Fair Share's report card: A+ in funding our future
Fair Share's report card: A+ in funding our future
Happy New Year, MTA!
We hope you all had a wonderful, relaxing break with friends and family.
The new year brought a reminder that one year ago, the Fair Share Amendment was enshrined into our state Constitution and went into effect, bringing in upwards of $2 billion a year for public education and transportation. Many of you may have read about the $100 million that was distributed to cities and towns right before the holidays, part of the first billion dollars spent – on tuition-free community college for those 25 years or older, universal school meals for every student, and more for school buildings, early education and transportation projects. Many of you may have read about the $100 million that was distributed to cities and towns right before the holidays, part of the first billion dollars spent – on tuition-free community college for those 25 years or older, universal school meals for every student, and more for school buildings, early education and transportation projects.
As expected, we are seeing Fair Share revenues flow in at the rate we predicted, exceeding what legislators allocated. Multimillionaires and billionaires are not fleeing the state – they stay for so many reasons, including the outstanding education you provide.
Just before the holidays, we also received word that, as expected, our ballot initiative to end the high-stakes use of the MCAS was certified – with a record-breaking 101,000 signatures. This means we exceeded the requirement for certification by more than 25,000 signatures! The public is with us in wanting to end the destructive test-and-punish system, and instead focus on real teaching and learning.
If some of your other New Year’s resolutions have already fallen by the wayside, we hope that being more involved with your union remains! Below are some upcoming events to help you fulfill that goal.
We especially want to highlight one coming up right away – a Jan. 11 (4 p.m.) Zoom meeting with Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler. He has eagerly agreed to listen to our members share their concerns and experiences with student behavior and mental health issues, not to mention the impact that student struggles have on our own members. This is such a crucial issue, raised in every local we visit. We want to share with him the findings from the WikiWisdom project we did with our own students – you can read the report here. But mainly we want Secretary Tutwiler to hear from you – the education experts.
MTA Events, Opportunities and Solidarity Actions
MTA Forum with Massachusetts Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler
When: Thursday, Jan. 11 at 4 p.m.
Where: Virtual. Registration required. Please register here.
MTA members have an opportunity to share their concerns and experiences with student behavior and mental health issues with Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler. Go here to sign up to speak at the virtual meeting, read the new report on the mental health crisis and register for the event.
Educator Pay Bill Hearing
When: Wednesday, Jan. 10 at 1 p.m.
Where: State House
The Joint Committee on Education will hold a hearing on H.4180, An Act relative to educator pay, on Wednesday, Jan. 10. This MTA-backed legislation would help ensure a living wage for all public school employees by establishing a statewide minimum salary for ESPs and increasing the minimum salary for teachers in public school districts. Go here to learn more about the bill.
If you are interested in testifying in support of the bill, either in person at the State House or virtually, you must sign up at this link by 3 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 8. In addition, please write to the Joint Committee on Education right away to urge that committee members support this critically important legislation.
January All Presidents’ Meeting
When: Saturday, Jan. 20, 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Where: Verve Hotel, Natick
Ask your local president if you can join them for this meeting. Presidents can attend with a team of core activists from their local. Register here. For more information, email mtagovernance@massteacher.org.
Conference Opportunities in 2024 for MTA Members
The MTA and NEA are accepting applications for members to participate in this year’s conferences, scheduled from January through July. This is a great opportunity for members to immerse themselves in union education and job-specific education and engage with members across the country. You will have the opportunity to learn from renowned leaders, share stories with other members and learn from one other. Both MTA and NEA provide funding for these conferences. Space is very limited. If you are interested in applying to one or more of these opportunities, please fill out this survey form.
MTA Education Support Professionals Conference
When: April 5 - 6
Where: Sea Crest Beach Hotel, 350 Quaker Road, North Falmouth
Go here to get more information or nominate a first-time participant to receive a scholarship. Conference registration will open in February.
Winter Union Skills Conference
Please join us for MTA’s Winter Union Skills Conference on Feb. 10 in Framingham. The free conference will include a wide variety of 90-minute workshops related to the core activities of local unions. Offerings center on the MTA’s Bargaining Certificate Program, grievance handling, organizing for powerful contracts, communications, leadership development, membership sign-ups and more! There will also be a variety of Environmental Health and Safety workshops and expanded treasurer and membership training. Space is limited. Sign up here.
Virtual Licensure Workshops
Learn more about the licensure process at upcoming workshops. All sessions are free and open to all. Learn more and register.
Critical Student Loan Deadline Extended
The deadline to receive the full benefit of the current IDR Adjustment has been extended from December 31, 2023 to April 30. This means that you still have time to consolidate federal loans to receive retroactive credit. Learn more and register for an upcoming webinar here. Webinars are sponsored by MTA Benefits.
Building Powerful Labor and Community Actions
When: Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 6 p.m.
Where: Virtual
Join this webinar with Minnesota organizers who will discuss their plans for building a powerful labor and community campaign, aiming toward a mass strike this year. Register here.
From the Archives of the MTA
Through the MTA History Project launched in 2023, we have located and released to the public domain the vast majority of MTA’s publications from 1848 through 1976. They are now in this searchable collection. (Note that MTA did not have its own publication from 1875-1914.) You and your students might be interested in looking up trends in education and society on this site. For example, in 1951 the MTA supported a new law, Chapter 219, “An Act Prohibiting the Manufacture and Sale of Bean Blowers.” Also prohibited in that law: sling shots, sword canes and metallic knuckles. It is interesting to reflect on that prohibition in light of today’s gun laws and active shooter drills in schools.
Sites for digitized copies of MTA’s periodicals are posted here. We will be working to get more recent issues of our publications digitized and eventually will create an archive of important documents from MTA’s history. We will be sharing stories with all of you as we go.
Political Education
One of the pleasures of the break was the chance to read some novels. One of these was the powerful, heart-wrenching, and uplifting book by Barbara Kingsolver, “Demon Copperhead,” a modern, Appalachian update of Charles Dickens’ “David Copperfield.” Part of her goal is to challenge the unfair and offensive images in popular culture of Appalachia and its people. Here’s an excerpt which captures how Appalachia was intentionally underdeveloped by the mining companies:
“What the companies did, he told us, was put the shuthole on any choice other than going into the mines. Not just here, also in Buchanan, Tazewell, all of eastern Kentucky, these counties got bought up whole: land, hospitals, courthouses, schools, company owned. Nobody needed to get all that educated for being a miner, so they let the schools go to rot. And they made sure no mills or factories got in the door. Coal only. To this day, you have to cross a lot of ground to find other work. Not an accident, Mr. Armstrong [Demon’s Chicago-born social studies teacher] said, and for once we believed him, because down in the dark mess of our little skull closets some puzzle pieces were clicking together and our world made some terrible kind of sense. The dads at home drinking beer in their underwear, the moms at the grocery with their SNAP coupons.
The army recruiters in shiny gold buttons come to harvest their jackpot of hopeless futures. Goddamn.”
In solidarity,
Max and Deb