| 1853 | Wisconsin Teachers Association forms in Madison. |
| 1862 | First law establishing teacher's certificates passed. |
| 1913 | First minimum teacher salary law passed - $40 per year. |
| 1921 | Fort Atkinson Teachers Association sues the Fort Atkinson
School Board over student grade changing and wins the first Wisconsin
teacher association suit against a school board. |
| 1935 | Wisconsin Teachers Association changes name to Wisconsin
Education Association, or WEA. |
| 1959 | Wisconsin passes the nation's first collective bargaining
law for public employees, including teachers. |
| 1964 | Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association (MTEA) becomes
the first certified teachers' bargaining agent in Wisconsin. |
| 1969 | Ashwaubenon teachers are first WEA affiliate to strike. |
| 1972 | WEA reorganizes and changes name to WEAC, Wisconsin
Education Association Council. |
| 1972 | The WEA Trust is formed. |
| 1973 | The Wisconsin UniServ system is created. |
| 1973 | The organization's first foray into electoral politics
ends with a loss in the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction. |
| 1973 | WEAC calls for a federal investigation of Wisconsin
Interscholastic Athletic Association policies concerning equity between
boys' and girls' sports programs, leading to legislative reform within
the next few years. |
| 1973 | WEAC's lobbying leads to a passage of the 13 Educational
Standards bill, establishing that all teachers must be certified by
the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, that every school
include kindergarten, special education, guidance counselors, and
other measures. |
| 1974 | Eighty-eight percent of WEPAC's endorsed candidates
win their elections, leaving little doubt as to the value and effectiveness
of teacher political action. |
| 1974 | Hortonville Teachers strike begins. |
| 1978 | Mediation Arbitration Law, Senate Bill 15, takes effect
and ushers in era of labor peace that lasts 15 years. |
| 1985 | WEAC successfully lobbies to increase the number of
Wisconsin Educational Standards from 13 to 20, adding standards for
testing and graduation , gifted and talented students, and accurate
measuring of school personnel performance. |
| 1993 | Governor and Legislature impose revenue caps and the
QEO, ending labor peace and undermining local school budgets. |
| 1996 | The SAGE class-size reduction program is pioneered in
Wisconsin classrooms. |
| 1996 | WEAC halts the governor's attempted takeover of the
Department of Public Instruction, eventually winning a 7-0 Wisconsin
Supreme Court decision protecting DPI's independence. |
| 1997 | WEAC wins multi-million dollar lawsuit over governor's
raid of public employee retirement funds, increasing the value of
pensions for thousands of members and former members. |
| 1999 | WEAC Representative Assembly approves Great Schools. |
| 2000 | Wisconsin Supreme Court issues Vincent v. Voigt decision,
establishing one of the highest standards in the nation for a child's
right to a sound, basic education. |