Honoring Our ESPs and Standing Up for Our Schools
Honoring Our ESPs and Standing Up for Our Schools
Greetings, MTA members,
To all our Education Support Professionals, Happy ESP Day! We recognize and honor you today and thank you for all you do for our students and schools.
A friend I grew up with in Amherst told me (Max) recently that it is the fall that spurs the strongest memory of her childhood. I agree. It is these cold days that lead to the explosion of color across the state, which most make me think of growing up in western Massachusetts.
But those sharp, clear days have new meaning for me these days, where we struggle against attacks on our schools and colleges, our immigrant neighbors, and our freedom to teach and learn. We have – or should have – new clarity about this political moment.
Will we welcome all students, as our Constitution demands?
Will we resist all attempts to censor our professional educators, in what we teach, in what books we choose, in what truthful history we teach?
Will we demand that our politicians rise to the moment and fund our schools and colleges, so that this regime in Washington does not succeed in undermining the best public education system in the country?
Yesterday, we made one of those demands by delivering a petition calling for immediate action by the governor and Legislature to address the severe fiscal crisis in our public schools. Some 1,100 union leaders, mayors, school committee and city council members, superintendents and principals, among others, signed the petition, representing communities from Acton to Wrentham. This winter and spring will demand a fight by all of us to make sure the state budget provides the funds needed to protect our schools.
As my neighbor here in Amherst – Emily Dickinson, who we who live here treat as our personal acquaintance – wrote in her poem “Autumn”:
The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry's cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I'll put a trinket on.
Let’s put on our union colors – our own righteous ‘trinkets’ – and continue to stand up for our public schools and colleges, our students and their families.
MTA Events, Opportunities and Solidarity Actions
Take Action to Support Starbucks Workers
More than 1,000 Starbucks baristas are on strike this week in a “Red Cup Rebellion” that started Nov. 12. Massachusetts has about two dozen unionized Starbucks stores, according to the union’s map. How can we support the unfair labor practice strike by Starbucks Workers United? Read the history preceding the strike. Do not patronize Starbucks while the strike is ongoing. And please consider signing a pledge of support for these unionized workers.
Protecting Massachusetts Communities Pre-Hearing Rally and Support
When: 9 a.m. rally, 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. hearings, all on Tuesday, Nov. 25
Where: Pre-hearing rally, Room 428, Massachusetts State House; Hearings in Room A2 and Gardner Auditorium.
Join Protecting Massachusetts Communities and guest speakers in a rally to urge state elected officials to pass meaningful legislation that protects immigrant communities from inhumane and violent immigration enforcement. Two hearings will be held at the State House that include three bills touching on elements of priority protections, including the Dignity Not Deportations (S1122/H1588), Safe Communities (S1681/H2580) and Immigrant Legal Defense (S1127/H1954) acts.
Actions Taken at the November Executive Committee Meeting
Read actions taken by the MTA Executive Committee at the meeting on Nov. 7, 2025. Scroll down on the page for the Executive Committee information.
Federal Attacks on Public Education and the Dismantling of the Department of Education
When: 3-4:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 3
Where: Virtual
As part of the First Wednesday Speaker Series, join the Retired Members Committee and journalist Jennifer Berkshire, author of “The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide and Defense Manual,” for a discussion about the ramifications of recent federal actions, including the withholding of federal grants, as well as the impacts of policies on international students and higher education. Learn more and register for the event.
NERO Region Safety Caucus Meeting
When: 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 3
Where: Virtual or in-person at Northeast Regional Service Center, 35 Village Road, Middleton
Join fellow educators, school nurses and guests from the Massachusetts Nurses Association for a discussion about how we can improve health and safety in our schools. Topics will include what are the important similarities and differences in workplace violence in education and health care. Register for the safety caucus meeting!
MTA Benefits Student Loan Repayment Webinar
When: 6 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 4
Where: Virtual
The student loan space has undergone significant changes over the past three years. Please join Martin Lynch, of Cambridge Credit Counseling, to learn how those changes impact your eligibility for Teacher Loan Forgiveness and Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and what members need to do to qualify for those programs. The webinar will also cover options for those still caught up in the SAVE repayment plan forbearance and how Parent PLUS loans can be forgiven through PSLF. Everyone carrying student loans who needs to borrow after June 30, 2026 should attend. Please register today.
Solidarity School Workshops
Solidarity School is a dynamic series of training and popular education workshops designed to meet the urgency of our political moment with clarity, courage and collective action. Upcoming classes include Standing Strong: Allyship in Action for Detained Immigrants, Safe to Learn: Defending LGBTQ+ Students in Uncertain Times, and Classrooms of Resistance: Teaching Truth in Authoritarian Times. See the Full List of Workshops & Register.
Political Education
“Smartphone bans are a good idea,” writes Jean Twenge in the New York Times. “But they are not a complete solution, because phones are not the only electronic devices students use at school. These days, nearly every middle and high school student – and a good number in the elementary grades as well – brings a laptop or tablet to school and uses it at home for homework.”
In solidarity,
Max and Deb