Established in 1993 and recognized by the Federal Labor Relations Authority in 1997, the Federal Education Association - Stateside Region (FEA-SR) is the union that represents approximately 3,000 bargaining unit members employed at elementary, middle, and high schools in the Department of Defense Domestic Dependent Elementary and Secondary Schools (DDESS) system.
FEA-SR represents two separate bargaining units (certified and classified/ESP bargaining units) that have different collective bargaining agreements. Certified bargaining unit members include classroom teachers, specialists, nurses, educational psychologists, speech and language pathologists, counselors, and other education professionals. Classified bargaining unit members are education support professionals (ESPs) including classroom teaching assistants, school office personnel, and other professionals.
There are currently 21 locals under the FEA-SR umbrella (15 certified locals and 6 classified locals) represented on 14 military installations located in Alabama, Georgia, Guam, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Each local has its own executive board of locally elected officials, which typically consists of the president, vice president, and other positions.
- Benning Education Association
- Dahlgren Education Association
- Fort Bragg Association of Educators
- Fort Campbell Education Association
- Fort Campbell Non-Certified Education Association
- Fort Jackson Association of Educators
- Fort Knox Education Association
- Fort Knox Education Support Association
- Fort Rucker Education Association
- Fort Stewart Association of Educators
- Fort Stewart Educational Support Association
- Guam Education Association
- Guam Education Support Association
- Laurel Bay Teachers Association
- Lejeune Education Association
- Lejeune Educational Support Association
- Maxwell Education Association
- Quantico Education Association
- Virtual Education Association
- West Point Education Association
- West Point Schools Support Staff Association
Schools located in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, and Tennessee belong to the DoDEA Americas Southeast District, while schools located in New York, North Carolina, and Virginia belong to the DoDEA Americas Mid-Atlantic District. Schools located on Guam are governed by DDESS but fall under the DoDEA Pacific West District.
The FEA Director for DDESS (Diane Gibbs) is also known as the FEA-SR Director and provides leadership and oversight to the organization. More specifically, the FEA Director for DDESS is responsible for directing and supervising the work of FEA-SR's two full-time attorneys (Ben Hunter and Angelia Stubbs), executive assistant, membership processor, webmaster, and accountant. The FEA Director for DDESS presides over the leadership team known as the FEA-SR Area Council. The Area Council ("AC") is the decision-making body of FEA-SR and is comprised of the FEA Director for DDESS, 21 local presidents, and the FEA-SR Human and Civil Rights Coordinator. FEA-SR directs its own legal team, arbitrates, litigates, bargains, and represents FEA-SR certified and classified bargaining unit members employed in 51 DDESS schools that educate over 20,000 military-connected students in the continental United States and Guam.
Formerly known as the Overseas Education Association Section 6 Region until the mid-1990s, FEA-SR has a long history of leadership. Former FEA Directors for DDESS include Kay Stuertz, who founded FEA-SR, the late Caroline Myers, Terry Arvidson, and Jane Loggins.
As members of FEA-SR, we stand together in solidarity to advocate for high-quality education for our military-connected students, and fair and equitable working conditions in our schools. We are proud to serve military-connected students and strive for educational excellence as we support our students and their families.
