GOP expands public funds for private schools
Republican state lawmakers around the country have voted in recent months to create or expand programs that provide public funds to families for their children’s private education.
Florida’s anti-union law targets teachers
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on May 9 signed legislation to prohibit automatic payroll deductions for dues and place other restrictions on public employee unions. The new law, which takes effect on July 1, also requires unions to pay for annual...
Mulgrew: Class-size law ‘not a negotiation’
UFT President Michael Mulgrew reminded the Delegate Assembly on May 17 that the new state class-size law will begin to be implemented in September, and that there is no excuse for schools to fail to fulfill the mandate.
Council members hear UFT funding priorities
The UFT made an impassioned case for a city budget that fully meets the needs of New York City’s students at the union’s annual legislative breakfast with City Council members on April 25 at UFT headquarters.
No cuts to school budgets
After a months-long push by the UFT and other public school advocates, the mayor and the city Department of Education made good on their promise not to cut individual school budgets in September. Schools will be held harmless for drops in enrollment...
5 contract rallies, 1 message to city:
UFT members showed up at five simultaneous contract rallies — one in each borough — on May 24 to turn up the pressure on the city and the Department of Education to agree to a fair contract by the end of the school year.
Educators seek more time for students
Administrative tasks get in the way of their students’ learning, according to 87% of educators in the union's new survey of its school-based members, who handed out a leaflet with the poll results across the five boroughs during a Week of Action in...
State budget update
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposal to lift the regional cap on charter schools and put the licenses for defunct charters back into circulation resurfaced in the final weeks of state budget negotiations after former Mayor Bloomberg and other Wall Street...
Restoring workers’ rights in Michigan
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed legislation to repeal the state’s right-to-work law, making it the first state in nearly 60 years to roll back a law that allows workers to not pay union dues or fees.
State to take over Houston public schools
Sparking anger and dismay among Houston educators and parents, Texas officials have announced a state takeover of the city’s public school district, the eighth-largest in the country.