Parents stand with educators and public schools
A new national poll released by AFT this week found that supermajorities of parents give public school teachers high marks for their herculean efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents' perception of educator unions is also soaring to record highs.
Overall, 72% of parents say their school provides excellent or good-quality education, and 78% believe the quality and performance of their teachers is excellent or good, up 7 points from 2013, according to the poll. 83% of parents are satisfied with their schools’ efforts to keep students and staff safe. And by a 31-point margin, parents feel that teachers unions are having a positive, rather than negative effect on the quality of education.
The poll results come as a concerted campaign to bash educators and our public schools is underway across the country. But despite this campaign, most parents aren’t buying it.
“Parents are incredibly appreciative of the heroic efforts of teachers and classified staff during the pandemic,” says CFT President Jeff Freitas. “They are standing with us in defense of public education because they understand that the virus is the enemy, not one another.”
Keep the pressure on Sacramento to fund paid sick leave
Earlier this week Governor Newsom and state legislative leaders announced that they reached an agreement on a framework to ensure employees continue to have access to COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave. The announcement followed a broad campaign from union members across the state, including many CFT members who wrote letters to their elected representatives.
Now it’s up to the state legislature to deliver.
Please take a moment to urge your elected leaders in Sacramento to restore emergency COVID sick leave in California for all workers, including those who work in our public schools. Restoring COVID sick leave is essential to ensuring our schools remain safely open.
AFT President Randi Weingarten joins CFT Secretary Treasurer Luukia Smith in San Francisco
This week CFT Secretary Treasurer Luukia Smith and AFT President Randi Weingarten got a chance to visit Visitacion Valley Middle School in San Francisco along with UESF President Cassondra Curiel.
The state and national leaders visited programs that face elimination because of budget cuts faced by the district, including a drama and rock band class.
UESF has been pushing back hard against proposed cuts to school sites during tough budget times, pushing for expanding services and resources to students during their time of need, not cuts.
CFT Secretary Treasurer Luukia Smith got to see firsthand just why preserving these classes is so important. “Elective classes like drama or band are often the reason why many students come to school," said Luukia. "As important as fundamentals like reading, writing, and math are, electives keep students engaged and provide a critical path to help them learn and thrive.”
For more on their visit, check out this report by ABC 7 news.
We need a reckoning for scapegoating teachers over Covid
San Rafael Federation of Teachers member Andrew Simmons weighed in this week with a great op-ed in Ed Source, challenging the scapegoating of teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Andrew writes, “Recently, New York Magazine published an article asking “progressive activists” to “reckon” with advocating for remote learning last year. Author Jonathan Chait cites the “catastrophic” consequences for students and the “indisputable” evidence that it was clearly safe for campuses to reopen in the spring of 2020.”
And Andrew finishes with, “Such a demand for reckoning — and penance — though, is scapegoating, and that angers me. But when thousands of Americans are dying every day and my students are keeping up with class from quarantine, there’s much more to reckon with.”
Check out the rest of the op-ed and let us know what you think.
California launches Healthy Minds, Thriving Kids Project
This week a new initiative funded by the state of California is launching statewide called The California Healthy Minds, Thriving Kids Project. The project includes free video and PDF resources that will help kids and teens build mental health skills. The aim is to promote coping and resilience, allowing students to better manage the stresses of the pandemic and practice skills they can use for the rest of their lives.
Each PreK-12 California educator (including classified staff) who samples project materials and provides valuable feedback will receive an incentive of up to $100 for the roughly 30 minutes of their time required.
You can participate and qualify for the incentive by visiting the initiative’s Educator Portal.
