The event was hosted on Zoom and broadcast on Facebook Live. Although TCAC put on the forum, moderator Dawn Freo opened the event by clarifying, “TCAC does not endorse candidates but we encourage candidates to endorse our policy platform and demands.”

The three candidates running for Superintendent are incumbent Rocky Hannah, Democratic challenger Dr. Pam Hightower, and write-in candidate Keisha Washington—only Dr. Hightower accepted the invitation to participate. The forum was moderated by PPTSA Chair Isabel Ruano and TCAC Communications Director Dawn Freo, and covered the topics of educational equity, Title I funding, COVID-19, disparities in discipline with regard to nationality, and school safety.

Leon County is home to the poorest zip code in the state, 32304, and as such the students there face increasing inequities when it comes to education. As Dr. Hightower put it, “Giving us equal does not make it equitable”. She presented excellent proposals to address these inequities: creating after-school opportunities to students within impoverished communities and increasing the resources being allocated to schools that are falling behind.

Dr. Hightower suggested initiating “progress monitoring” to determine where students are academically when they begin school, followed by the current standardized tests in April/May. Progress monitoring already occurs in the majority of Leon County schools through STAR testing, an application that sends Florida tax dollars out of state. “Though Dr. Hightower said many good things in regard to teachers, she seemed to be very pro-testing, the exact opposite of what many teachers feel is needed, including myself,” said teacher and local activist Megan Grant.

With regard to school safety, Dr. Hightower intimated that school resource officers (SROs) being on campus is a positive, provided they are properly trained. She stated that SROs should not be disciplinarians, and that having them on campus starting in elementary school would teach students to have “a whole different respect for officers.” Research suggests that police presence on school campuses in Florida is a large contributor to the school-to-prison pipeline. According to statistics from the US Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection, in 2015, Florida schools referred 13,749 students to law enforcement, 30% more often than the national average. Florida schools are also more than twice as likely to refer Black students to law enforcement and 3.25 times as likely to refer students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). The tasks Dr. Hightower suggested SROs should carry out—traffic control, bicycle safety, anti-bully training—could easily be done by trained, unarmed, civilian personnel.

#TallahasseeFL #EducationRights #Elections #PamHightower #policeInSchools

Stephie Taylor, a key organizer with the University of Minnesota SDS chapter said, “We are happy to have the convention in a Midwest city again. We expect young activists from all over the country to show up and talk about important issues of today like opposing U.S. wars, fighting racism and sexism, and how to bring change to the rising costs of education, student loans and access to education. This will be a convention to remember.”

The plenary sessions and workshops feature some of the most influential leaders against war and oppression in the country.

Hatem Abuddayeh will speak for the Rasmea Odeh Support Committee. He will be joined by Jenn Meeropol of the Rosenberg Fund for Children who will chair the session, “From Ferguson to Palestine: Political Repression is a Crime!”

Joe Iosbaker of the United National Antiwar Committee will speak at the anti-war plenary, “From the Belly of the Beast: Fighting Back against U.S. Wars and Imperialism.”

SDSers and other student leaders will speak on “Education Is a Right: Campus Economic Fight Backs and Achieving Access to Higher Education for Everyone.” This will detail the SDS national “Education for All” campaign that fights for immigrant student rights on campus.

There will be workshops about student activism, including “Building Struggle in Red States.” “Combatting Chauvinism,” and “Empowering People of Color through Political Struggle.”

On Oct. 13, the final day of the convention, SDS will vote on various resolutions submitted by SDS chapters speaking out on different people’s movements within the U.S. and around the world. SDS will adopt these resolutions nationally for chapters to orient their work for the coming year. Resolutions in the past included condemning U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, condemning systemic racism and repression against African-American, Chicano and Latino youth, combatting attacks on students’ rights, and opposing tuition hikes.

The convention will take place at Blegen Hall at the University of Minnesota. For more information or if you want to donate to the convention, please visit http://newsds.org or go to National Students for a Democratic Society’s Facebook page at https://facebook.com/StudentsForADemocraticSocietyNational.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #JoeIsobaker #TuitionEquity

Stephie Taylor, a key organizer with the University of Minnesota SDS chapter said, “We are happy to have the convention in a Midwest city again. We expect young activists from all over the country to show up and talk about important issues of today like opposing U.S. wars, fighting racism and sexism, and how to bring change to the rising costs of education, student loans and access to education. This will be a convention to remember.”

The plenary sessions and workshops feature some of the most influential leaders against war and oppression in the country.

Hatem Abuddayeh will speak for the Rasmea Odeh Support Committee. He will be joined by Jenn Meeropol of the Rosenberg Fund for Children who will chair the session, “From Ferguson to Palestine: Political Repression is a Crime!”

Joe Iosbaker of the United National Antiwar Committee will speak at the anti-war plenary, “From the Belly of the Beast: Fighting Back against U.S. Wars and Imperialism.”

