The newly elected president of the National Education Association is making clear her plans to continue advocating for the social justice agenda for which the country's largest teachers union has long advocated – particularly under predecessor Becky Pringle.  

"Together, we will build the power to defend public education, advance racial and social justice, and ensure every educator has the respect, resources, and voice they deserve," new President Princess Moss said in announcing her win at the union's Annual Meeting and Representative Assembly last week.

Moss, an elementary music teacher from Virginia and current NEA vice president, will assume her new post September 1. 

In her victory speech to delegates, Moss also praised "educators, unions, students, and entire communities" for having "stood in your power" for the past 18 months, making a direct reference to opposition to the Trump administration, which through executive orders and other means, has pushed to "reorienting the agency toward prioritizing meaningful learning ahead of divisive ideology in our schools."

Moss continued in her speech: “You have faced an administration determined to turn diversity, equity, and inclusion into a slur ... to gut Medicaid, SNAP, and Social Security, and to defund our schools to fund billionaires.”  

The roughly 169-year-old union, now with over three million members, has a long history of supporting Democratic candidates and their political agenda, most recently in the 2024 election cycle, when the NEA and its political action committees raised roughly $27 million and spent over $43 million. The spending was highly targeted toward left-leaning advocacy groups, ballot measures and Democratic candidates, according to The 74, a nonprofit news organization covering America’s education system.

Pringle, over her six-year tenure encompassing two terms, spearheaded left-wing advocacy including Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Critical Race Theory (CRT) initiatives, LGBTQ advocacy, and restorative justice-based discipline in public schools.

She also mobilized her members for large-scale protests such as 'No Kings' Day and May Day, which she refers to as "organizing for power." Pringle also advocated for policies such as affirmative action, while opposing Supreme Court decisions such as Mahmoud v. Taylor, which ruled that parents have the constitutional right to opt their children out of LGBTQ curriculum.

In addition, she championed such Democratic politicians as Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, as well as 2024 Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Moss, as NEA vice president under Pringle, appeared to be in unison with her vision for the union. During the 2020 midterm elections, she urged NEA members to vote to “protect the right to vote, the rights of women and LGBTQ+ rights,” and “carve a clear path toward the presidential election in 2024.”

She became involved in the Virginia Education Association – an NEA affiliate – while studying at the University of Mary Washington. She participated in local education associations throughout her 21 years as a teacher, serving two terms as president of the VEA and two terms on the NEA’s executive committee. She was elected secretary-treasurer of the NEA in 2014 and later vice president in 2020.

Moss won the union presidency with 50.3% of votes.

“Princess is one of us, and she always has been,” said Virginia Education Assocition President Carol Bauer upon Moss’ election. “We are proud, we are ready, and we are going to organize right alongside her.”