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Jewish educators, allies and organizations developed and passed reforms in July that protect all minority members
Hadassah Central Pacific Coast Region President Karen Bloom is a member of Hadassah's National Educators Council Steering Committee and a middle school math teacher in California. She is also a state representative to the annual National Education Association (NEA) Representative Assembly (RA), elected by her union peers.
After three years of rising rhetoric and the marginalization of Jewish educators, Bloom and her colleagues helped develop and pass real, structural changes to NEA policies that protect all minority members, including Jews, moving forward.
"Fighting antisemitism right now can feel risky, exhausting and never-ending," Bloom noted. "But this year, we know people finally listened. Walking onto the floor, I knew Hadassah and our partners were with us every step of the way. That support gave us the strength to speak up, and for the first time in a long time, we felt safe. It's a profound story of how the work we do together, fighting antisemitism where we are, can have a tangible and lasting impact. We can make a real difference."
Since Hamas' terrorist attack against Israel on October 7, 2023, the NEA RAs have been marked by deeply troubling antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents and proposals, leaving many Jewish educators feeling isolated. Last year, for example, anti-Israel delegates advanced a proposal barring the NEA from using materials developed by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) to fight antisemitism. Thankfully, after pushback from Jewish educators and organizations, including Hadassah, the NEA's Executive Committee subsequently blocked the measure, and it was not put into effect. NEA leadership did not address incidents last year where Jewish educators were surrounded, intimidated and met with jeers and laughter when trying to acknowledge the violent, antisemitic murders of Jews in Boulder, Colorado, and Washington, DC.
Leading up to the 2026 meeting, Bloom and her fellow Jewish educators mobilized to shift the dynamics by proposing and building support for resolutions and constitutional amendments to help strengthen protections against all forms of hatred, including antisemitism, in the NEA's governing documents.
In the process, the NEA Jewish Affairs Caucus (JAC), open to all members and allies, grew from a small special interest group into a much stronger presence. In the months leading up to the 2026 RA, they worked to build community and a proactive strategy for fighting antisemitism, with support from Hadassah and other Jewish organizations.
The caucus helped advance three constitutional amendments and two resolutions that will shape the union for years to come, a genuine team effort. JAC Chair Alyson Brauning submitted the constitutional amendments, which were drafted by JAC member Naomi Rodriguez in consultation with the ADL and legal and procedural experts, and fellow delegate Susan Kitchell submitted the Jewish American Education resolution.
The three constitutional amendments strengthen the rights of every member: adding religion and ethnicity as categories on which the Association cannot discriminate, requiring good-faith efforts to remove barriers so all members can run for delegate positions and serve on diverse committees, and, for the first time in the NEA's history, guaranteeing every delegate the right to take part in Association programs and meetings free from harassment, intimidation, exclusion or discriminatory targeting. The resolution NEA advanced calls for the NEA to recognize Jewish American educators as role models, remove barriers to their recruitment and hiring, involve Jewish educators in developing classroom materials, provide trainings that address bullying and hate crimes against Jewish students and educators, and recognize Jewish American Heritage Month.
Delegates also updated the union's Holocaust resolution to name Jews specifically, ensuring its official language reflects that the Holocaust was, above all, the attempted annihilation of the Jewish people.
For Bloom, the difference was unmistakable, and she credits the community that stood behind her. "I'm so proud of the changes we advanced this year," she said. "Some of these protections seem obvious, but they had never been in the NEA Constitution before. Guaranteeing every delegate the right to take part free from harassment or intimidation is brand new. And by embedding Jewish American education into the union's foundational beliefs, we ensured recognition can't be undone by a future vote. This is good for all minority groups in the NEA, and it will last."
Bloom's persistence and the strength of the Jewish delegation beside her made the 2026 NEA RA a turning point, one that leaves behind lasting protections for Jewish members and every minority group in the union. Hadassah will always stand with Jewish educators and stand up to antisemitism and anti-Zionism. Together, we can, will and do make a difference.
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