Brian Washington

The simplest way to explain what Brian Washington does for NEA members is this: He strengthens their voices.

Nobody knows more what educators need to be successful in their jobs—for their students—than educators. But too often, their voices aren’t heard in state houses, at school board meetings, in places where critical decisions are made.

In those cases, local and state affiliates call Brian. For one example, take Virginia in 2021, when Brian helped union members to craft a plan that eventually won them collective bargaining rights. For another, take Mississippi in 2023, where Brian’s support and strategy led to an additional 800 new Mississippi Association of Educators members.

“I help our members by using communications strategy to strengthen state and local unions so they have a stronger voice to advocate for their students,” he says.

Often, this means looking at campaign plans and strengthening them. Even more often, it means training members and leaders in key communications skills, like how to talk with journalists.

“To be quite honest with you, I like every aspect of my job—for different reasons,” he says. “I love when I do a training, say it’s public speaking, and by the end they’re all like, ‘I can do this!’ I love seeing that I’ve empowered our members! But I also love when I work on a campaign and we set goals, and check goals, and accomplish things!”