The Association of American Educators (AAE) and Professional Educators of Tennessee (PET) formed a collaboration seeking to help support state educators.
The two organizations announced an affiliated partnership on Monday seeking to give Tennessee educators access to increased educator protections, stronger advocacy, and amplified professional learning services.
AAE is America’s biggest non-union professional educators association, and PET is a Tennessee-based non-partisan education association.
Colin Sharkey, AAE’s executive director, said the new alliance “reflects a shared belief that educators deserve an organization focused on serving them and safeguarding the profession.”
“Together, we can offer stronger protections, more growth opportunities, and a more effective voice for educators at both the state and national levels,” he said.
JC Bowman, PET’s CEO, said its members “have always expected us to prioritize educators over politics and to build bridges across the ideological spectrum to find common ground.”
“By partnering with AAE, we are expanding—not replacing—the services our members value. Tennessee educators will gain additional resources and benefits while preserving the legislative advocacy, legal protections, and professional learning that define PET,” he said.
Bowman told The Tennessee Star that PET “will collaborate” with AAE as “partners” because “their values align closely with [PET’s].”
“They maintain a non-partisan stance and do not endorse political candidates. Our primary focus remains on serving the needs of Tennessee. We believe that our association serves as a model for state-based organizations that can be replicated in other states, ultimately amplifying our members’ voices within Tennessee,” Bowman said.
Under the partnership, members will gain access to more liability protections in the classroom, coaching, licensure defense, and AAE’s national support services. These protections will allow members to access legal coverage for professional risks, according to the PET press release.
At the state level, PET will continue its education advocacy in the Tennessee General Assembly and the Tennessee State Board of Education. The press release says the affiliation between the two organizations will help PET with its lobbying efforts for higher teacher pay and education reform. AAE, in the new partnership, will broaden its advocacy at the federal level.
Members will gain access to PET’s leadership courses and AAE’s webinars, publications, leadership tools, and networking service. The alliance will give members access to additional options for continuing education, career development, and classroom support, the press release notes.
Membership rates for PET and AAE will remain competitive, the press release says. Bowman told The Star by email that PET will not increase its dues.
Rates for PET membership range from $25 to $206, while AAE membership rates range from $39 to $234.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
