Educators from District 75 sites throughout the city wore blue on April 11 to bring awareness to autism spectrum disorders and Down syndrome and to advocate for acceptance, understanding and inclusion for their students.

City Council Education Committee Chair Mark Treyger called on Mayor Bill de Blasio to negotiate a fair paid parental leave policy for New York City public school educators at a press conference on the steps of City Hall on April 24.

In spite of fiscal threats from the federal government, state lawmakers passed a new budget on March 31 that includes $1 billion in additional funding for schools statewide. New York City public school funding will receive a $334 million share of that increase.

Educators in Arizona became the latest to join the wave of job actions when they voted on April 19 to launch the state’s first-ever statewide walkout. Arizona’s governor, Doug Ducey, had offered teachers a 20 percent pay increase by 2020, beginning with a 9 percent increase next year.

Schools in more than 20 Kentucky counties closed on March 30 after teachers walked off the job in angry protest of a pension bill that Republican lawmakers sneaked through the Legislature.