In AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest New York Times  column, she describes what it is exactly that unions do. Though unions are the most popular they have been in decades, anti-union sentiment still thrives in red states and across the nation. “Several years ago, The Atlantic ran a story whose headline made even me, a labor leader, scratch my head: ‘Union Membership: Very Sexy,’” Weingarten writes in the column. “The gist was that higher wages, health benefits and job security—all associated with union membership—boost one’s chances of getting married. Belonging to a union doesn’t actually guarantee happily ever after, but it does help working people have a better life in the here and now.” Click through to read the full column.

CPS Must Plan Now for a Safe 2020-21 School Year

Cincinnati’s teachers were left heartbroken when Governor DeWine decided last week that school buildings would stay closed for the rest of this school year.

Since the sudden Mid-March closure order, teachers have worked with their principals and team members to provide distance learning. It’s been challenging for students, their parents, and teachers accustomed to the critical face to face interactions that come only in a classroom.  But teachers had hoped there would be at least some opportunity to reconnect with their students face-to-face

We are all learning from this experience. Please CFOP represented employees, fill out this survey regarding working from home:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CFOPhome

Our Neighborhood Schools Do More Than Teach

An Op-Ed by CFT President Julie Sellers in AFT Voices -  about these uncertain times we are living in

The CFT/CFOP Scholarship Committee has opened up the application process for scholarships.

The goals of the CFT/CFOP Scholarship are:

1. To encourage capable Cincinnati Public School Students to pursue teaching careers,
2. To increase the number of minority teacher applicants for Cincinnati Public Schools,
3. To assist the children of Cincinnati Federation of Teachers to obtain a college education; and,
4. To assist CFOP members who wish to pursue further education leading to a BA/BS degree

GUIDELINES FOR AWARDING CFT/CFOP SCHOLARSHIPS:

1. Applications are available online at http://www.cft-aft.org
2. There must be