The Departments of Education Policy & Social Policy and Curriculum & Teaching held a virtual panel "Visions of Teacher Unionism: Tactics and Directions of the Contemporary Teacher Movement" on November 8th, 2021. The event sought to understand the mass teacher strikes occurring in various cities and states across the United States in recent years (including Chicago, West Virginia and Arizona, amongst others) that have amplified teachers' demands against school shutdowns and unsafe working conditions, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic to ultimately, demonstrate the importance of the voices of teachers in shaping education.
Given this crucial background, this event aimed to answer the following key questions: What direction should this re-energized teacher movement take? Should it focus on acting as teachers’ voice? Or, should it focus on building coalitions that fight for the broader common good and racial justice? What role should strikes play in these fights?
The following renowned panelists from Teachers College and beyond participated:
- Professor Aaron Pallas (Introduction), Chair, Department of Education Policy & Social Analysis
- Dr. Melissa Arnold Lyon (Moderator), Postdoctoral Research Associate, Brown University; graduate of the TC program in Politics and Education
- Stacy Davis Gates, Vice president, Chicago Teachers Union, which has been at the forefront of the social movement unionism thrust in recent teacher unionism.
- Jay O’Neal, One of the leaders of the 2018 teachers strike in West Virginia; candidate for president of the West Virginia Education Association.
- Kara Popiel, Executive Vice President, Yonkers Federation of Teachers
- Jia Lee, Member, Movement of Rank and File Educators (MORE) of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT)
- Professor Nancy Lesko, Chair, Department of Curriculum and Teaching