The Northwestern Wisconsin Teachers Association, officially organized in the Senate Chambers of the Wisconsin State Capitol on December 30, 1890, held its first annual meeting at the Court House in Eau Claire on April 3 and 4, 1891. Approximately 145 charter members attended and elected W.J. Brier of River Falls the first president. The Association met in different locations throughout northwestern Wisconsin from 1892 until 1905 when Eau Claire became the permanent site of its annual conventions. In Eau Claire, the association met in several locations including the Opera House, the City Auditorium, the Wisconsin State College and, since 1957, Memorial High School.
The original constitution was in effect until January 4, 1918 when the current one replaced it. According to the constitution any person interested in public education may become a member of the Association. The Association changed its name to the Northwestern Wisconsin Education Association in 1956. Currently, it is divided into kindergarten-primary, elementary, junior high, and high school “sectionals” and more than forty “roundtables” for discussions of the pedagogic concerns of specific subjects and special educational problems. The Association has more than 5,000 members.