SDSers and other student leaders will speak on “Education Is a Right: Campus Economic Fight Backs and Achieving Access to Higher Education for Everyone.” This will detail the SDS national “Education for All” campaign that fights for immigrant student rights on campus.

There will be workshops about student activism, including “Building Struggle in Red States.” “Combatting Chauvinism,” and “Empowering People of Color through Political Struggle.”

On Oct. 13, the final day of the convention, SDS will vote on various resolutions submitted by SDS chapters speaking out on different people’s movements within the U.S. and around the world. SDS will adopt these resolutions nationally for chapters to orient their work for the coming year. Resolutions in the past included condemning U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, condemning systemic racism and repression against African-American, Chicano and Latino youth, combatting attacks on students’ rights, and opposing tuition hikes.

The convention will take place at Blegen Hall at the University of Minnesota. For more information or if you want to donate to the convention, please visit http://newsds.org or go to National Students for a Democratic Society’s Facebook page at https://facebook.com/StudentsForADemocraticSocietyNational.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #JoeIsobaker #TuitionEquity

The unannounced occupation was the first follow-up to a March 6 action (http://www.fightbacknews.org/2013/3/7/tampa-students-occupy-administration-building-defend-education-rights ), when over 20 students spontaneously decided to occupy the Patel Center after marching to demand a meeting with President Judy Genshaft.

SDS will hold a sit-in every week until Dr. Genshaft agrees to discuss education rights at a student-facilitated forum. Sooner or later, the administration will learn the consequences of sending the message that they are uninterested in accommodating anyone without wealth to throw around.

Adam Freeman, USF's Media/Public Affairs Coordinator, condescendingly advised the students to contact their “representative” – student body president Brian Goff. The occupiers pointed out that Goff, whom the administration sent to speak with SDS during the March 6 sit-in, had promised to send an e-mail requesting that Genshaft agree to the forum and to join two activists with the Coalition to End Rape Culture at an upcoming meeting with the victim's advocacy center. He didn't keep his word on either front.

Freeman tried to make a big deal out of how far in advance Genshaft's schedule was booked, but admitted that no attempts had been made to schedule a meeting in the three weeks since students had first marched in to demand one. The university's representatives became perturbed when activists pointed this out. (http://coalition-to-end-rape-culture.tumblr.com/post/45099181831/do-you-know-the-history-of-corruption-and-rape-culture )

Danielle Leppo, an English major at USF, said, “We showed the administration that we're not backing down, that we will be heard and that we will continue our sit-ins until our demands are met.”

Gage Lacharite, a freshman majoring in computer science, noted “The administration gave us the same runaround they had given us before, only this time they begrudgingly promised they would tell us by next week if a meeting could be set up.”

USF students will continue to struggle until their demands for education rights, including no tuition hikes, are met.

#TampaFL #EducationRights

Milwaukee, WI – Students for a Democratic Society’s call for a National Day of Action to Defend Public Education was answered by the Education Rights Coalition, Milwaukee SDS, undergraduate and graduate students, union members and community members who rallied on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus, March 14.

At present the U.S. government spends about $128 billion on education, a meager amount compared to the $851 billion military budget. Additionally, student loan debt has surpassed $1 trillion, more than the U.S.’s level of credit card debt.

Rallying in Spaights Plaza (during midterm examination week), students held signs like “Chop from the top!” and “Education is a right!” and a large banner that read “Fund education not occupation!”

Tiffany Strong from SDS, Jorge Maya from Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES), and Gilbert Johnson, Vice President of AFSCME 82, gave personal testimony to the rising cost of education and its unaffordability, especially for disabled, undocumented, poor and oppressed nationality students.

Gerardo Alvarado, an organizer from Youth Empowered in the Struggle, said, “Until scholarships are available for undocumented people the rates for immigrant students attending college will be low.”

After rallying in Spaights Plaza, the demonstrators marched to present their list of demands to Chancellor Michael Lovell and Vice Chancellor Michael Laliberte at Chapman Hall.

Reminiscent of a protest a couple years back when 15 students were arrested in a standoff with UWM police outside Chapman Hall, the coalition members were met once again with a locked building guarded by university police. A sign on the north entrance read “No admittance! Use east entrance!” When asked if they could enter as a group a police officer replied “not today!” as he let in individual staff members.

Protesters refused to leave until an administrator met with them and received their demands. They then were greeted by another officer and Dean of Students Jim Hill, who asked for a representative and who claimed they did not know where the chancellor and vice chancellor were. Hill insisted he would present the demands to the chancellors himself. After stating the demands of the protest in a mic-check outside Chapman Hall, the coalition members marched back to Spaights Plaza where they held several more mic-checks in and around the student union, again announcing their demands.

The Education Rights Coalition presented the following demands: that all student loans be forgiven; chop military spending and more money for Pell grants; Increased availability of scholarships for disabled, undocumented, poor and oppressed nationality students; and increased availability of funds for state employees.

