OEA Mission
The OEA will lead the way for continuous improvement of public education while advocating for members and the learners they serve.
Since 1847, the Ohio Education Association has been proud to lead the way for great public schools for every child. As OEA marks its 175th anniversary, members and leaders have been sharing their memories from the last several decades of serving Ohio’s students and fighting for the teaching and learning conditions all Ohioans deserve.
From the hard-won fight for collective bargaining rights in Ohio to the ongoing struggle to secure fair funding for all of our schools, these stories have been brought together in this short film.
We invite you to watch and reminisce along with the dedicated educators who have shared their perspectives in this video. As we contemplate our collective past, we are empowered to create a brighter future together for all Ohio students:
OEA: Protecting, supporting, and strengthening public education since 1847
On December 30 and 31, 1847, 18 elected delegates from 11 Ohio countries gathered in Akron to form the Ohio State Teachers’ Association (OSTA), later renamed the Ohio Education Association (OEA).
Ever since, the OEA has led the way in advocating for students, educators, and public education. OEA’s longstanding presence as the largest, most powerful labor union in Ohio gives us a voice to make a difference.
Back in 1851, the OSTA set broad goals—to build a strong public sentiment for schools, to promote the adoption of a better plan of school organization, and to improve teaching and elevate the education profession. Throughout its history, the organization has continued to support these early goals, elevating public schools through sound instruction and curriculum, standards of teacher preparation and teacher certification, and improving working conditions with a state minimum salary schedule, collective bargaining law, and pension system.
Early on, the OSTA recognized the importance of political action to achieve better teaching and school organization and funding and the need for teacher education and professional development. OSTA worked toward state support of teacher training and establishing state- funded normal schools, resulting in passage of a supporting law in 1902.
A 1913 survey of school conditions in Ohio led to a complete revision of rural education and creation of minimum standards of teacher preparation and changes in teacher certification requirements in what became known as the Cox School Code. The 1914 legislation created county and district school superintendents and based teachers’ certificates on earning a college diploma.
In 1920, when the minimum Ohio teacher salary was set at $100 per month, membership surged from 12,000 to 21,309. That same year, the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) was founded, providing Ohio teachers with retirement security. In 1924, the Department of Classroom Teachers became a separate group from administrators, principals, and superintendents. By 1930, membership had grown to more than 40,000 classroom teachers, administrators, and principals.
In the 1950s, OEA began its legal services, school law, and consultation programs. In the 1960s, the Association created an Urban Affairs Committee to with challenges in urban schools. Field operations for local advocacy, political action, and negotiations were also established to support the OEA’s commitment to teacher rights.
In 1965, OEA built a new headquarters building at 225 East Broad Street in Columbus. At the close of the decade, superintendents, principals, and other administrators left OEA to form their own organizations.
In the 1970s, the average teacher’s salary was $8,798. Through successful lobbying at the federal level, an exemption was secured to avert a wage freeze that potentially would have affected all Ohio teachers. At the state level, OEA lobbying led to the implementation of the state minimum salary schedule resulting in salary increases for 37,000 teachers in 486 school districts.
By the mid-1970s, OEA had helped win negotiation agreements for local associations in two-thirds of the state’s school districts. In 1975, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that negotiated master agreements and binding arbitration were legal and enforceable.
During the 15-year period between Ohio’s first strike at Tallmadge in 1966 and passage of Ohio’s Public Employee Collective Bargaining Law in 1983, teachers in every major city in Ohio went on strike, peaking in 1969-70 with 28 walkouts.
OEA’s membership continued to grow when it expanded to include school support personnel—now recognized as Education Support Professionals (ESPs).
As OEA continued its advocacy for school funding in the 1990s, the Ohio Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s decision in DeRolph versus State of Ohio, finding that the State failed to meet the requirement to fund a “thorough and efficient system of common schools.”
OEA members voiced support for the reduction of standardized testing and organizing an information campaign to raise public awareness of failing for- profit charter schools in Ohio. Working together, they created a vision for a high- quality public education for all students, supported grassroots public education advocacy, pledged to end institutional racism and advance inclusivity, and built relationships with labor organizations.
In 2011, OEA member rights were threatened by Senate Bill 5 (SB 5), a proposal to curtail collective bargaining rights for all public employees. Ohioans agreed with the OEA that SB 5 was unfair, unsafe, and hurt people in every Ohio community.
As educators have faced challenges to academic freedom, teaching and learning conditions, inequities in education, and economic security, OEA members have shared their voices and experience and worked together to build relationships with elected leaders and community partners. The value of these relationships has been evident in progress OEA has made on school funding, testing reduction, teacher evaluation, and other critical issues, and in efforts to ensure educators’ voices were heard in decisions regarding schools during the COVID-19 crisis.
Today, public schools and educators in Ohio are under attack, from overreaching legislation to attempts to take over local school boards to control the political narrative. Throughout the state, extremist politicians and the well-funded groups that fund them have coordinated an attack on public schools, educators, and the OEA. Using fear to push a privatization agenda and deliberately dividing communities based on race, place, and gender identities, they are working to break the public’s trust in Ohio’s public schools.
As we experience continuing legislative attacks, teacher recruitment and retention challenges, local school board takeovers, pension system challenges, and strenuous learning and working conditions, OEA is fighting for the respect and dignity of members, and for supports and resources for all public schools. With a united voice, we can stand up to these attacks and create an Ohio where every student has access to a high-quality public education and where all members are supported, valued, and respected.
