Point Park Faculty and Students Invited to Represent PA at National Education Association Conference Wednesday, August 12, 2026

Two student leaders accompanied Assistant Professor of Education Richard Garris, Ph.D., to two national conferences of educators in Colorado. Lindsey Hoffman '27, a PK-4 and K-12 Special Education double major, and Evan Beiter '27, Grades 4-8 Education major, will serve as president and treasurer, respectively, of the Student Pennsylvania State Educators Association (PSEA) chapter at Point Park and attended the conferences in those roles. Beiter also serves as the Political Action Committee for Education Chair of the regional board. 

At the National Education Association (NEA) Aspiring Educators Conference, Hoffman and Beiter met education students from across the nation and "truly engaged with important educational issues affecting our schools and communities," Garris said. "Students were given the opportunity to network and learn through a large variety of professional development sessions and interactive workshops."

At the NEA Representative Assembly, Hoffman and Beiter joined 6,000 educators and education students to discuss NEA business and participate in an association election.

"This was genuinely amazing," Hoffman said. "Something that I noticed during the Representative Assembly was that everyone was elated to have the aspiring educators there. They wanted to help us and wanted to give us as much information as they possibly could. Only a small group of aspiring educators went, so seeing what is put in behind the scenes of the world of education was so cool." 

Beiter appreciated the connections he was able to build with current educators. "Everybody was so attentive and engaged when talking to us. I got to talk with one of the presidential candidates, and we had such a good conversation—just about teaching, life, her goals and missions—it created such a good connection. I was grateful to build so many connections during this.

This opportunity was a new one for Point Park students. The previous student education association on campus had been the Future Educators Association, but this year, it is transitioning to the Student PSEA. The university is covering the membership cost for every on-ground undergraduate education major, giving students unparalleled access to resources and connections. 

Garris and Ashlee Geesaman, M.Ed., serve as advisors for the chapter. Hoffman and Beiter attended the Student PSEA State Conference in March at State College and were then selected, along with 10 other students, to represent the state SEAs at the national conference. 

Hoffman and Beiter said that what they experienced at the conference will impact how they lead the Point Park Student PSEA chapter. 

"At both conferences, every person we met was more than willing to help us establish our chapter at Point Park," said Hoffman. "We have some amazing connections with Western Region teachers, leaders, as well as student PSEA who are all willing to speak to our chapter or collaborate with us to have events for student PSEA. Knowing that we have a huge support system who only wants us to succeed is so inspiring. I am looking forward to this year and what we get the chance to achieve with all the people we've met and the resources we now have better knowledge of." 

"The highlight of the trip for me was getting to see how well our students represented not just Point Park University but the entire state of Pennsylvania," Garris said. "Our students were highly engaged from the very beginning of the conference and made every effort to gain as much as they could from the conference. I was so proud of our student leaders, and I am very excited to see what they are able to do this year!" 

 

More About: special education, elementary education, education, early childhood education, School of Education