Six The SCEA members sitting at a conference table smiling at the camera

Join The SCEA Today! You belong in The SCEA!

The SCEA is the union for educators in South Carolina. By banding together, our members impact meaningful change for educators and students.

Our members create meaningful change for educators, students, and communities

The SCEA makes sure the voices of educators are actually heard. Together, we have successfully raised educator wages, improved working conditions, and supported student loan forgiveness. We can have an even stronger voice when you join us today.

A collective group like The SCEA is a proven, trusted network to support you in the ability to step out there and say “This has to change,” and you won’t be stepping out alone.

Quote by: Pete Stone, Teacher

Step out with us.

Making a difference

Becoming a member of The South Carolina Education Association connects you with a movement of school staff supporting each other. Our union advocates for the funding and resources that you, your schools, and your students deserve. This includes:

Wins & Work

Increased pay: This past year, the higher of two raise proposals was adopted in the state budget, increasing the minimum teacher starting salary to $40,000, Bus Driver salary by 3%, and Teacher Supply checks to $300. Because all educators and school staff deserve a substantial guaranteed raise, the fight for the pay we all deserve continues!
Putting duty-free lunch back on the menu: In 2022, we secured unanimous passage of a 30 minute duty-free break for elementary & special education educators through S.946—the first state-guaranteed unencumbered time of any kind passed in decades—and we’re fighting to expand that right for all workers in public schools
Stopping voucher schemes in their tracks: Private school voucher legislation seeks to send public funds to schools that can pick, choose, and discriminate against students. In 2022, The SCEA advocated for South Carolina's Public Schools and the over 96% of students who attend them, fighting voucher schemes like S.935 and H.4879 all session long and winning final defeat at the last hour through bipartisan agreement.
Defeat of anti-truth censorship bills: Members of The SCEA and ProTruthSC coalition partners across the state united to fight for truth and honesty in education. After many battles, we ensured that no less than 6 bills attempting to censor the history we can teach didn’t pass into law in any form, and we’re continuing this fight for the freedom to read and learn at the local and state level
Protecting students and families: The SCEA worked with legislators and public education allies to ensure unanimous passage of a bill that ended lunch-shaming and the practice of sending students and families to collections over school lunch debt in 2022.
Find out more about what we're fighting for in our 2023 Legislative Agenda!

Benefits

Being part of the collective voice fighting for increased pay and benefits
Protecting and enhancing educator rights and offering guidance, advice, and, if necessary, legal representation.
Advocating for improved working and student learning conditions.
Joining forces to move the issues that matter most to you and that affect your students’ lives
Providing all eligible association members with professional liability insurance
Improving your buying power and saving money with NEA’s Member Benefits program

Join The SCEA! Join The Student SCEA!

South Carolina educators deserve the right to equal funding for their classrooms, equal funding for their students, most importantly their voices to be heard.

Quote by: Elizabeth Humphrey, School Technologist

Be heard with us.

We Stand Together

Now is the time to band together and be heard anywhere decisions about education are made, Now is the time to join our Union.

We are united in providing a high-quality education so that every student can attain their dreams. We all have a part to play in the movement. There is a place for you here whether you’ve worked in education for one day or forty years. We represent everyone in every role on the frontlines of public schools all across the state, from Chesterfield to Charleston, Oconee to Horry. The result? A union as strong and diverse as its communities.

I always try to make sure that I’m teaching my students how to make their community better. My students deserve opportunities for a good future.

Quote by: Crystal Whitaker, Teacher

Help us give students a good future.

The SCEA members are as diverse as the students we represent, but united in our purpose: championing justice and excellence in public education. The SCEA members can belong to the movement in every phase of their career!