Pay, politics and policy are priorities for Howard educator who now heads Maryland teachers union

Paul Lemle’s mandate to members of the 75,000-member Maryland State Education Association is short and straightforward: It’s time to invest in ourselves. “I want to talk to [teachers] about power, and why it’s important that our own voices matter in education policies and how schools get funded,” said Lemle who, on Aug. 1, became president of the MSEA. “I want to build that power by recruiting our members into action.