CFT leaders visited school communities and workplaces during a statewide two-week back-to-school tour. On the Back-to-School: Forward Together tour, CFT President Jeff Freitas, Secretary Treasurer Luukia Smith, and Senior Vice President Lacy Barnes met with educators, classified employees, students and parents to support a safe return to in-person learning. CFT leaders also shared their vision for maximizing a record state budget investment to strengthen academic achievement and student social emotional well-being.

See CFT’s Back-to-School tour in pictures! Learn more about the tour and find the schedule of visits here. Follow the tour on Facebook and Twitter too. Hashtag: #Back2School #ForwardTogether

AUG 24 — Petaluma Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1881

AFT President Randi Weingarten joined CFT leaders in Petaluma for the AFT and CFT’s Back-to-School Tour .

AUG 24 — Novato Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1986

AUG 20 — Newport-Mesa Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1794

CFT leaders and members at the Orange County Federation of Labor with Superintendent of Public Schools Tony Thurmond and Senator Connie Levya, D-Riverside.

AUG 20 — Adjunct Faculty United, AFT Local 6106

AUG 19 — AFT College Staff Guild, AFT Local 1521A

CFT’s Back-to-School tour continued at East Los Angeles College in the L.A Community College District.

AUG 18 — United Teachers Los Angeles, AFT Local 1021

CFT’s #BacktoSchool, #ForwardTogether tour continues on Wednesday with breakfast at the Ellen Ochoa Learning Center and lunch at McKinley Avenue School in Los Angeles to welcome UTLA teachers back to school.

AUG 17 – Culver City Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 3343

The Back-to-School tour is back in Southern California. 

AUG 16 — United Educators of San Francisco, AFT Local 61

The second week of CFT’s Back-to-School Tour kicks off in foggy and windy San Francisco, visiting educator and paraprofessional members of United Educators of San Francisco on the first day of school.

AUG 13 — California State Controller Betty Yee

On Friday, the Back-to-School tour visited Lawndale in Los Angeles County and ended the day up north in the Bay Area at the San Mateo County Central Labor Council dinner.

AUG 13 — San Mateo Community College Fed. of Teachers, AFT Local 1493

AUG 13 — Jefferson AFT Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1481

AUG 13 — Jefferson Elementary Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 3267

AUG 13 — Lawndale Federation of Classified Employees, AFT Local 4527

AUG 12 — Poway Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 2357

On Thursday, CFT leaders trekked to the inland San Diego County city of Poway to welcome 120 new teachers into the teaching profession and the union. 

AUG 11 — Paso Robles Public Educators, AFT Local 3553

On Wednesday, our #BacktoSchool tour made a stop on the Central Coast to visit the Paso Robles Public Educators’ new teacher orientation and welcome new educators to the school year, the profession, and the union.

AUG 10 — Gilroy Federation of Paraeducators, AFT Local 1920

Our tour today took us to two local unions in the Monterey Bay region. We visited with educators in a wellness center who are working with students on their social-emotional needs and with paraeducators who are also working on the front lines of student wellness. 

AUG 10 — Aromas-San Juan Fed. of Classified Employees, AFT Local 4830

AUG 10 — Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1020

AUG 9 — San Jose Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 957

On the inaugural day of our Back-to-School Tour, we first talked with California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond about the extraordinary work of the California Department of Education during the pandemic. Then we met with adult educator union members of the San Jose Federation on their first day back at school.

AUG 9 — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond

Watch our interview with Superintendent Thurmond!