#MilwaukeeWI #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #EducationRights #ChopFromTheTop #EducationRightsCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a national progressive student group, held a “Day of Action for Education Rights” on March 14. High school and college students in different parts of the country protested government cutbacks and stood up for education rights. The four demands put forward by SDS were: No cuts – chop from the top; pass the Student Loan Forgiveness Act (HR 4170); freeze all tuition and fees; and corporations off campus.

Around a dozen SDS chapters and other youth-led organizations throughout the country took up the call and 150 individuals, professors and unions endorsed the national day of action for education.

On March 6th, Tampa Bay SDS kicked off the March days of action by marching into the Marshall Center at the University of South Florida chanting, “Chop from the top!” They dropped a banner from the fourth floor of the student center. Students want to cut both the bloated administration and their salaries, rather than raise tuition. So students marched on campus to the Patel Center to convene a meeting with USF President Genshaft about their demands of redistributing their campus’ wealth. After pretending to not be in her office and repeated refusals to meet, the students responded with a sit-in and started a call-in campaign, despite being subjected to harassment by campus police.

At the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, 40 undergraduate students, graduate students and staff turned out to protest the budget distribution problem at the University of Minnesota. U of M SDS called for a rally in front of Morrill Hall and the office of University President Eric Kaler. Students and staff spoke, demanding President Kaler cut administrative management positions, instead of raising tuition or layoffs of front line staff.

Michelle Spivey of U of M SDS said, “There is one administrator for every 3.5 students. On the other hand there is only one faculty member – or one professor – for every 16 students! It is unacceptable to support a bloated administration at the expense of students.” The rally turned into a march, taking to the street with protesters chanting, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, administrative bloat has got to go!” and “No cuts, no fees. Education should be free!”

High school students in Aurora, Colorado protested standardized testing. Students were encouraged to walk out of their Transitional Colorado Assessment Program (TCAP) exams and go to the state capitol to protest. The students demanded an end to standardized testing, more money for humanities education and an end to school closings. Students protested with signs and banners that read “T.his C.an’t A.ssess P.rogress,” and “Teach. Don’t test.”

At the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee leaders of Students for a Democratic Society, Youth Empowered in the Struggle, AFSCME Local 82 and the Alliance of History Graduate Students gathered at Spaights Plaza to protest inadequate funding. The groups composing the UWM Education Rights Coalition demanded a cut to military spending and more money for Pell Grants, increased funding for students from oppressed backgrounds and publicity of and increased funds for state employee reimbursement programs.

After rallying in Spaights they marched to present their demands to the administration at Chapman Hall, chanting “Education is a right! Students and workers unite and fight!” but found the building locked and guarded by university police. The coalition members also had several mic-checks, one outside Chapman Hall and four in and around the student union. When Michael Raspanti, a representative of SDS and the Education Rights Coalition asked to meet with Chancellor Michael Lovell and Vice Chancellor Michael Laliberte, Dean of Students Jim Hill claimed he did not know where they were and offered to present their demands to the chancellor and vice chancellor.

In Utah, students and teachers rallied on the steps of the state capitol on March 4. The Revolutionary Students Union of Salt Lake Community College led the protest to address increasing tuition costs, student debt, bloated administration and salaries and other issues related to the corruption of education. Students and teachers spoke out against state funding cuts, while Utah legislators emerged from the capitol to watch and listen.

A special-education teacher at the rally, Summer Smith-Woole said she was protesting because of, “the attacks on education and how schools are being run as businesses, putting profits before people, instead of people before profits.” A speaker on the steps of the capitol, Claudia Gutierrez-Sanchez, was optimistic about “getting people from different perspectives to speak out towards a same goal.”

This is the fourth March Day of Action for Education Rights since the surge of student struggle in California in 2010. These days of action continue to be an important way for students across the country to feel united and connected with one another in their similar struggle against the conditions of public education. Students should join with the SDS to continue the movement and to build the struggle. More should and can be won to win a great victory for the cause of education. They say cut back, we say fight back!

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights

All roads lead to Wall Street. Both predatory lending and closings of public schools are due to Wall Street’s plunder of every human need in order to seize money for its profits.

Both predatory lending and school closings are particularly aimed at communities of people of color. Essex County, New Jersey, in which the cities of Newark and Irvington are located, has the highest foreclosure rate of any county in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut region. Irvington and Newark are among the hardest hit in Essex. Both have high concentrations of Black and Latino people. Also, more than 20 Newark schools have been closed in the last three years. All but one are in areas that serve African American neighborhoods.

Also, combined struggles on more than one front strengthen every area of the people’s struggle for economic justice. The battles for a real national health care system for all, a good quality public school education for all, full employment in good-paying jobs, and others, are closely linked.

For several years there has been a huge uproar in Newark against school closings. Thousands have turned out at public meetings to oppose the actions of the dictatorial Trenton-imposed administration.

