A Message from WTU President

Good Morning WTU!

I hope your week was filled with non-stop learning as was ours! WTU focused on supporting events fundamental to the core mission of our Union. On Wednesday, we attended AFT’s conference Race Forward, Standing Together Roundtable on Pathways to Peace in Israel/Palestine - a Jewish-Palestinian grass-roots conference based in Israel that promotes peace, justice, and equality of opportunity for both Jews and Palestinians. On Thursday, the AFT graciously allowed us to give student journalists from Eliot Hine Middle School and Banneker High School the chance to apply classroom knowledge to a real-life interview with political leaders such as Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore at AFT’s experiential learning conference Passion Meets Purpose! The AFT also plans to pay them for their work. #realsolutionsforkids Click here to watch the interview with Governor Moore. We’d like to thank Eliot Hine Middle School teacher Mandrell E. Birks and Banneker High School teacher Clare Berke for preparing their students for this exciting event. Thursday evening, WTU’s Contract Negotiating Team met to prepare for next week’s bargaining session with DCPS. Please watch the team’s weekly update here. 

We also want to give a huge shoutout to teachers from Ward 8’s Boone Elementary School and Anacostia High School who walked out of their schools at the end of their tour of duty on Friday. Walking out of school was an act of protest against DCPS’ insistence on trying to take away our rights at the bargaining table. Today, teachers from Ballou High School will also walk out at the end of the school day to rally against DCPS’ contract stance. Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White also plans to join the rally. If you are in the area, please join us. WTU’s Contract Action Team encourages all teachers to plan and/or take part in actions at your school. This will greatly support the work we do at the bargaining table. To learn more about how to participate, please reach out to your school’s building representative and WTU’s Organizer Mike Roland.

April is almost here and so is our Shared Vision Conference! Please do not forget to RSVP for the conference. We will welcome award-winning author Sharon E. Flake for both an in-person session with teachers/students on April 26th and a virtual session on April 27th. Teachers can attend either or both sessions. To RSVP, please click here. Please note that only teachers interested in attending the Friday, April 26th in-person session with your students should contact Mike Roland.

Thank you, as always, for your hard work and support!

In solidarity,

Jacqueline Pogue Lyons, President

Washington Teachers’ Union

Weekly Update - WTU’s Contract Action Team (CAT)

If you have ideas on what contract actions your school should take, please contact your Building Representative and WTU’s organizer, Mike Roland, for support. Together, we must show DCPS we will not tolerate their proposed reduction of our rights! To learn more, please download WTU’s two-page summary of WTU’s Contract Negotiating Team’s 10 Proposals and 3 Memorandums of Agreement released in October 2023.

Watch WTU’s Contract Negotiating Team’s weekly update here!

We still need your photos wearing red on Fridays and signatures on our petition. Please encourage all to sign!

Let the Council Hear Your Teacher Voice!

• March 27 @7PM Discussion on education funding in Mayor Bowser’s Proposed Budget, Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn, INFORMATION
• April 3 @9AM (rescheduled) Budget Oversight Hearing at DCPS, DC Council Hearing Management Systems, INFORMATION

Mandated Support in Education

Share your perspective on mandatory reporting! 

AFT and the University of California, Irvine are conducting an online survey to learn more about educators’ perceptions of reporting to Child Protective Services. Even if you haven’t reported to CPS, we are interested in hearing from you. Survey participants will be entered into a drawing to receive one of 65 Target, Staples, or Bookshop gift cards for $15. Get more information and participate in the study. Please invite other educators, as well.

AFT launched an action guide on Mandated Support in Education last year. As the union continues to learn more about what educators need, we're also excited to share information and resources. Please register for "The State of Mandated Support in Education - 2024," Thursday, March 21, at Virtual Conference hosted by AFT's Share My Lesson, to get new ideas and tools.

Upcoming Events, Activities & Meetings

• March 27 @5PM – Ward 7 Candidate Forum, INFORMATION
• March 28 @4:30PM - Meeting with EG09's – Zoom link will be sent to all EG09s
• April 20 @9-3PM, Praxis Boot Camp All Content (Rescheduled), INFORMATION

In the News

• 03/18/2024 – The Washington Post – D.C. Council chairman blames budget delay on mayor’s office
• 03/19/2024 – DC City Council Chairman Mendelson – Statement: Fiscal Year Budget Submission
• 03/19/2024 – The Washington Post – How the Black female head of a top D.C. school was ‘punished for leading’
• 03/20/2024 – WAMU - School absenteeism rates in D.C. are alarmingly high. What’s the city doing about it?
• 03/20/2024 – Executive Office of the Mayor - Mayor Bowser Announces New Investments in High-Impact Tutoring and Reimagining High School
• 03/20/2024 – The Washington Post - D.C. mayor shares $4.8 million proposal to keep tutoring programs
• 03/21/2024 – The Washington City Paper - CFO Glen Lee Is Digging in as Dispute with Bowser, Mendelson Over 2025 Budget Grows More Contentious
• 03/21/2024 – Axios – D.C.’s unelected financial officer pulls budget power move on mayor

Professional Development and Other Opportunities

Instructor: Nadia Torney
Class Meeting: April 20th, 2024
Time: 9AM-1PM
Location: Virtual
Cost: FREE

This class is based on the exact ETS Praxis content specifications for the Core Math, Core Reading, and Core Writing exams. Participants will review all the key subject matter knowledge on both tests, work through practice test questions and be provided detailed explanations. Participants will be able to apply new knowledge to the specific question types most likely to be encountered on the exam. No recertification or graduate credits offered.

REGISTER NOW!

LEA Look Forward – Weekly Update

LEA Look Forward – Weekly Update

Membership Update

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