Being a public educator in Oregon today is hard. The workload is heavy, the systems and conditions are often unforgiving, and the people who do this work — the vast majority of them women — give a great deal of themselves every day. Every Oregon educator deserves real support that meets them as a whole person.

Educators of color, LGBTQ+ educators, classified staff, educators with disabilities, and educators in rural communities often face additional barriers and are more likely to feel isolated at work. 

Our work runs on two tracks at once: support that’s genuinely available to every Oregon educator, and focused investment where the need is greatest.

In practice, that means:

• Programs designed for every Oregon public education employee, pre-K through Community College, with no one as an afterthought. Classified employees, substitutes, licensed educators, community college faculty and staff all do work that matters — and all deserve supports built with them in mind.

• Affinity spaces and culturally responsive care for those who want them. BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other educators from marginalized groups have asked for spaces where they don’t have to explain themselves first. 

• Language and access. We invest in translation, interpretation, and reasonable accommodations necessary to use the Initiative’s resources.

• Statewide reach, rural roots. We continue to invest in rural communities while making sure educators in every district — urban, suburban, and rural — can find us and use what we offer.

• Decisions shaped by the people they affect. Programs are built with input from the educators they’re meant to serve, with particular care to hear from those whose voices haven’t historically driven decisions.

No wellness program, however thoughtful, is a substitute for fixing the conditions that wear educators down. We hear that from educators, and we take it seriously. Our Annual Report will show what we funded, who it reached, and what we’re changing based on what we learned.