Yuma teachers ‘walk in’ for #RedforEd
Statewide protests seek higher pay, better school funding
Teachers across Yuma County joined their colleagues statewide Wednesday morning in a parade of red T-shirts and signs to “walk in” to protest Arizona’s dearth of education funding.
“We are coming together to support the cause of Arizona Teachers United, just showing our unity,” said Kofa U.S. government teacher Ben Franz.
The statewide group’s #RedforEd campaign is seeking to sway the governor and the state Legislature to give teachers a 20 percent pay increase and more than $1 billion in new education funding, according to The Associated Press.
Protesters included not only teachers but also parents, community members and students.
“I’m out here because I firmly believe that education needs to be funded in Arizona,” said Kofa 11thgrader Joshua Garay, who brought a sign that read, “Dollars can build scholars.”
“I’ve personally traveled to other states and I’ve seen how their public education systems are run,” he continued. “And I’d like to see that, you know, in Arizona, because currently we’re not prioritizing our teachers. We’re not prioritizing our students. And that leads to an uneducated populace.”
Arizona’s teachers rank among the lowest-paid in the nation, Franz and Garay said.
“Our schools have been cut and cut and cut since 2008, and we are asking to get our funding back to those 2008 levels. We are asking for teacher salary increases by 20 percent,” Franz said. “That would not even get us to the national average yet.”
tors demanding higher pay that started in West Virginia where teachers successfully won a 5 percent raise after a statewide strike, AP wrote.
YUHSD communications director Eric Patton estimated that about 320 certified teachers protested districtwide. Walk-ins were held at all five of the district’s campuses. More teachers were expected to attend the governing board’s meeting Wednesday evening.
The movement was not limited to high school teachers; parents, community members and students also supported teachers at elementary schools across the county. The Somerton School District governing board supported the movement at its board meeting Tuesday night.
One sign spotted at Gowan Science Academy read, “Thank you to my husband for funding my teaching habit.”
The walk-ins came on the heels of Gov. Doug Ducey’s refusal to meet with leaders of the movements to discuss teachers’ concerns.
Franz said he felt Ducey’s move was “very unprofessional.”
“To me, that’s a slap in the face of the education system,” he said. “That’s him telling me that he doesn’t care about our public school students. I hope that today’s movement, and possible things to come, is a wake up call for him.”
So far, Ducey and the Republican-controlled legislature haven’t budged to the group’s demands. Ducey has stuck by his proposal for a 1 percent increase this year, while pledging that other fund hikes will come down the road.
A lack of legislative action could trigger a massive job action. On Monday, Arizona Educators United told their 35,000 Facebook members to prepare for a possible walk-out this week that would close schools.
Arizona teachers are among the lowest paid in the nation. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, Arizona elementary teachers earned a median wage of $43,280 in 2017 and high school teachers $46,470, the 3rd and 6th lowest in the nation, respectively. Adjusted for local cost of living, federal figures show Arizona elementary teachers actually rank 49th in earnings and high school teachers 48th.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.