During Classified Professional Appreciation Week, May 17–23, CFT honored the classified professionals who keep California’s schools and colleges running every single day. Through an outreach campaign and a virtual rally bringing together members, labor leaders, legislators, and community allies, CFT celebrated the essential work and leadership of classified staff.

This year’s theme titled, “Classified Professionals, We Do It All,” was printed on posters and buttons and distributed across the state.

Legislators including Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, Mike Fong, Liz Ortega, Sade Elhawary, and Robert Garcia shared messages of support, while labor and community leaders celebrated the dedication of classified professionals on social media. Watch the video here.

The virtual rally highlighted the power, solidarity, and care that classified professionals bring to campuses and communities. AFT Executive Vice President Evelyn DeJesus, who began her own union journey as a paraprofessional in New York City, reminded attendees that “nothing — and I do mean nothing — happens without you.” She praised the recent settlement won by the United Educators of San Francisco and recognized CFT’s commitment to uplifting classified workers, including the federation’s decision to formally include classified professionals in its name.

AFT Secretary Treasurer Fed Ingram encouraged members to “stay in the fight,” emphasizing that dignity, fair pay, and strong working conditions are victories that must be defended every day. Speakers throughout the rally shared deeply personal stories about the classified professionals who shaped their lives — from bus drivers and custodians to cafeteria workers, secretaries, registrars, and paraprofessionals.

Closing the rally, CFT President Jeff Freitas joined live from London at 3:15 a.m., honoring his own family roots in classified work and thanking members for the care, strength, and stability they bring to students and families every day.