For Deann Lee, retirement didn\u2019t mean walking away from education.<\/p>\n
After 32 years working directly in Texas public education\u2014from the classroom to the superintendent\u2019s office\u2014Deann continues to advocate for the students, educators and communities she has spent her career serving. Today, as a Regional Advocacy Director for East Texas with Raise Your Hand Texas, she helps Texans become informed and engaged advocates for public education.<\/p>\n
That work closely aligns with TRTA\u2019s own commitment to advocacy and civic engagement. Raise Your Hand Texas\u2019 mission is to \u201ccreate a vibrant civic culture where Texans vote, engage lawmakers and their neighbors, and act together to champion public education in their communities and at the state Capitol.\u201d Like TRTA, the organization believes that meaningful change happens when people use their voices and work together to support public education.<\/p>\n
And for Deann, the reason is simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t shut off the \u2018care switch\u2019 just because you retire<\/em>,\u201d<\/strong> she said.<\/p>\n Those words capture something many educators understand instinctively. A career in education may end, but the concern for children, schools and communities doesn\u2019t end with it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe got into education because of our deep love for kids and the opportunities education gives ALL children. How, then, can we stop advocating for the very ones our entire careers have been devoted to?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n Deann has experienced Texas public education from nearly every angle. Her career included teaching, special education, state and federal programs, curriculum and instruction, support services and school administration before ultimately serving as a superintendent.<\/p>\n Those experiences shaped a vision centered on equity.<\/p>\n Deann describes her commitment as advocating for Texas students and educators \u201cALL of whom deserve THE BEST education and support, REGARDLESS of their zip code<\/em>.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe scholars of Fort Davis deserve the same education as the students in Highland Park. The residents of Clarksville should receive the same health care as the people of Plano. And the citizens of Pineland need the same broadband capabilities as the locals of Austin<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n For Deann, the question isn\u2019t whether Texas has the resources to provide those opportunities, but whether we make them a priority.<\/p>\n Advocacy can be challenging, but Deann finds inspiration in the people who continue to show up.<\/p>\n \u201cThe work IS challenging, but when I feel defeated, I remind myself that what I\u2019m feeling is a fraction of what our children will feel if the chance of a successful future is taken from them<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n She is especially encouraged by advocates who, despite busy lives and long days, choose to spend their time attending an event, making a call or taking action on behalf of public education.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen they make it a priority amid the chaos of life, I am energized to do all I can to support them<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Deann points to the repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) as a powerful example of what can happen when individual and collective voices come together.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople often don\u2019t understand that there are two forms<\/em>\u2014individual and collective. To create movement on an issue, it takes individuals with connections to the right people at the most opportune times. But it also demands a strength of numbers that can\u2019t be denied<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n She highlights TRTA Executive Director Tim Lee\u2019s conversations with members of Congress, combined with thousands of people sharing their own stories and holding elected officials accountable.<\/p>\n \u201cTim is one vote. We are thousands.<\/em>\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Deann believes many people know what advocacy is but aren\u2019t always sure how to do it.<\/p>\n Her own advocacy journey began more than 30 years ago, when a young Brock Gregg, now Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships and Member Outreach at TRTA, encouraged her to get involved.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a lot of complaining in that old teachers\u2019 lounge, but not many problems were solved there. If we want things to change, we must do more than talk about it<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n The important thing, she says, is to start where you are comfortable.<\/p>\n Not ready to talk to an elected official? Leave a message. Can\u2019t travel to the Capitol? Submit written testimony. Ready to take a larger role? Become a Chapter TRTA Officer or Committee Chair\u2014or consider serving on your school board or city council.<\/p>\n Organizations such as TRTA and Raise Your Hand Texas are there to provide support, resources and training for those ready to use their voices. Raise Your Hand Texas specifically works to equip educators, families, students and community leaders with the tools to become effective advocates for public education.<\/p>\n For Deann, advocacy isn\u2019t something reserved for experts. It is an extension of the work educators have already been doing throughout their careers.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know it\u2019s there. You changed the lives of hundreds of kids in your classroom with it.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n That voice doesn\u2019t disappear when the school bell stops ringing.<\/strong><\/p>\n It can still encourage. It can still inform. It can still bring people together. And it can still make a difference.<\/p>\n For Deann Lee, retirement didn\u2019t turn off the care switch.<\/p>\n Instead, it gave her another way to use it.<\/p>\n Because getting involved matters. And sometimes, the first step toward change is simply deciding to use the voice you already have.<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For Deann Lee, retirement didn\u2019t mean walking away from education. After 32 years working directly in Texas public education\u2014from the classroom to the superintendent\u2019s office\u2014Deann continues to advocate for the students, educators and communities she has spent her career serving. Today, as a Regional Advocacy Director for East Texas with Raise Your Hand Texas, she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":74389,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[637],"tags":[638],"class_list":["post-74374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-story"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA Career That Shaped a Vision<\/strong><\/h4>\n
When Caring Becomes Action<\/strong><\/h4>\n
You Don\u2019t Have to Start Big<\/strong><\/h4>\n
The Voice You Used Then Still Matters Now<\/strong><\/h4>\n