Lobbying

AFT 61st Annual Convention

jruss — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 15:47:09 -0500

Al Shanker hits on a few major topics in this speech. He begins by talking about the success AFT and the labor movement had in organizing to help Jimmy Carter win the presidency. He mentions the meetings he has had with the new administration that give him hope for funding and enforcement of educational issues and laws like the 1973 Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) and Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 which deals with improving the academic achievement of the disadvantaged. read more »

AFT Convention: “The State of our Union”

jruss — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:07:00 -0500

Al Shanker discusses the various political and legal events underway that might affect teachers and AFT''s lobbying actions to influence their outcomes. He briefly mentions several items like a pending court case dealing with the right of employees at parochial schools to organize and the establishment of a separate Department of Education. He highlights in more detail three of the AFT''s main political campaigns: Proposition 13 which dealt with property taxes, labor law reform, and tuition tax credits. read more »

Great Lakes Regional Conference: "Lessons for Life"

jruss — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 14:02:03 -0500

In this speech, Al Shanker addresses various polls of parents concerned with the state of education. The polls cite students who disrupt class and the failure to teach basic skills like reading and arithmetic before passing students to the next grade as primary concerns. Shanker says that teacher polls yield the same results. He points to education boards and superintendents as the only people in the chain who do not see these problems. Shanker calls on the audience to lobby that alternative schools be established for disruptive students. read more »

Institute for Educational Policy Studies: “Teacher Unions: Past, Present and Future Influence”

jruss — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:21:18 -0500

Al Shanker discusses the history and development of teachers' unions in the United States. He traces the changing focus of teachers' unions from collective bargaining to larger questions of education policy to an expanded approach to politics. Shanker argues that teachers should pay attention to energy, trade, and commerce policies, for instance, because these policies affect the taxes which fund the public schools. Shanker believes that interest and involvement in the larger political picture will help put teachers in a position to enhance public opinion of education. read more »

International Federation of Free Teachers' Unions (IFFTU) Speech

jruss — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:07:00 -0500

Al Shanker shares with the International Federation of Free Teachers'' Unions the various challenges facing educators in the United States and the programs the AFT has established to try to face them. One challenge he mentions are the changing demographics in America. Another is federal funding for public schools and the various federal education laws to which public schools must adhere. In order to deal with these issues, the AFT has partnered with other labor unions through the AFL-CIO to increase its political leverage and with other community groups that share common goals and interests. read more »