CTU Speaks!

In this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with CTU PAC chair Kimberly Walls-Kirk and State Sen. Robert Peters about the November 8 ballot measure to include workers' rights in the Illinois Constitution. The measure would add the right to collectively bargain over wages, conditions, and workplace safety to the Illinois Bill of Rights. Predictably, right-wing extremists are campaigning against the measure because they are warriors against any effort to rein in corporate power, so our guests make the case for mobilizing a big "yes" vote on November 8. We also get into the Illinois Network of Charter Schools' (INCS) decision to bankroll a series of racist mailers against the elimination of cash bail. Apparently, they think only those with money should have the right to be free until proven guilty.

For more information about voting on November 8 including a full list of CTU's endorsements, go to ctulocal1.org/vote​.

Want to be part of the conversation? Send your comments to the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888 and leaving a voicemail that we can use in the show!

In this episode of CTU Speaks! co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with Lauren Bianchi and Chuck Stark, two teachers at Washington High School that CPS sought to terminate this past summer. Their crime? Teaching their students about the city’s plan to move the toxic metal shredding corporation General Iron from wealthy Lincoln Park to the Southeast Side, which has already suffered more pollution and toxic industry than almost any other region of Chicago. CPS actually requires teachers to provide “culturally relevant” curriculum to their students, but when Chuck and Lauren’s students put those ideas into action and organized protests targeting the mayor, the mayor sought to retaliate against these teachers for their support of this grassroots movement. When it came time for the Board to vote on CPS' recommendation to fire these dedicated teachers, however, the Board refused to do so, voting unanimously to keep these teachers in the system. In this episode, we unpack what it took to get justice for these teachers.

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

In this episode of CTU Speaks!, cohosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with Chris Goff from the American Federation of Teachers about student loan debt. The three of them discuss how student debt has ballooned out of control, and how the AFT sued the federal government over unscrupulous and predatory practices to help borrowers attain some debt relief. They also explain what members can do about their own debt and review some of the resources out there to assist them in the process.

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

• Information about Summer, the online resource for AFT members that harnesses the expertise of public policy experts to optimize borrower options. This is also where you can create your own AFT Member Benefits account to access the free Summer benefit - https://www.aft.org/benefits/Summer

• Tutorial on how to create an AFT Member Benefits account - https://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/media/2021/how-to-register-members-only-benefits.pdf

• Forgive My Student Debt webpage (co-hosted with AFSCME, AAUP, and the Student Borrower Protection Center) - https://www.forgivemystudentdebt.org/

• Registration link for AFT’s Thursday Student Debt Clinic webinar (every Thursday at 6 pm CT) - https://cvent.me/17XZka

In this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with CTU President Stacy Davis Gates and Vice President Jackson Potter about their vision for the CTU in the coming year and beyond. They review some of the accomplishments of prior CTU Presidents Karen Lewis and Jesse Sharkey and then dive into their goals as the new leadership of the CTU. And they place the challenge of negotiating a new contract in the context of the broader struggle for a just Chicago. As President Davis Gates has been saying: "#AllGasNoBrakes".

Want to be part of the conversation? Send your comments to the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888 and leaving a voicemail that we can use in the show!

In this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with two rank-and-file members — Lori Torres and Tammie Vinson — about their experience at the AFT National Convention in Boston. Lori and Tammie discuss their time at the conference, resolutions passed at the national level, and why that matters to CTU members. They also talk about the impact of CTU’s social-justice unionism on the national education labor movement and how members can get more involved in making a difference in their own schools and in the union as a whole.

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

In this episode, CTU Speaks! co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros welcome Jesse Sharkey onto the show to discuss his recent announcement not to seek re-election as president of the Chicago Teachers Union. They look back at what the CTU looked like when Jesse became vice president under then CTU President Karen Lewis, and they reflect on what the CTU did to re-shape the entire debate about public education — in Chicago and beyond. And Jim and Andrea grill Jesse about what comes next after president, including where he might teach and if he plans to become a delegate again!

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

In this episode of CTU Speaks!, cohosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros talk with CTU Chief of Staff Jen Johnson about the new safety agreement with CPS. They break down what’s good and what’s not so good about it as well as some of the safety resources on the CTU’s website, including this chart tracking implementation of key aspects of the agreement. Then we turn to a discussion with substitute teacher Burma Green and CTU staffer Georgia Waller about the dire shortage of subs available to fill in when teachers are out sick or on quarantine. And they talk about the new campaign being launched by the CTU to honor substitutes. We’re calling it the “There is no substitute for a great substitute” campaign.

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

This episode of CTU Speaks! has co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros speaking with CTU President Jesse Sharkey and CTU Vice President Stacy Davis Gates about what the new school year might bring for educators, students, and parents in Chicago.

The recent surge in COVID cases among young people is creating a wave of anxiety about school openings, not just here but across the country. CPS continues to drag its feet at the table as they unilaterally attempt to roll back last year’s health and safety protocols.

That means, as Jesse and Stacy explain, it will be critical for CTU members to build a robust safety committee in every school to identify problems and demand solutions when issues arise.

As always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

For more information about safety committees, go to ctulocal1.org/safety. To sign up for upcoming safety committee training sessions, go to ctulocal1.org/training.

This episode of CTU Speaks! has co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros speaking with Tara Stamps, the longtime educator and activist who is now the CTU's Administrative Director of New Teacher Development. Tara is heading up recruitment to the "We Care New Educators and Clinicians Coaching and Mentoring Program,” which connects new educators and clinicians with veterans who can provide support to them in the early years of their teaching careers. A critical aspect of this multi-pronged effort is to recruit and retain new educators and clinicians of colors, so that CPS’ majority Black and Brown student body has more opportunities to work with and look up to adults who look like them. More details and application form here: https://www.ctulocal1.org/posts/we-care-instructional-coach-applications-2021-06/

And as always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.

This episode of CTU Speaks! has co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros speaking with Judy Mahoney, a clerk at Byrne Elementary who was in a terrible car accident back in 2017. The accident left Judy in a wheelchair, but as she herself put it, “‘The only thing that remains the same is my ability to work.” This discussion focuses on how Judy has overcome various obstacles in front of her, including obstacles of CPS’ own making. And after you listen to this podcast, you can check out the livestream of the full press conference where the clips featured in this episode were recorded: https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=506737340372760&ref=watch_permalink

If you are interested in the CTU Summer Organizing Institute, email [email protected]

Get more involved with CTU on a committee: https://www.ctulocal1.org/union/committees/

And as always, please share your thoughts and questions with the CTU Speaks! team by emailing [email protected] or calling 312-467-8888.