At the NJEA Convention’s Wednesday night Celebration Dinner, Immediate Past NJEA President Marie Blistan received the NJEA Ruthann Sheer Distinguished Service to Education Award. The award honors to those who greatly serve New Jersey public schools and children. Distinguished Service Award Committee Chair Danielle Clark presented the award along with NJEA President Sean M. Spiller, NJEA Vice President Steve Beatty and NJEA Secretary-Treasurer Petal Robertson.
Blistan was recognized for her long career as a special education teacher and as a staunch advocate for public education, serving 12 years as an NJEA statewide officer and as president of the Gloucester County Education Association, as a leader in the Washington Township Education Association, and as president of the Somerdale Education Association.
Blistan not only inhabited those offices, she transformed them, improving the working conditions for teachers and educational support professionals and the learning conditions of the state’s 1.4 million students.
“Marie is a racial, social and economic justice warrior,” Clark said. “She was a driving force to ensure equity throughout NJEA. She has boldly led fights for Chapter 78 relief and Job Justice for educational support professionals. She has ensured inclusive curricula through forming an Amistad Stakeholder Group and ensuring passage of the New Jersey LGBTQ curriculum.”
Upon receiving the award, Blistan listed the many individuals and organizations that had previously received it and the significance of their contributions to public education.
“The award itself is also of special significance,” Blistan said. “It’s a tangible reminder of the power, the strength, and the influence of collective action. No matter any day’s circumstances in our classrooms, on our buses, in our cafeterias, in our schools; no matter the results of any election, good or bad; we know that as members of this union we are empowered to face the obstacles, to face the challenges, to see what was in front of us and see what could be, and make change.”
She encouraged NJEA members to continue their work to make the world a better, more just place, especially together through their union.
“You are the truth tellers of the value of this union,” Blistan said. “You will continue to sow the seeds so that justice will prevail—not only in the educational community, but in the world.”