Washington Education Association Representative Assembly 2025 - A delegate’s report from the front lines of Public Education and Democracy

‘When We Fight, We Win’

By Jon Hamilton, Vice President of the Port Angeles Education Association and Treasurer of the Clallam County Democrats

In April, I had the honor of representing the Port Angeles Education Association (PAEA) as a
delegate to the 2025 Washington Education Association Representative Assembly (WEA RA)
in Spokane. I was proud to carry the perspectives of educators, families, and activists from
across Clallam County in my role as both the Treasurer of the Clallam County Democrats and
Vice President of PAEA.

What I experienced at the Representative Assembly (RA) was nothing short
of extraordinary: thousands of union educators, EducationalService Professional’s (ESP’s), and
higher education faculty standing shoulder to shoulder to defend democracy, protect our
students, and demand bold, fair, and equitable investments in public education.  RA is where
WEA’s elected delegates come together to debate policy, pass new business items (NBIs), and set
our union’s direction for the coming year. We passed 30 NBIs this year, many of which directly
address the urgent threats to our schools and communities:
   
    ● Demanding stronger protections for LGBTQ+ students and staff;
    ● Calling for deeper investments in racial justice and ethnic studies curricula;
    ● Expanding ESP rights and wages;
    ● Advocating for fairer special education funding formulas;
    ● Preparing coordinated union responses to right-wing attacks on educators and school boards.

I am proud to report that my own NBI, “Protect and Expand Transition to Kindergarten Programs
to Advance Early Learning Equity,” passed overwhelmingly. It directs WEA to advocate for
protecting and expanding Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) programs, which serve some of our
most vulnerable four-year-olds. As educators in Port Angeles know, TTK has changed lives. I spoke
on the floor about our success stories, our equity goals, and our need to fight back against
legislation like SB 5769, which would limit these life-changing opportunities.

What set this RA apart, however, were the speeches and calls to action from national, state, and local leaders. Each speaker brought a message of urgency, solidarity, and resistance to authoritarianism
and austerity. Here are some of the most powerful highlights:

    ● National Education Association (NEA) President Becky Pringle electrified the assembly with
        a fierce and fearless address,  : “Before they steal funding, or restrict our educators’ right to
        teach and our students’ right to learn, they’ll have to get through us.”
        Pringle called out the billionaire class by name — Trump, Musk, and McMahon — and
       condemned their efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and privatize public                      schools. She called on educators to use every tactic available — litigation, legislation, organizing,              and disruption — to protect students and democracy.
    
    ● WEA President Larry Delaney inspired the hall with the launch of his “35 by 30” campaign,                      setting a bold goal for every educator in Washington to earn at least $35 an hour by 2030. His key
        message: “This war will not be easy. We are fighting for wages, for our rights, for our schools,
​        and for democracy itself.”
        Delaney didn’t shy away from naming the political cowardice of leaders who claim labor support              but fail to act. His challenge to WEA members: organize, escalate, and fight smarter and harder.

    ● Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown affirmed his office’s legal efforts to defend civil
        rights, including Washington’s lead role in challenging the federal government’s attacks on                        Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. He reminded us: “The law is a tool — but justice                  comes from people organized and unwilling to back down.”
        Brown’s remarks connected legal fights to union activism, urging delegates to see their work as
        a vital part of the democratic fabric of the state.

    ● U.S. Representative Emily Randall, our own representative from Washington’s 6th Congressional
        District, shared her deep roots in education and labor. Speaking about her mother’s 25-year
        career as a paraeducator, she said: “My mom walked her students in wheelchairs around the                      perimeter of the school because the elevator was broken. That is what underfunded education                looks like — and it’s unacceptable.”
        Randall recommitted herself to fighting for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)                      funding, affordable college, and career pathways. Her message was personal, heartfelt, and a                    direct call to action for federal education justice.

     ● State Senator Deb Krishnadasen reflected on her journey from local school board leader to
         state policymaker. She celebrated the passage of her district’s first bond in 20 years — which
        funded six new or expanded schools — and said: “It all began in a classroom somewhere. And I
        want to keep helping kids find their passions, their pathways — their future.”
         Krishnadasen pledged to continue the fight for equitable, sustainable state funding that supports           every student and every educator.

At the WEA Revenue Rally, we took our message to the streets of Spokane, demanding that the
ultra-wealthy pay what they owe to fund our schools. We heard powerful speeches from WEA
Vice President Janie White, Spokane Education Association President Jeremy Shay, Clark College American Federation of Teachers in Higher Education President Susan Sutherland, NEA Executive Board member Shannon McCann, and Franklin Pierce Education Association President TJ Johnson. Each of them drove home a unified theme: “We must tax the rich.”
From special education to classified staff wages, from Materials, Supplies, and Operating Costs (MSOC) to TTK and higher education, our public schools depend on progressive revenue. The people know it. The courts have upheld it. And the voters have affirmed it — including when they voted by nearly 2-to-1 in 2024 to retain the capital gains tax.
​
As we wait for Governor Ferguson to sign the budget, we must make it unmistakably clear: he must sign it with its progressive revenue sources fully intact — no delays, no vetoes, and no concessions to the ultra-wealthy. Although he has signaled reluctance to support further wealth taxes, the Washington State Supreme Court already upheld capital gains taxation in 2023, confirming that our state can — and must — tax extreme wealth to fund public services. The people have spoken. Now it’s time for our Governor to listen.

We chanted it together over and over in Spokane: “When we fight, we win.”

We need to bring that energy home to Clallam County — to our school boards, our city councils, our
communities, and yes, our Democratic Party. We are the people we’ve been waiting for. Let’s go win this thing together.
​
Follow-up: On May 20, Governor Ferguson signed the 2025–2027 state operating budget into law, keeping intact the major progressive revenue sources approved by the legislature. The final
$78 billion package includes over $1 billion in new public school funding, with specific investments in special education, NBCTstipends, and materials and supplies — key priorities we advocated for at WEA RA.
That said, the Governor also stated that some of these new tax measures may be reviewed during next year’s supplemental budget process. So, while this is a partial victory, it underscores  we were saying on the ground in Spokane: we must stay engaged and organized to prevent corporate pressurefrom rolling back these hard-won gains.

​

Photo by Jon Hamilton