Manchester social studies middle school teacher Greg Vickers prepared carefully for retirement.
Like many of his colleagues, he participated in CEA’s in-depth retirement planning workshops, knew how many teaching service credits he’d accrued over his teaching career, and was able to calculate what his benefits would be.
“I had done all my planning based on these numbers,” he says.
Imagine his surprise when, after retiring, he learned his annual pension would be reduced by thousands of dollars.
“I was in complete shock,” he recalls.
Bombshell
Vickers received notice from the State Teachers’ Retirement Board advising him that his monthly pension benefit would be reduced. The letter explained that he’d failed to renew his certification for the last two years he taught—meaning the credits he thought he earned for those years were gone.
“I had always kept my certification current,” he says. “I was astounded.”
The last time his certification was up for renewal, state agencies were operating under a COVID shutdown, and the renewal process had gone online.
“I went onto the website and put in proof of my master’s degree and all the required information,” he says, recalling having to input information multiple times. “I thought I had done everything and taken care of my renewal, but something must have gone wrong.”
Vickers immediately contacted the STRB.
“I called and emailed but wasn’t getting a response,” he says. He experienced the same difficulty reaching anyone at the State Department of Education. “The really hard part was that no one was returning my calls or emails, and I couldn’t figure out who I should talk to.”
Vickers reached out to CEA.
“I emailed CEA Educational Issues Specialist Elizabeth Sked, and she wrote right back. It was a huge relief, because even if it turned out my certification had lapsed and it was my fault, the fact that someone was there and getting back to me was everything.”
Help when you need it
Sked, who specializes in teacher certification issues, stepped in and began looking into Vickers’ situation.
“He had a hard time accessing his SDE account because it was attached to his former school email,” she explains. She helped Vickers work with the SDE, and ultimately his certification was restored and backdated—meaning he would regain the credits he had earned and receive the full monthly pension benefit he was entitled to.
“Teachers have a lot on their plates,” says Sked, “and something like this could happen to anyone. We always remind teachers to make sure their certification is current and reach out to us if they have any questions or need help.”
Vickers says participating in CEA Retirement Specialist Robyn Kaplan-Cho’s workshops had an added benefit for him: not only was he able to plan for his retirement but also understand and quantify the financial impact of a lapsed certification.
“I knew what I was supposed to be receiving, so I knew down to the dollar what I was missing,” he says. “I would recommend that every member take advantage of CEA’s professional development, advocacy, and training opportunities,” he adds. “In my first year as a teacher, I didn’t fully understand the benefits of union membership or take advantage of the resources and support our union has to offer, but that changed over time. Even though I’m retired, I’m as active in my union as ever. Your union is your advocate.”
Vickers is now a CEA-Retired member.
“Greg came to our CEA-Retired Holiday Open House this year, and when he saw me, he teared up,” says Sked.
“You saved my life,” Vickers told her.
To learn about preparing for retirement, watch your mailbox this August for the annual retirement issue of the CEA Advisor and plan to attend a free CEA retirement workshop—many dates are offered every fall and spring.
