New AFT Health Care on the staffing crisis, workplace violence and corporate greed.

The AFT has always been a solutions-driven union, and our new campaign, launched during the opening session of TEACH on July 21, proves this in spades with a fresh, practical and detailed approach to strengthening public education.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and her colleague Leo Casey, a retired teacher from Brooklyn’s Clara Barton High School for Health Professions and Bard High School Early College, and former director of the Albert Shanker Institute, issued a joint statement after Florida’s Department of Education claimed that Black people benefited from slavery and learned valuable “teaching” skills during their enslavement.

Community schools are comprehensive, democratic institutions. Built on partnerships, they connect teaching and learning to community development and problem-solving. These neighborhood centers serve the educational, social service, health and recreational needs that are crucial for student success, contributing to both improved student learning and increased community well-being.

It can be scary to see bad information spread so easily among young people, but there are ways to equip your students with media-savvy skills. At “Recognizing and Dismantling Disinformation with Secondary Students,” a workshop at the AFT TEACH conference, attendees got a tangible road map to ensure everyone is better insulated from “fake news.”

How can we support all students in becoming joyful and confident readers when they enter the classroom with many diverse language experiences? Educators have differing perspectives and experiences when it comes to teaching reading, but they share the need for strategies, resources and support to be successful in reading instruction. Attendees at the pre-TEACH literacy mini-institute session “Teaching Reading Today: Knowledge, Tools and Strategies to Navigate Fast-Moving Waters” received just that.

Inside the U.S. Supreme Court Feb. 28, robed justices sat listening to oral arguments about whether to cancel student debt for millions of Americans. Outside the building, advocates and activists rallied to support debt relief, sharing personal stories about the heavy weight of student loans and framing the issue as one of equity and racial justice. Some traveled miles to raise their voices; others slept outside the night before in order to gain entry to hear the proceedings.

The Supreme Court of the United States has voted “no” on affirmative action, making it illegal to consider race in college admissions and reversing decades of practice that has made higher education more accessible to Black, Indigenous and Latinx people. Civil rights activists and advocates for equity in higher education are condemning the decision.

Telemetry techs are used to caring for about 110 patients per day on average, but now they typically care for more than 150. AFT member Niky Jones explains what those figures mean for her and her patients. 

Our new multiyear literacy campaign, “Reading Opens the World,” is designed to support students, educators and families and foster an ongoing love of reading.

AFT's trauma counseling benefit provides help and healing for our members, whenever needed, wherever a member may be.