Annette Alston of the Newark Teachers’ Association said students find themselves suddenly forced to attend charter schools far from where they live. There is a new teachers’ evaluation rubric that is either not understood by administrators or abused by them. Teachers are forced out of their jobs and careers for no good reason. A recent study found charter schools in Newark outperform public schools. However, the study did not take into account that charter schools select students from households with high parental involvement; they expel others they do not want, and so forth. It is only being done to save money on public schools. Years ago women were attacked for being witches, she said. Now teachers, who are mostly women, are being attacked. It also appears that a large proportion of affected teachers are black.

Kathleen Witcher of the Irvington NAACP, and a retired educator, gave an evaluation of charter schools based on her family’s experience. Her children went through Newark public schools and went to colleges like Stanford, Rutgers, and USC; one has a PhD. She has grandnieces in charter schools. Her monitoring turned up things she called horrendous. Students are not taught mathematics from axioms but from ditto sheets – just plug in the numbers and keep going. A grandniece won a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school but couldn’t write essays because they had not been taught in charter school. Meanwhile the state of New Jersey is being allowed to shortchange public schools.

Sharon Smith of Parents Unified for Local School Education (PULSE) quoted Dr. Martin Luther King who spoke of people who sleep through a revolution. She said we are in a revolution now and must find new responses. Public schools are destroyed by the lack of resources while charter schools get all the latest equipment, for instance. On Jan. 9, people from 18 cities concerned with a “new mode of education that is destroying our children” went to Washington to meet with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

There is no sustainable, positive change coming from charter schools. It all stems from Wall Street demands for profits. The group filed a Title 6 complaint (civil rights violation) against school closings. The group won a federally-supported grass roots tour of affected school districts and a federal hearing on school closings. Also, six schools in Newark named for closing remain open.

Still there is no new investment in affected school districts, with wholesale firing of teachers. Potentially 185,000 students are in danger of having their schools closed. PULSE is planning a “Journey for Justice” to keep schools open.

The evening was a definite step toward building a broad front of unity in the people's struggle for economic justice. The linkage of issues went a long way toward showing the problem is capitalism itself.

#IrvingtonNJ #PoorPeoplesMovements #WallStreet #EducationRights #Capitalism #PublicSchools #CoalitionToSaveOurHomes #HomeForeclosures

Minneapolis, MN – About 40 students and campus workers rallied at Morrill Hall and marched through the University of Minnesota (U of M) campus on March 14 to protest rising tuition costs and the university’s top-heavy administration. The protest was part of a national day of action for education rights.

The U of M administration has come under fire recently for having too many highly-paid top level administrators and too few front line workers and for raising tuition year after year. The unions at the U of M have made these points repeatedly for years. In December, a Wall Street Journal investigative reporter caught on to the story and wrote an in-depth expose on high-level administrative bloat at the U of M, which happened amidst a decade of skyrocketing tuition and layoffs of front line workers. This threw the administration into a tailspin as the Minnesota state legislature held hearings to question President Kaler about it. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton made the university’s funding appropriation in the new budget contingent on an outside audit of the university administration’s priorities.

In her speech at the protest, Michelle Spivey of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) said that at the U of M, “There is one administrator for every 3.5 students. On the other hand there is only one faculty member – or one professor – for every 16 students. It is unacceptable to support a bloated administration at the expense of students! Education is a right and students like you and me have had enough!”

The protest was organized by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and the U of M clerical worker union, AFSCME Local 3800. The protest was also endorsed by the Women’s Student Activist Collective (WSAC) and La Raza Student Cultural Center.

U of M union leaders spoke at the rally, including Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME Local 3800 and Barb Bezat of AFSCME Local 3937.

Horazuk told rally participants, “We will continue to speak out against administrative excesses and the increasing corporatization of the U. We will continue to fight to ensure that this university is a university for the 99%, not the 1%. We will continue to demand that the U chop from the top.”

Students who spoke included Grace Kelly, representing graduate students, and Katherine Soenke from the Women’s Student Activist Collective.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #EducationRights #UniversityOfMinnesota #ChopFromTheTop #tuitionHikes

Gainesville, FL – On March 14, students from across the U.S. and Canada will demand an end to all fees and cuts to higher education. At their fall national convention, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) published an “Education Rights Call To Action.” It is a response to the never-ending hikes in tuition and growing cuts to education, as well as the large amount of student debt burdening students. SDS chapters and student groups are setting up protests and teach-ins from as far north as Quebec, Canada to as far south as Tampa, Florida.

Tuition hikes and budget cuts threaten the future of youth on campuses and in communities. With each new cost hike, thousands of students and youth are either priced out of an education that rightfully belongs to them or are forced to incur thousands of dollars of student debt. With each cut more teachers lose their jobs, fewer students get the knowledge they deserve and more and more young people are forced to take on a lifetime of debt. The future of this country resides in the opportunities given to the youth. However, there is shrinking opportunity for many students and they are struggling with debt upon graduation.

