2020 Dems promise teachers pay raise, respect at education town hall

[DonViejo]

BY TAL AXELROD - 07/06/19 11:45 AM EDT

Ten 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls descended on Houston, Texas, Saturday to try to gin up support among the nation's public school teachers, vowing to boost educators' pay and give their profession the respect it deserves.

Speaking at this year's annual National Education Association (NEA) forum, the 10 contenders laid out their plans to prioritize public education funding and praised teachers as the guardians of the nation's future, also accusing the current administration of not prioritizing one of the country’s most valuable professions.

“You hold more than any other profession, you hold the future of this country in your hands. I’m not exaggerating, it’s a fact,” former Vice President Joe Biden said.

“These children are our children. They’re all our children. They’re the kite strings that lift our national ambitions aloft and they’re in your hands, and we don’t treat you with enough respect or dignity, we don’t pay you enough, and I promise you if I am your president it will change on day one,” he said.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), meanwhile, said every teacher should earn "at least" $60,000 a year.

more
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/451820-2020-dems-promise-teachers-pay-raise-respect-at-education-town-hall

[radical noodle]

1. I want to know what they can do

to give teachers more money? States are defunding public schools and giving extra funding to charter and private schools now. School districts don't have enough money for the basics, let alone huge raises. If the federal government pushes more education money into the states, that's no guarantee teachers will get it.

One of the very few things I disagreed with the Obama administration on was their Arne Duncan education policy. Not as bad as DeVos, but certainly bad for public education.

Teacher pay is not the only issue for public school teachers, either.