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EPA head says he'll roll back dozens of environmental regulations, including rules on climate change; Environmental groups sue over permit for West Virginia valley fills; Doubling down on care: Ohio's push for caregiver tax relief; Uncertain future of Y-12 complex under Trump administration threatens jobs, economy.

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Senate Democrats refuse to support GOP budget bill. The EU and Canada respond to steel and aluminum tariffs and some groups work to counter Christian Nationalism, which they call a threat to democracy.

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Farmers worry promised federal reimbursements aren't coming while fears mount that the Trump administration's efforts to raise cash means the sale of public lands, and rural America's shortage of doctors has many physicians skipping retirement.

MI educators sound alarm about the future of teaching

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Monday, September 16, 2024   

Educators in Michigan and nationwide are voicing concerns politics are demoralizing teachers and discouraging others from entering the profession at a time when more teachers are needed.

They cited comments from GOP vice-presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, about childless women as teachers, including American Federation of Teachers' President Randi Weingarten. The rhetoric, along with the Georgia school shooting, are raising fears the country's teacher shortage will only worsen.

Toni Coral, president of the Hamtramck Federation of Teachers, has been teaching for nearly 30 years. She said morale is low and, since the pandemic, many have experienced poor work-life balance.

"A lot of people just decided, 'No, I'm OK. I'm done,'" Coral observed. "Because we don't get the support we need and there's this continual expectation that we will work at home and lose family time, lose private times."

After the pandemic began, at the end of the 2019-2020 school year, Michigan had 700 fewer teachers by the fall of 2020, the third-largest decrease in the past decade.

Coral highlighted the educational priorities she hopes the incoming administration will address, no matter who takes office. She urged increased funding to modernize school buildings and calls for smaller class sizes and less standardized testing to enhance the quality of education. She would also like to see all students gain better access to books, to enhance reading skills.

"Send parents home from the hospital with a box full of books," Coral suggested. "Maybe make sure there are mobile libraries, that can go around to communities like where I teach, or out to rural communities, so people can have easy access to free books."

Coral emphasized her primary wish is for the next President of the United States to demonstrate and model compassion and intelligence.

Disclosure: The American Federation of Teachers contributes to our fund for reporting on Education, Health Issues, Livable Wages/Working Families, and Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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