President
Christina Cole
Local Positions Held
-
Full-time Release President (2022-present)
-
Vice President (2019-2022)
-
Building Leader (2017-2018)
-
Beginning Teacher Organizer (2016-2018)
State Positions Held
-
Region 5 Director on Board of Directors (2024-present)
-
Campaign Construction Team (Spring 2025)
-
Summer Member Organizer School (2018-present)
-
NCAE Summer Leadership Conference
-
Session Presenter - Whole Worker Organizing (July 2024)
-
Session Presenter - Race, Class, Gender, Power & Public Schools (July 2020)
-
Session Presenter - Organizational Culture & Good Meetings (July 2020)
-
SNCAE Member (2013-2014)
-
NCAE Train the Trainer / Session Presenter - Culture & Culturally Responsive Teaching (July 2019)
-
Instructional & Professional Development Cadre
-
Educators of Color Academy
-
SNCAE Advocacy Lunch at UNC-Asheville
-
Keynote - Advocacy in Education (April 2018)
NEA Positions Held
-
NEA RA delegate (2019-2025)
-
NEA Year-round Organizing Health & Safety Committee (2025-present)
Personal Statement
I am a Black woman from rural NC, a Wake county Special Education teacher, organizer and local president. I have transformed my local toward an audacious organizing program and have led people across lines of race, gender, geography and job classification to lead campaigns together. I have led hundreds to join their union and take bold action. I have worked with union staff as a full-time release president and board member. This moment demands leadership that will ask tough questions, never settle for less than we deserve, and have the courage to fight. I am ready to meet this moment.
Vice President
Matthew Poston
Local Positions Held
-
Forsyth Executive Board Secretary - 3years
State Positions Held
-
Summer Member Organizer - 1year
NEA Positions Held
N/A
Personal Statement
I am a public school staff member with 14 years of experience teaching middle school in Forsyth County and served as an elementary school administrator. Having worked in Title I schools, I have seen how poverty, hunger, and the state legislature’s failure to fully fund public education impact scholars and staff statewide. A leader in FCAE/NCAE, I serve as Executive Board Secretary, lead Organizing Committee member, and Summer Member Organizer. I believe NCAE must be 100% member-driven, with equitable funding for all locals, expanded organizing, and leadership access for ESPs—including stipends when needed—because VOICE MATTERS.
Reilly Finnegan
Local Positions Held
-
CCAE Organizing Committee Member 2025-2026
-
DAE Member Organizer 2023-2025
-
DAE Organizing Committee Co-Chair 2023-2025
-
DAE Coordinating Committee Member 2023-2025
-
DAE Organizing Committee Member 2023-2025
-
DAE At Large Board Member 2023-2024
-
DAE District Organizer 2019-2023
-
DAE Building Leader (Hillside High) 2018-2023
State Positions Held
-
Summer Member Organizer 2022
-
Summer Member Organizer Lead 2023, 2024
-
NCAE Digital Story Teller Coach 2020
NEA Positions Held
N/A
Personal Statement
I’m a lifelong North Carolinian and a proud Guilford County Schools graduate. As a teacher and union leader in Durham and Chatham I’ve helped drive ambitious, strategic, majority-participation campaigns at the building and district level to grow our union power, fight back against privatizers, and win real improvements for our people.
I’m running for NCAE Vice President as Christina Cole’s running mate because together we are committed to growing and transforming NCAE into the statewide powerhouse we need to become in order to finally defeat the privatizers and win the schools and union rights that we all deserve across NC.
Brian Link
Local Positions Held
-
CHCAE, President (4.5 Years; 2021-Present)
-
CHCAE, Vice President (6 Years; 2015-2021)
State Positions Held
-
Board of Director (5.5 Years, 2020-Present)
-
Chair, External Policy Committee (3 Years, 2020-23)
-
Region 4 GRC Member (3 Years, 2018-2020)
NEA Positions Held
N/A
Personal Statement
Every election there's only question to ask -- are we better off now than we were six (seven) years ago? Our students, community allies and fellow public school educators know the answer by any measure (stagnant pay, rising premiums, disappearing populations, continual persecutions of personal identities and diverse points of view) is emphatically no.
The choice then becomes do we continue the mid, Ohioesque status quo of figuratively "fighting" and get cooked OR banish the brain rot, pan the performative politicians, decide to go sigma and start cooking with gas. Im running to leave no crumbs. Join me, bet. Let's go!
NEA Director
Shana Richards
Local Positions Held
•GCAE Government Relations Team 2020-Present
•GCAE Organizing Committee 2025
•GCAE Building Leader 2020-Present
•GCAE Vice President 2021-2023
•GCAE Student Services Director 2019-21
•GCAE Fellowship Coach 2021
•GCAE Membership & Engagement Chair 2021
•GCAE District Organizer 2020
State Positions Held
•NCAE Government Relations Commission 2023-Present
•NCAE Statewide Campaign - Member Representative 2025-Present
•NCAE Convention Delegate 2020-2025
•NCAE Student Services Division President 2023-2025
•NCAE Student Services Division President 2023-2025
•NCAE Student Services Division Vice President 2021-2023
•NCAE Student Services Division President 2023-2025
•NCAE Student Services Division Region 4 Director 2019-20
•NCAE Organizing 101 Co-Facilitator 2020
•Marshall Ganz Leadership Summer Workshop 2020 (North Carolina Delegation)
NEA Positions Held
•NEA Leadership Conference Presenter 2026
•NEA/NCAE AutoPay Training/Board Liaison 2025-Present
•NEA Minority Leadership Training/Women's Leadership Training 2023
•Pre UniServ Academy - Cohort 8, 2023-2034
•NEA Representative Assembly 2020-2023
Personal Statement
I am eager to serve North Carolina as an NEA Director. Our union has both the power and the responsibility to protect and strengthen public education—not only in North Carolina, but across this nation. Through unity, shared leadership, and bold advocacy, we will fight for the public schools our students, educators, and communities deserve. Together, we will not just defend public education—we will win.
