Members Take the Lead and the Win in WV
Members Take the Lead and the Win in WV
Barbara Madeloni,
President
Greetings,
The news out of West Virginia is incredibly inspiring. In a state that has banned both "fair share" fees and collective bargaining for public employees, rank-and-file union members nonetheless organized themselves, built community coalitions, and used their collective power to win raises not only for themselves, but for all public-sector workers in West Virginia.
I don't expect many of them thought when this started that they would be out for nine days. They probably didn't anticipate they'd refuse a proposed agreement because it wasn't good enough, fair to all, and guaranteed. But they did. Through strategic thinking, courageous risk-taking, coalition building and collective action, they built their power and achieved a remarkable win. We need to not only be inspired, but to learn from them.
Demanding the Public Colleges and Universities Our Communities Deserve
Staff, faculty and students from across the state gathered at the State House on Monday to demand fully funded, high-quality, broad-based liberal arts public higher education. Their demands included health benefits for adjunct faculty and more affordability for students.
Public Higher Education Advocacy Day, organized by the Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts, was a rousing success and a critical frame for our campaign to win the Fair Share Amendment this fall. It was also a startling contrast to a speech given by UMass President Marty Meehan later that same day. Meehan proposed that we should have many more online courses and, through corporate donors, further privatization of the public good. Meehan's plans would create a two-tiered public higher education system: one for working people and their families and one for the elite. We must resist these plans and work instead for the Fair Share Amendment and high-quality, debt-free public higher education.
Support Students Organizing to End Gun Violence
Just as the educators of West Virginia have inspired us, so have the students here in Massachusetts. This week, students walked out in Cambridge, Somerville, Medford and Arlington - and perhaps in other communities we don't know about. All across the country, students are teaching us what it means to stand up to injustice and take action to right a wrong.
The MTA is supporting the students and the educators who support them. Go here for links to information about student walkouts on March 14 (including a link to a memo by MTA's Legal Services Division) and about the March for Our Lives rallies being planned for Boston Common and in several other locations across the state on March 24. And go here to sign a petition and learn more about how educators can work together to defeat the gun lobby and keep guns out of our schools and off our campuses.
We strongly encourage educators to not only support the student walkouts, but to join the rallies on March 24 and march behind MTA banners. More information to follow.
Tell Your Story about the Impact of High-Stakes Testing on Teaching and Learning
Citizens for Public Schools has set up a blog for educators, students and parents to tell their stories, anonymously if they wish, about how the high-stakes use of testing is affecting teaching and learning in our schools. Find out how to post here. These stories will unmask the myth about the benefits of MCAS and help move us toward a moratorium on high-stakes testing.
Here is an example from what one parent wrote: "I have heard from teachers about the nightmare of testing week, which is now extended to testing month. I've heard from special educators who were taken from their assignments to proctor exams, much to the detriment of their students and in violation of federal law. I've heard from parents whose children absolutely loved going to school until they reached third grade and were faced with MCAS."
Paid Family and Medical Leave and the $15 Minimum Wage: Let's Win These Now
The Raise Up Massachusetts coalition, of which MTA is a leading member, is holding community briefings across Massachusetts to let legislators know that we want paid family and medical leave and the $15 minimum wage to be passed in the State House - now. Go here for places, dates and times and let your legislators know that healthy, secure families with time to take care of each other are central to student learning.
All IN for Union Power? Become a Delegate to the MTA Annual Meeting
Union power starts with union democracy. The MTA Annual Meeting, to be held in Boston on May 4 and 5, is where members set the direction of the union through voting on the budget, on policy and in leadership elections. Each local is designated a proportional number of delegates, elected by the membership of the local, to attend the meeting. Information about delegate counts was sent to local presidents this week. Contact your local president soon if you would like to nominate yourself to be a delegate. You can find out more here.
Andover Instructional Assistant Named 2018 MTA ESP of the Year
Longtime MTA activist Kathy Meltsakos was named the MTA Education Support Professional of the Year at a surprise ceremony in Andover on Feb. 28. Meltsakos has worked in public education for close to two decades and in the Andover Public Schools as a special needs instructional assistant since 2011. She has been active in her local association and at the state and national levels for years. Jean Tarricone, her department head at Andover High School, told the Andover Townsman, "Kathy really epitomizes what an ESP should be. She puts the kids first and can be counted on in any situation."
Nominate a Social Justice Educator
The NEA is accepting nominations until April 13 for the 2018 Social Justice Activist Award. We have some amazing union educators organizing for racial, economic, immigrant and LGBTQ justice. Go here for more information and get those nomination papers in.
Sign This Petition: Preserve the William Joiner Institute
In another in a series of blows to the UMass Boston campus, Governor Charlie Baker's budget would significantly reduce funding for the William Joiner Institute for the Study of War and Social Consequences. This center serves veterans, refugees and their families who have experienced the trauma of war. Sign the petition here to support saving the institute.
Solidarity,
Barbara