North Dakota United and our President Nick Archuleta will be hosting an important listening sessions on Jan. 17 from 4-6 p.m. CT at the Bakken Elementary Auditorium. We have tremendous challenges ahead of us as we continue to stand up for quality public education and public service.

Here are just a few of the challenges coming our way:

• A U.S. Supreme Court opinion in Janus v. AFSCME that seeks to limit the strength of working people across our nation.
• An election in 2018 that will have serious consequences for all of us if we don’t elect champions of public education and public service.
• A legislative session in 2019 that likely will include attacks on our ability to negotiate contracts and further budget cuts. This is not hyperbole; we only need to look at our neighbors in Wisconsin, Michigan and Iowa to see how real these threats are.
• Development of the next generation of leaders in our locals and increasing member activism.

Through these listening sessions across the state, North Dakota United will develop a vision and plan to carry us through the upcoming challenges. These listening sessions will set the stage for our Delegate Assembly in April where we will set our course moving forward.