Stand Up For Education wins national award

MEA-MFT's Stand Up For Education campaign took Montana by storm last spring. And it took top honors in a national award program this winter.

Stand Up For Education won first place in the community organizing category at the annual NEA Public Relations Council conference in January.

Award entries were judged by private-sector communications specialists.

"This is a big deal," said MEA-MFT President Eric Feaver. "It is fairly rare for a small state affiliate such as MEA-MFT to win over the big states with big staffs and big budgets."

Through Stand Up For Education, MEA-MFT produced a powerful video spelling out the problems caused by inadequate state funding of public k-12 schools and higher education.

MEA-MFT showed the video at community meetings across the state in March, April, and May of 2002. Thousands of Montanans attended the meetings and heard a message of hope and empowerment: we can and will save our excellent public schools and universities from inadequate state funding.

In the fall, Stand Up For Education produced radio spots and billboards urging Montanans to ask candidates the tough questions about education funding before casting their votes.

"This award belongs to all our MEA-MFT members who participated in Stand Up For Education," said Sanna Porte, MEA-MFT communications director. "Their dedication to kids and public education made this campaign sing."

Stand Up For Education lives on. Led by MEA-MFT, SUFE coalition partners will hold rallies for public education across the state in March, 2003. Watch for information!