Students feel the pinch of overpaid administrators' and legislators' tuition hikes. Low-income students – many African-American, Chicano or immigrant – are finding it difficult to afford college. Big administrators give themselves raises while they close down cultural centers for Black and Latino students, end funding for women's and LGBTQ organizations and expect rising tuition and state taxes to pay their bloated salaries. Students are demanding that politicians and administrators start to “Chop from the top!”: Cut administrators’ salaries and bloated management layers.

With each hike in tuition or cut to higher education, the student movement grows stronger. On March 14, students will organize demonstrations, protest at board of trustees meetings, host a sit-in or a teach-in, conduct a walkout or take other actions that challenge the administrators and lawmakers. Students are taking back their right to an affordable and accessible education. Education is a right! Something worth fighting for!

March 14 marks the 4th annual Spring National Day of Action for Education Rights. Join Students for a Democratic Society, take up the call to action and take back your campus!

#GainesvilleFL #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights

Gainesville, FL – At 12:00 p.m. on a cool and rainy day, the voices of 20 students rang through the halls of Emerson Alumni Hall at the University of Florida, “Education is a right! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!” The students rallied at the meeting location for the Board of Governors. The students quickly discovered the Board of Governors had cut the meeting short and fled when they heard students were coming. The Board was set to discuss education cut backs affecting students in the state of Florida, but ran away before any student voices could be heard.

“The higher public education system of Florida is under attack by Florida Governor Rick Scott and his Blue Ribbon Task Force. We are here to demand that the Board of Governors resist the proposals brought to them by Rick Scott's crony task force. We demand our voices be heard,” proclaimed Gainesville Area Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organizer Michela Martinazzi.

One of the top tier public universities in the nation, and hosting a student population of over 50,000, UF is facing big cuts. The Blue Ribbon Task Force recently proposed education cuts, very similar to Texas' education “reform”. The Board of Governors is pushing an agenda to further corporatize and privatize public universities. A big item up for elimination is the Florida Bright Futures – a merit scholarship that many students at the University of Florida as well as across the state depend on. Also under consideration is the Florida Prepaid savings program. A third proposal is the implementation of differential tuition—meaning big and unequal increases in tuition for non-STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) majors across the board.

“These legislators are placing the burden of the economic crisis on the backs of students. How is that fair? I depend on both Bright Futures and Florida Prepaid to earn my degree. I can't take out another loan!” stated Andrew Arachikavitz with Tallahassee SDS.

The activists held a round of speeches. Afterwards they marched outside and taped a banner to the entrance of Emerson Hall. “Board of Governors, shame on you, you were once students too!” they sang together.

#GainesvilleFL #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #EducationRights #GovernorRickScott #UniversityOfFlorida

Milwaukee, WI – The day after Governor Walker survived his recall election, hundreds marched in the streets of Milwaukee in non-violent civil disobedience from Pere Marquette Park to City Hall and into the banking district. Occupy Milwaukee, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 998, AFSCME Local 82, Milwaukee Teachers Education Association, Voces de la Frontera, Milwaukee Students for a Democratic Society, Youth Empowered in the Struggle, Peace Action WI, Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement, 9 to 5, Citizen Action, Welfare Warriors and dozens of other community organizations demanded: Repeal the union busting bill Act 10; reinstate the Equal Pay Act; and tax the 1%.

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organizer Michael Raspanti said, “The battle to recall Scott Walker began with the occupation of the capitol last year, which created a people’s struggle that extends far beyond electoral politics. Despite the results of the recall election, we plan to keep it in the streets and to hold our elected officials accountable to the people, not to the corporations that pay for their campaigns.”

200 protesters refused to stop their peaceful march in the streets, even after being repeatedly beaten by police for 14 straight blocks. At least 12 protesters were injured and 4 were arrested. The police brutality by the Milwaukee Police Department riot and mounted police is part of the coordinated attacks by police nationwide against the Occupy movement.

Protester Natalie Gostynski, who is five months pregnant, stood defiantly in front of the police. “I’m here because Scott Walker created a poor future for my child. He has been stealing money that is supposed to be used for our schools and healthcare and is using it for his own personal political gain.”

Protesters were unfazed by the police brutality. They organized an impromptu dinner and raised funds for those arrested. After the event many marched immediately to Milwaukee County Jail where the protesters are being held, demanding their release.

The day’s action demonstrates that the Occupy Movement as a whole, as well as the people of Wisconsin, continue to stand strong against attacks on education, health care and workers rights.

#MilwaukeeWI #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #EducationRights #workersRights #GovernorScottWalker #OccupyMilwaukee

Sarah Chambers, a member of the CTU executive board and bargaining committee, made the following statement at the press conference Friday:

“My name is Sarah Chambers, and I am a special education teacher at Saucedo Academy. As a Chicago Public School Teacher, I am outraged by the Board of Education’s destructive proposals that threaten quality education in our schools. We will not allow Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Board to pass these policies that are detrimental to the children of Chicago and the educators that devote their lives every day to teaching.

