Topic: Elections
Yes on Proposition 55: We can’t go back
What difference has Proposition 30 meant for public education in California?
A deluge of March 15 layoff notices removed one in 10 teachers from K-12 classrooms between 2008 and 2011. In Watsonville, Pajaro Valley Unified sent 158 notices in 2010-11. And this year? None.
Yes on Prop 58: Return language instruction that helps students succeed
Reverse Proposition 227 after 18 years of bad policy
In 1998, Proposition 227 essentially ended bilingual instruction in California schools. It forced English learners into one year of “sheltered English immersion,” hindering their ability to learn academic English and achieve at grade level. Many continued in those classes or were then placed in regular classrooms to sink or swim. The CFT strongly opposed Proposition 227.
CFT on the ballot measure
After careful consideration, the CFT makes the following recommendations for November 8. On measures not listed here, the CFT has taken no position. Props 57, 62 and 66 reflect the CFT’s progressive positions on criminal reform.
CFT leaders help launch Prop 55 campaign
Supporters of Proposition 55, including educators, elected officials, parents and other community representatives, held a press conference in front of Hamilton High School in Los Angeles on August 15, kicking off the local campaign for the ballot initiative that will protect schools and students from losing up to $4 billion per year.
Campaign kick-off for Prop 30 extension, now Proposition 55
On May 11, in front of Sacramento’s California Middle School, leaders and members of unions and community groups stood before a large group of reporters and announced that the coalition they belonged to had just turned in more than a million signatures to place the “California Children’s Education and Health Care Protection Act” (now Proposition 55) on the November state ballot.
Election 2016: Americans have shown they that are ready for populist change
By Joshua Pechthalt, CFT President
There is a lot at stake in this coming November election. Not only will we elect a president and therefore shape the Supreme Court for years to come, but we also have a key U.S. senate race, a vital state ballot measure to extend Proposition 30, and important state and local legislative races.
Prop. 30 extension qualifies for November election
Campaign to keep public education funded kicks into high gear
On May 11, a coalition of unions and community groups announced that it had submitted more than a million signatures to place the “California Children’s Education and Health Care Protection Act” on the November ballot to continue the funding benefits of Proposition 30.
Primary Election 2016: CFT endorses proven leader Kamala Harris for Senate seat
California’s Attorney General brings educator values to a crowded field
With the retirement of Sen. Barbara Boxer after 24 years as a progressive champion, Californians are heading to the polls to fill the first open U.S. Senate seat in decades.
And the ballot is crowded: 34 candidates have filed to replace Boxer, although the clear front-runner is Democrat Kamala Harris.
Educators work to preserve education funding, extend Prop. 30
CFT members collect signatures to place vital measure on November ballot
Passing Proposition 30, officially known as the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012, turned years of cuts into a period of growth, CFT President Josh Pechthalt said at the CFT Convention. Not extending the law would be a huge setback for the state.
Sandra Nichols: Teachers elected to public office can effect social change
Four-time board member has advice for educator candidates
Nichols served three terms on the board of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District while she was a teacher in neighboring Santa Cruz. She moved out of the Pajaro district in 2012 and into Santa Cruz County, where she ran for the County Board of Education in her fourth winning election bid.
Californians vote to protect public education
CFT member action keys Torlakson victory and local election victories
On an election day when much of the country swung to the right, California solidified its standing as the progressive bulwark of the nation. Every single statewide office went to the CFT-endorsed candidate. And the main projectile launched by anti-union forces at public education — the billionaire-backed Marshall Tuck campaign for state superintendent of public instruction — went down to defeat.
November 4 is our opportunity to elect an ally and defeat a self-appointed reformer
By Joshua Pechthalt, CFT President
The CFT’s priorities in the November 4 General Election are straightforward: Reelect Tom Torlakson Superintendent of Public Instruction, elect Betty Yee for State Controller and pass Propositions 45 and 47.
In the remaining weeks before the election, we need all of our members to get involved with their local unions and their central labor councils. We have to approach this election as if the future of public education depends on it, because it does.
Torlakson has the courage to face false reform efforts
State Superintendent has proven leadership and classroom experience
Her voice swelling with hometown pride, elementary school teacher Melinda Dart says, “Tom Torlakson was a student in our Daly City schools — and he went on to become a teacher and state superintendent of all schools.”
During his early years, Torlakson’s mother worked as a school secretary and his father as a welder. After high school, Torlakson attended San Mateo Community College before entering the Merchant Marine and serving in Vietnam. Upon his return, he earned a bachelor’s degree in history, a master’s degree in education and a teaching credential at UC Berkeley.
Vote June 3 Primary Election: Educators work to reelect Tom Torlakson
Educators work to reelect Tom Torlakson
The Primary Election on June 3 includes a number of candidates, but no races are more important for educators than those for governor and superintendent of public instruction.
Gov. Brown partnered with CFT to pass Proposition 30 in November 2012, providing new resources for strapped schools and colleges after seven years of devastating cuts.
Don’t sign! State initiative attacks public employee pensions
San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed is mounting a major attack on educators’ pensions. He has filed a voter initiative with the Secretary of State and may start collecting signatures in early 2014 to qualify it for the November ballot.
Educators score local ballot box victories
Coalition building proves critical to electoral success
“We phone-banked until we couldn’t talk any more,” reported Pamela Ford, president of the Antelope Valley College Federation of Classified Employees, in describing how her local union worked with campus faculty and community allies to elect Barbara Gaines, a middle school principal, to the board of trustees in this conservative high desert region.
CFT celebrates election victory with Progressive Convening and looks forward
Courage Campaign Chair Rick Jacobs and CFT President Joshua Pechthalt hold up a cake painted with California map frosting before Progressive Convening attendees in Los Angeles celebrated the Prop 30 victory by consuming it.
The meeting included representatives from the Reclaiming California’s Future coalition and dozens of other organizations. The group analyzed the election results and began to plan for the next steps in making California a better place to live.
CFT members lead in passing Prop 30, defeating Prop. 32
Working with coalition partners, the union helps reach millions of Californians
Voters in California sent a powerful message on Election Day, passing Proposition 30 which raised income taxes on top earners to support public education — the first major tax increase since passage of the revenue-cutting Proposition 13 almost 35 years ago.
Nearly nine in ten CFT members, 87 percent, voted for Prop. 30, the merger of CFT’s Millionaires Tax and Gov. Brown’s original initiative, according to a post-election poll commissioned by the California Labor Federation.
Yes on Prop. 30: Tax the wealthy to raise money for schools and colleges
In the last four years, our schools and colleges have been hit with $20 billion in cuts, have lost 30,000 faculty members, and now have class sizes that are among the largest in the country.
Chicago strike models winning political strategy for California election victory
By Joshua Pechthalt, CFT President
The Chicago Teachers Union strike gave a shot in the arm to education unions and all of labor. CTU reawoke a labor movement lacking confidence that it could take a militant stand and win.