Hello from Chicago, Friend!

I’m here all week for the Democratic National Convention, where delegates, elected officials and advocates for real solutions are gathering to unite around a new platform for the Democratic Party and officially nominate Kamala Harris and Tim Walz for president and vice president.

The AFT is honored to be a part of this historic moment that happens every four years. And this year, we’re making sure the conversation includes issues that matter most to our members and their communities.

Today, Wednesday, Aug. 21, the AFT is partnering with the XQ Institute to host a special event, “Good Trouble: America’s Youth, Career-Tech Ed and a Healthier Economy.” We’ll stream the event live on YouTube at 1 p.m. CDT. You can also watch it on Facebook.

This forum will focus on helping transform public education to better prepare our students for life, as well as for college and careers, as we are increasingly doing in our career and technical education pathways. We will be making connections between school, well-paying jobs, supporting families and building a healthy economy.

We have a great lineup of guests joining me: Russlynn Ali, CEO and co-founder of XQ Institute; Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft; U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo; Frank Luntz, pollster and political strategist; Jenny Sharfstein Kane, Program Lead for Education at Bloomberg; Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers; Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO; Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.); Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) and Mark Takano (D-Calif.); New York Gov. Kathy Hochul; and many more.

We believe in providing all children the opportunity to learn by doing. Experiential learning, including CTE, engages students in deeper learning; provides them with real-world, real-life skills; and boosts academic achievement. CTE is experiential learning at its best, and it prepares students not only for traditional trades programs but also for in-demand careers in healthcare, information technology, skilled manufacturing and more.

You won’t want to miss this forum! Tune in live at 1 p.m. CDT today on YouTube or Facebook.

In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President