Currently, the board’s proposals include the elimination of class size limits across the city, which would significantly raise the number of students in each classroom. Similar to the mantra of candidate Mitt Romney, the board has stated, and I quote ‘Studies have not proven that class size reductions have predictable and discernible positive impacts on educational outcomes.’

Numerous studies have proven and every teacher knows that class size has an enormous impact on student learning and performance. Considering that an average CPS class containing English language learners, students with special needs and students living below the poverty line, it is crucial that each and every classroom has a low student-to-teacher ratio.

Some kindergarten and primary classrooms around the city have over 40 students. Would you want your child in a classroom with over 40 students? With such overwhelming numbers, it is impossible to apply the best educational practices, such as differentiation and rigorous small group instruction.

With the Chicago Teachers Union’s proposal to lower the size of classrooms to 20 to 23 students in the primary grades, teachers will be able to provide high quality education that aligns with the class size numbers of other Illinois districts.

These low class sizes are supported at the Lab School where Board member Penny Pritzker and Mayor Rahm Emaneul’s children attend. At the Lab School, the average class size is 18 students, drastically lower than the 40 students in some CPS schools. On the Lab School’s website, director David W. Magill concludes, ‘When planned thoughtfully and funded adequately, long-term exposure to small class sizes in the early grades generates substantial advantages for students in American Schools.’ The students of CPS deserve the same quality education that Rahm Emanuel and Penny Pritzker’s children are receiving.

As CPS teachers, we want what’s best for our students, so that they can become college and career ready. We are ready and fully determined to advocate on behalf of our students by rejecting the board’s proposals, and by voting yes to a strike authorization and yes to successful learning and working conditions.”

#ChicagoIL #EducationRights #ChicagoTeachersUnion #RahmEmanuel #teachersStrike #TeachersUnions

Chicago, IL – On May 23, 4000 Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) members gathered for a historic rally inside the Auditorium Theater. Outside, there was an overflow outdoor rally beneath the Bowman sculpture at Congress Drive and Michigan Avenue that included 1500 more, including parents, students and community members.

CTU presented a strong united front to make four key demands of the mayor and his appointed puppet Board of Education: smaller class sizes; better day, not a longer day; fair compensation and job protection for veteran educators.

The indoor and outdoor rallies came together on Michigan Avenue and marched through the streets in a sea of CTU red through the Loop, passing by Chicago Public Schools headquarters and eventually converging with Stand Up Chicago's mass rally to protest the Chicago Mercantile Exchange shareholders meeting. The mood throughout the rallies and the march was electric and raucous. Many cars, buses and trucks honked to show their support for the teachers and people on the sidewalks also clapped in support.

A recent poll by the Chicago Tribune shows that there is more public support for teachers than Rahm Emanuel may have calculated and it is clear that the teachers are ready to put up a fight against the mayor’s union busting tactics.

#ChicagoIL #EducationRights #ChicagoTeachersUnion #RahmEmanuel #TeachersUnions

The Minneapolis protest was a part of a national day of action for education rights.

The rally began with speakers from all areas of student life, including representatives from student groups La Raza, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), and Women’s Student Activist Collective, the graduate student unionization effort and staff and faculty members.

Energy was high as speakers called on the administration to chop from the top as tuition and fees rise at unprecedented rates.

Cherrene Horazuk of AFSCME Local 3800 said, “We, the front line staff, see the impact of the corporate agenda of the university…we see the ‘golden parachutes’ given to leaving administrators. Last year, $2.8 billion were spent on these administrators who quit their jobs.” Connections were made between the bloated administrative salaries and cuts elsewhere, as highlighted by Charmaine Chua of the graduate assistant union drive. She exposed the university’s poor treatment of graduate workers, who “come at low labor costs, which allows the U to continue to exploit [the grad student labor] to put exorbitant salaries into pockets of administrators at the top.”

After hearing from speakers, SDS called on attendees to sign a petition to be placed on the all-student-election ballot, demanding cuts to administrative salaries and unnecessary spending and an end to tuition hikes without a campus-wide student vote. SDS member Mia Overly said, “This puts the power back into the hands of the students!”

Shortly after the rally, students led a march through campus down University Avenue, taking to the streets with signs and chants.

For more information contact SDS at: umnsds@gmail.com

#MinneapolisMN #EducationRights #StudentsForADemocraticSocietySDS #AFSCMELocal3800 #WomensStudentActivistCollective #LaRaza

Tallahassee, FL – On Thursday, March 1, the student movement in the United States took a collective step forward in the fight for higher education. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), along with Occupy Education groups across the country and other progressive student organizations, held a nationwide day of action against crippling budget cuts, tuition hikes, and student debt.

