation Commission hearings to establish new high school graduation standards, this group has formed a grassroots “People’s Commission” to propose alternative recommendations. Working in collaboration with Citizens for Public Schools and local organizations, three People’s Forums have been held so far: Cambridge/Somerville, New Bedford/Fall River, and Worcester. At least three more People’s Forums will be held in the fall.

Wisdom Warriors

Now in their seventh year, the Wisdom Warriors are a direct-action group supporting MTA locals and broader MTA initiatives. The retired members of Wisdom Warriors provide union solidarity by showing up to support locals in need. Whether it be standing out with active members during contract struggles, strike support, attending a school committee meeting, we will be there, often injecting song and humor into an otherwise challenging situation.  We have 228 retired member on out wisdom Warriors email list.

This year, they:

They have showed up in support statewide in support of the elimination of WEP-GPO and have participated in  actions in Chicopee, Bridgewater-Raynham, supporting Plymouth nurses picket, Fitchburg Day of Action, Barnstable, Northampton,  Beverly, Marblehead, Revere and MCCC in  Framingham.

Their collaboration with MTA Grassroots efforts continues to be highly effective.

Education Support Professionals (ESPs)                                                                                     

This new subcommittee is focused on organizing ESPs nearing retirement and fostering their engagement within MTA. As the MTA has increasingly raised up the importance of ESPs in the union, the Retired Members Committee is interested in supporting that. This is our first subcommittee being organized by a non-RMC member, with the support of Lisa Lemieux, our staff support person. This work is still in early stages.

Communications and Outreach

MTA Retired Reporter  

Our quarterly newsletter remains the primary communication tool with retirees, featuring updates and member submissions. The Communications department has done an excellent job of re-designing the magazine to give it a more modern and engaging look.

Website and Social Media

A task force is revamping the RMC website. RMC members have been working with Mary MacDonald, Lisa Lemieux and others to streamline and expand the information on the website so it is easily available to retirees. While this work is still in progress, great improvements have been made already. Email and Facebook also remain important tools for sharing information and building community.

New Member Recruitment

We continue outreach to soon-to-be-retired educators and inactive retirees. Regional meetings and personal communication led by our MTA staff consultant, support this effort.

Legislative Advocacy & Dignified Retirement                                                                           

Our legislative advocacy remains important to the RMC mission. This year, we focused on:

Events

Honor Our Own Luncheon                                                                                                        

The Honor Our Own Award is designed to recognize MTA retirees for their contributions to public education. 

Held on October 21 at the New England Botanic Garden in Boyston, nearly 100 people attended the event to honor:

Both gave moving speeches about their careers and union involvement. Attendees were very positive about the event, one of the first statewide retiree events in a few years due to Covid (aside from the Annual Meeting).

Retired Member Breakfast                                                                                                         

At the MTA Annual Meeting, the RMC hosted a breakfast with updates from committee members and candidate presentations (four people were running for two seats on the Board of Directors). For the first time, we held small group discussions inviting people to give feedback on retiree issues and we ended with a song by the Wisdom Warriors.

NEA Annual Meeting                                                                                                                

MTA retiree delegates attended the July NEA Annual Meeting, contributing to national retiree advocacy.

MTA Annual Meeting                                                                                                                 

The delegate entitlement for 2025 for State Retired delegates was 176.  145 retired delegates were elected by waiver.  

Looking Ahead   

The RMC is committed to keeping retirees engaged and connected within the MTA. In the year ahead, we aim to:

We thank the MTA staff and leadership for their continued support and collaboration.