CTA has plenty of reason to celebrate the special election victory against the governor, but "we cannot be satisfied," says CTA President Barbara E. Kerr.

 

It was just a year ago that the governor attacked everything that CTA members believe in as educators and union members. CTA stood up to him and protected Prop. 98 and future education funding, along with the professional rights of teachers, she told CTA State Council of Education delegates at the January meeting.

 

She thanked members for all their hard work and the remarkable organizing effort that not only brought the governor to his knees, but also built significant coalitions at the local and state level.

 

"Our challenge now is to keep these coalitions together" and work with them to build a better California that includes quality public schools, affordable health care for everyone, and safe communities.

 

Voters learned what CTA is against in the fall election, said Kerr. "Now, it's time we talked about what we're for." Working in league with newfound allies, CTA needs to push for meaningful change.

 

With that in mind, CTA's Board of Directors has forwarded the recommendations of CTA's Educational Change Workgroup to Council committees for consideration.

 

The report raises many questions, said Kerr. "We need to decide what's an adequate level of funding to ensure that students can learn. Equity is equally important. Funding needs to be based on the needs of the district, not the wealth of the district."

 

Schools that require assistance "need support, not sanctions. They need true reform from the bottom up, not the top down."

 

The testing system should be identifying schools and students that need help, she said. The current system focuses exclusively on penalizing them, rather than helping them.

 

In order to attract and retain highly qualified teachers, said Kerr, districts need to offer compensation that's comparable to other professions requiring an equivalent level of education. Salaries cannot be connected to test scores.

 

Educators need the best preparation at the university level and the best possible staff development at the local level. That doesn't necessarily mean bringing in outside experts, though. "Experienced teachers have a wealth of knowledge."

 

"There's one thing we have learned from the federal No Child Left Behind," said Kerr. "One size does not fit all. Kids are different, and so are schools."

 

In her report to Council, CTA Executive Director Carolyn Doggett echoed Kerr's call for action: "How we use or misuse the momentum we gained in the special election campaign will determine whether this election was the great victory that it appears to be or just a blip in the history of California politics."

 

The election showed that "working families and unions really do matter in this state" and that labor, if unified and motivated, remains a powerful force in American politics.

 

The coalitions CTA built with other unions overcame years of suspicion and distrust, said Doggett. CTA must hold on to those coalitions and focus on issues that matter to working families.

 

The election energized local chapters of CTA and built an understanding among younger members about what collective action can do. Younger members are the new activists. "They not only feel a part of the organization, they truly own this organization."

 

"We must build on this momentum."