Stephanie Taylor, an SDS organizer in Minneapolis-St. Paul, described this groundbreaking nationwide mobilization by saying, “Nearly 20 SDS chapters nationwide protested on March 1st. While campuses focused on issues particular to their own areas, students throughout the country united with calling for an end to tuition hikes and to cut bloated administrators’ salaries. Access to education is a right for everyone, not just for families who can afford it! We see the 99% on our campuses as the students, workers, and faculty who make the university run, and the 1% as the fat-cat administration on top who earn executive wages.”

In Chicago, Illinois, more than 100 students marched and rallied downtown at the Chase Bank Tower. A few students organized a short political theatre sketch, in which mock-representatives of Chase handed out fake diplomas in exchange for immense student debt. Afterwards, the students marched to DePaul University’s campus and held a sit-in to demand a meeting with President Rev. Dennis H. Holtschneider about rising tuition costs.

Looking south to Florida, over 50 students from Florida State University, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee Community College, and several local high schools gathered outside of the State Capitol to rally against budget cuts, tuition hikes, and exclusion of undocumented students from Florida’s public universities. After a few students gave militant speeches, they marched inside the Capitol, loudly chanting “No ifs! No buts! No education cuts!” and “They say cut back! We say fight back!”

Michael Sampson, an organizer with Progress Coalition and Uhuru FSU, said, “Students from FSU, FAMU, TCC, and even high-schoolers came out to show that they are fighting back against attacks on education by Governor Rick Scott and the Florida Legislature.”

The group of students read a speech directly outside of Governor Scott’s door and proceeded to stage a sit-in on the fourth floor of the Capitol. Some parents who happened to be visiting the legislature that day then joined the students!

At the end of the rally, Sampson pointed out, “Rick Scott was scared to come out of his office to meet us and hear our demands, but we won’t stop knocking at his door and next time we’ll bring hundreds. We’re not stopping!”

Further south in Gainesville, Florida, around 20 students from the University of Florida rallied outside of Tigert Hall, the Administration Building, to protest the University’s retention of Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos as a professor making $75,000 annually. While taking a big paycheck from the University, Haridopolis has led the charge to slash higher education in Florida.

The University of Florida students hung an enormous banner across both doors of Tigert Hall reading “Worst Professor Ever” in reference to Haridopolis. They then proceeded to fill out negative student evaluation forms, which denounced Haridopolis’ attacks on students, workers, and undocumented families.

Marie Dino, an organizer in Gainesville Area SDS, said, “Yesterday’s action was very powerful because our direct focus was on the source of these attacks on students. It’s time to get Haridopolis out of our campus and out of reach from our pockets!”

In Tampa Bay, SDS at the University of South Florida organized a walkout and a rally at the Marshall Student Center. Almost 200 students attended, and after several students gave militant speeches outside, the students forcibly occupied the Student Center and staged a sit-in, demanding an end to tuition hikes and budget cuts.

Corey Uhl, an organizer with Tampa Bay SDS, described the walkout as, “a symbolic act that represents what classrooms will look like if these budget cuts and tuition hikes pass – empty.” Uhl continued by saying, “USF will no longer have a diverse student body if these cuts pass. That’s why we’re fighting back!”

When asked about SDS’s role in future nationwide actions, Taylor said, “March 1st marked the third annual March day of protest for education rights and SDS was proud to be a major component of building for the day. This is just the beginning of a long spring of struggle and resistance to the 1% of our country devaluing education and making it more and more inaccessible for the average student.”

#TallahasseeFL #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #DePaulUniversity #FloridaStateUniversity

Milwaukee, WI – Hundreds of students, faculty, and staff rallied at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM) for the March 1st National Day of Action for Education rights. Members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), AFSCME Local 82, and AFT Locals marched across campus chanting “No remorse, no regret, we wont pay our student debt!” The crowd stopped at the Chancellor's office to present the demands of the Education Rights Coalition, where they were met by members of the administration. The coalition demands include a tuition freeze, student loan debt forgiveness, and collective bargaining rights for public employee unions affected by Governor Scott Walker's union busting.

The campaign also demanded the administration “Chop From the Top” by cutting salaries of university administrators before cutting the pay of faculty and staff. The university administration also held their own event on March 1st, an event to select a new Provost who will receive an estimated $80,000 pay raise to his six-figure salary, all while faculty and staff are seeing the biggest cuts in decades. Protesters marched into the event early to conduct their own teach-in led by graduate student members of AFT Local 2169.

The teach-in

When the Interim Provost took the stage to make his case for an $80,000 pay raise, teachers, students, and staff who have been affected by cuts began a silent picket inside the room, holding “Chop From the Top” signs. During the question and answer period, SDS member Willa Leannah grilled the Provost about the anticipated pay raise while students are struggling to pay tuition. Students at UWM work more hours than students at any other state school, while UWM tuition doubled in the last ten years and the UW system was cut 21% by Scott Walker's administration. Student loan debt has already surpassed credit card debt, and is expected to exceed $1 trillion this year.

