Nurturing Lifelong Learners
Nurturing Lifelong Learners
Dear Members,
At the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center FOCUS2025 conference last week, I (Max) spoke about the devastating federal cuts our public schools and colleges are confronting, and made the case for continuing to demand that the extraordinarily wealthy in our state contribute more to protecting the Commonwealth and all the progress we have made in public education and transportation, health care and all that makes Massachusetts a great place to live.
But before I spoke, all of us in the conference heard from Miguel Cardona, President Biden’s Secretary of Education. His “ABCs of Education” was refreshing: A = “agency” or “trust our educators.” B = “better working conditions.” C: “competitive salaries.”
It would be gratifying if those elected and appointed to oversee public education in Massachusetts embraced those same views. It would be wonderful if they stood up for educators who — on their own time — expressed their views on issues and individuals in politics, as they have the right to do as citizens. (I spoke to the need for the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, the state Commissioner of Education and the state Secretary of Education, to speak in support of our educators being harassed and doxed; their lives threatened because of comments they made on social media relating to the late political activist Charlie Kirk and his views. The silence from them was deafening.)
It would be uplifting if the secretary and commissioner fully embraced our Question 2 victory ending high-stakes testing by using the space we created with that victory to reconsider what and how we assess our students, as we educate and nurture them to be lifelong learners, engaged citizens and generous adults. It would uplift the spirits of our members if they would recognize this simple truth which you all know: It is the skilled educator, creatively employing their unique calling for education and building relationships in the classroom, one student at a time, who is responsible for the success of our students and our schools.
Standardized tests, standardized curriculum and standardized educators do not produce real learning. This kind of school is the wish of exactly no educator in a school building, even if it appears to be in the halls of DESE.
MTA Events, Opportunities and Solidarity Actions
Regional Health & Safety Meetings Hosted by the MTA’s Safe Schools Task Force for All
When: 4:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9
Where: MTA headquarters in Quincy
Join the next regional caucus on workplace violence, classroom safety and student well-being. Visit the MTA’s Safe Schools Task Force for All to register.
Community Safety, Marshaling and De-escalation for Nonviolent Actions When: 6 - 8 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 12 Where: Zoom This two-hour workshop will provide principles and techniques for promoting collective care and de-escalating agitated, angry and aggressive individuals at nonviolent street actions. Scenarios will be drawn from the deep experience of facilitators Karl Miller and Rebecca Riccio, as lead safety team coordinators in Greater Boston. Regster here. MTA Fall Regional Member and Presidents’ Meetings When: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m., Oct. 14 – Nov. 20 Where: Regional offices All members are invited to join us for a regional presidents’ meeting at the regional office that is most convenient for you. This is a chance to speak to MTA President Max Page, Vice President Deb McCarthy and Executive Director-Treasurer Mike Fadel about issues affecting you in your workplaces. A light dinner is included. Register here. Testify on Educator Pay Legislation When: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 14 Where: Gardner Auditorium, Massachusetts State House, or remote The Joint Committee on Education will host a hearing on An Act relative to educator pay, a bill that would establish a statewide minimum salary of $55,000 for Education Support Professionals and increase the minimum salary for teachers to $70,000. It also would create a process for future increases and a multi-year reimbursement schedule for school districts to help cover the associated cost increases. People can testify in person, remotely, or in writing. Email Molly Labonte, MTA legislative and political strategist, at mlabonte@massteacher.org, to sign up to testify. Read our fact sheet. MTA Solidarity School
When: Oct. 15 through Nov. 17 Where: Virtual and in-person locations Sign up for a dynamic series of training and popular education workshops that are designed to meet the urgency of our political moment with clarity, courage and collective action. Workshops will be offered both in person and online. Learn more & register at massteacher.org/solidarityschool. Literacy Legislation – Take Action Legislation before the Joint Committee on Education would mandate the use of specific literacy curriculum and place in state law a flawed definition of “evidence-based literacy instruction” that would restrict educators from implementing effective practices. Please write to your legislators today to urge them to listen to educators in their district and oppose this legislation. Learn more about MTA’s reading educators’ recommendations, and analysis of how adoption of these laws has had minimal or no effect in other states.
