Ray McInerney

Federal elections get national headlines, but state legislatures get Ray McInerney’s personal attention. 

“Now you’re talking about members’ pensions, about the systems that assess them as professionals, about funding to their classroom and workplaces—this is where the action is!” says Ray. And in the center of it, working on behalf of NEA members, you’ll find Ray.

As NEA’s point person to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which uses contributions from NEA and other organizations to elect Democrats to state legislatures across the U.S., Ray uses “politics to influence policy.” Take, for example, his recent efforts in Maryland.

Thanks to Ray’s decades of experience and influence, he was able to help the Maryland State Education Association (MSEA) convince a state lawmaker to sponsor a bill that will help districts “grow their own” teachers from the ranks of support staff. “And it’s already passed one chamber!” he celebrates. “This is why I do this work!”