The Southern Public Independent School District Employees Union (SPISDEU): a case study illuminating how a teachers' union in a right-to-work state is able to positively influence teacher performance and therefore student success

Negative perceptions surround teacher unions and their ability to save bad teachers from losing their jobs. I have found no qualitative research focusing on the positive effects teachers' unions have on the teaching profession in right-to-work states. However, in school districts where teachers' unions have gained consultation rights, such as the Southern Public Independent School District Employee Union (SPISDEU) in the Southern Independent School District (SISD), and are able to sit at the table with administration to discuss contracts and workplace conditions of district employees, this type of research is important in order to see if teachers' unions are able to have positive influence on teacher performance and student success. The intent of the proposed case study is to use qualitative methods to determine whether the SPISDEU positively influences teacher and student success. The SPISDEU selected for this study is an important organization to study due to its high membership and popularity within the SISD in a central Texas county, in a right-to-work state.