Elizabeth Edwards Praises Education Support Professionals

National Education Association

NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Lawyer and activist Elizabeth Edwards praised the work of education support professionals at a Nashville conference Saturday.

Edwards, wife of former North Carolina senator and Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, was the keynote speaker at the National Education Association Education Support Professionals conference for education professionals such as secretaries, school bus drivers and custodians.

"We have a lot of work to do in our education system," she told a packed ballroom at Renaissance Nashville Hotel Saturday.

Attendees work at schools across the country. While they are not educators they have other vital roles that impact the daily lives of students.

"We can start recognizing the importance of education support professionals and we can start by calling them by their names and thanking them for what they do," Edwards said.

NEA members said this meeting offered training and development opportunities to these school employees who support others on a daily basis, at times without much recognition.

"The purpose of a conference like this is to help our members, our employees to have personal and professional growth that is so often not offered to them at their schools," said NEA member Karen Mahurn.

The support positions at schools are often the ones that are cut to fill a budget gap.

Metro Schools' proposed budget, which includes the elimination of 100 custodial jobs, to balance the budget concerned people at the conference.

"When we say that we have to have healthy, clean, safe environments for our students and our staff to work in those areas. When you cut the staff, there is only a limited amount an individual can do," said Nancy Toombs of Kentucky.

Edwards said she came to speak to the group because it's crucial to value the people who keep schools running daily across the country.

"I understand there's a crunch everyplace," she said. "But if we want to have good staff, we have to make certain there is enough of them and that we pay them well."

The conference started Friday and ends Sunday.

Nationally, education support professionals make up more than 40 percent of employees in public schools.