Urge Legislators to Listen to Educators on Literacy
There is currently legislation before the Joint Committee on Education that would mandate the use of specific literacy curriculum and place in state law a flawed definition of “evidence-based literacy instruction” that would restrict educators from implementing effective practices. The MTA recently hosted a briefing for legislators to share why we are concerned about the proposed legislation and to highlight what educators think would be effective in expanding access to high-quality literacy instruction. Now, we are asking you to take two actions right away to let legislators know that educators oppose a one-size-fits-all approach to literacy:
- Write to your legislators to urge them to listen to educators in their district and oppose this legislation.
- Add your name and title to this petition that is being organized by a grassroots coalition committed to elevating the voices of educators in this discussion.
RetirementPlus – Tell Your Senator This is Important Legislation to create a fix for RetirementPlus is a top priority for us. The House in late July approved the bill, H.4361, but it and a Senate version, S.1884, remain in the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. Please send a letter to your senator, urging them to move on the bill, which would afford educators a new opportunity to join RetirementPlus. Books Not Bombs, Promoting Federal Investment in Public Education When: 4 - 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 18 Where: Virtual Please join an online forum that will gather together members of education unions, including the MTA, NEA, AFT-Massachusetts, the American Association of University Professors, as well as advocacy groups, to consider how to mobilize and resist federal cuts to education that will affect every school district in the nation. Speakers will include U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, MTA President Max Page and MTA Vice President Deb McCarthy. Register at masspeace.us/notbombs. People's Forum on Graduation Requirements When: 6:30 - 8 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 22 Where: Zoom Now that we are free of the MCAS as a graduation requirement, we have the opportunity to have a real conversation about the education we want for our children. Citizens for Public Schools is hosting a series of People’s Forums. Residents of Western Massachusetts are invited to gather together on Zoom for the next session. Update: Close to 600 Have Signed the Fiscal Crisis Letter – Let’s get to 800! With just a month before our Nov. 7 signature deadline, we are thrilled to report that close to 600 school district leaders and educators have signed a letter to the governor and the Legislature, urging action to address the systemic fiscal crisis that is harming public education. Please review the list of all signers, and if you see that your local president, school committee members, superintendents, principals, or municipal leaders in your community have yet to sign on, please let them know. If other people are missing, invite them to add their name, too. Help us advocate and win the funds that our students, educators and communities deserve. Learn more about the campaign at massteacher.org/fiscalcrisis and read the fiscal crisis letter. Ballot Initiative Support The MTA board voted recently to support several ballot initiatives for the 2026 statewide election. If you are interested in helping to gather signatures for these campaigns, or otherwise support them, please follow these links.
Nominations Open for the 2026 MTA ESP of the Year Award
Do you know an Education Support Professional who deserves recognition for their professionalism and dedication? Please nominate someone for the 2026 ESP of the Year. ESPs in both higher education and preK-12 are eligible for this honor. Nominations will be accepted through Dec. 15. The nomination form and a look back at previous honorees are posted at massteacher.org/espoftheyear.
Political Education
On May Day and on Labor Day we marched under the banner “Workers Over Billionaires.” It was and remains a simple and clear message, which also speaks to a moment of enormous inequality, when the economy and the federal government (and perhaps most state governments as well) are captured by the power that comes with such enormous concentration of wealth.
It might be useful if the party that says it is the party of working people embraced this message and, more importantly, embraced it in every policy it fights for. Historian Timothy Shenk makes the argument for passionate, class-based politics, based on the successes of Zohran Mamdani in New York and Dan Osborn in Nebraska, candidates who have anchored their campaigns firmly in the argument that the country’s politics have been captured by billionaires.
“It’s a simple recipe, really,” writes Shenk. “A scorching economic message delivered by political outsiders standing up to the powerful. The villains in this narrative — and it’s essential to have villains — are the elites at the top of a broken system.”
In solidarity,
Max and Deb