#MilwaukeeWI #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #MilwaukeeSDS #EducationRightsCoalition

Tampa Bay, FL – Over 200 students rallied at the University of South Florida to protest budget cuts and rising tuition costs. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) along with other groups, including Occupy USF and a local union with the American Federation of State, City, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), took part in a walkout to protest the attacks on students and education. This walkout came as part of the March 1st National Day of Action for Education Rights. Across the board, education continues to be cut and tuition is on the rise.

Last year and the third year in a row, the USF Administration and the State government raised tuition by 15 percent. SDS and other groups organized protests throughout Tampa and the state capital (Tallahassee) against them. As of this year, the state government plans to cut education by almost $2 billion. For students at the University of South Florida, this cuts the budget by almost 60%. With these budget cuts, University administrators will raise tuition yet again. With nowhere to turn and no money to spend, students will be forced to take out more huge loans. Currently, student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt in the U.S. Without access to money some young people are forced to drop out of school, while many pile up huge debt for years to come.

On campus, student protesters walked out of their classes at noon to protest the attacks on their education. Students, faculty, and staff represented by AFSCME rallied together. Catherine Lim of SDS spoke to the crowd, “We have decided to leave class, something we hold valuable, in order to show how seriously we are taking these blows to education”. As the crowd grew larger they marched off towards the Marshall Student Center shouting, “The students united will never be defeated!”

Marching through Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza the crowd's intensity grew. Upon reaching the doors of the Marshall Center, a hub for top university officials, the protesters gathered inside chanting, “Chop from the Top! Chop from the Top!” From there the crowd participated in a sit-in to talk about the cuts to their education. Speaker after speaker came forward to say how the cuts affect them. At one point USF President Judy Genshaft poked her head through the crowd only to be yelled at and booed by the crowd. The message was clear – the students want a school that works for them, not against them.

As Andrew Stapleton of SDS said, “SDS and myself stand firm on these issues and we will continue fighting for the right to public education for all students. I see strength in student unity and I refuse to go down without a fight.”

More attacks from the State Legislature are on their way, but students are standing together against them. SDS, with Occupy USF, Students Working for Equal Rights, and the Black Student Union, plan to continue the fight with another action soon.

#TampaBayFL #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #UniversityOfSouthFlorida

Anna Egelhoff, a student at the University of Minnesota and member of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) says, “It's time that students speak their mind against inaccessible education and rising tuition. As students paying our way through college, we have the right to demand affordable education. Our tuition should be used for the students, not administrators who get paid so much already.”

Protests and rallies are planned for cities nationwide. A partial list includes New York City, Oakland, San Francisco, Houston, Washington D.C., Boston, Seattle, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and Minneapolis.

Here at the University of Minnesota, students will rally outside of Morrill Hall, the administration building, at 12:00 noon on March 1. The rally will feature faculty, staff and student (both graduate and undergraduate) speakers, followed by a march. This event was initiated by SDS and endorsed by Women’s Student Activist Collective, AFSCME Local 3800 and La Raza student cultural center.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #UniversityOfMinnesota

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held several workshops at the conference, discussing the nature of organizing within high schools and universities, as well as attacks on activists around the country by the FBI and Grand Jury subpoenas.

Huge amounts of public teachers showed up from around the country, with a large contingent coming from Wisconsin. Kas Schwerdtfeger, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin SDS, spoke to the rally on behalf of the massive walkouts and occupations seen at Universities in Wisconsin and around the country in defense of public education.

Actor Matt Damon gave a rousing speech and interviews in support of educators across the country and had a large impact on those gathered.

#WashingtonDC #Labor #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #SDS #EducationRights #SaveOurSchools #KasSchwerdtfeger #MattDamon

Milwaukee, WI – Hundreds rallied at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), March 14, as protests continue against Governor Scott Walker's anti-union, anti-people attacks. The rally was the third mass action taken at the university in recent weeks and included speeches by student, community and union leaders.

Joel Ramirez, a former UWM student and member of Youth Empowered in the Struggle, riled up the crowd when he said, “Wall Street lives lavishly and recklessly while we the people are left to pay the bill.” Ramirez went on to stress the need for African Americans and Latinos to stay united in the struggle and to oppose the oncoming attack on immigrants, which will include attempts to deny in-state tuition for undocumented students.

State Senator Chris Larson, one of the 14 state senators who fled the state to try to halt the passing of the infamous Budget Repair Bill, made a surprise visit to the rally. “It's been a difficult time and I had to sleep on an inflatable mattress, but I stayed motivated thinking of all you who were sleeping on the marble floors of our Capitol.”

UWM United organized the rally and intends to play a role in defeating the Budget Repair Bill and defending the University of Wisconsin system from budget cuts and privatization.

#MilwaukeeWI #StudentMovement #EducationRights #UniversityOfWisconsinMilwaukee #CollectiveBargaining #GovernorScottWalker #Wisconsin #publicSectorUnions #WisconsinProtest #YouthEmpoweredInTheStruggle #UWMUnited