Philadelphia Federation of Teachers

The PFT promotes the use of research-based programs proven to raise student achievement

Image: Teacher with students. "The PFT promotes the use of research-based programs proven to raise student achievement."

The PFT offers professional development to enhance learning environments for students and educators

Image: Educators talking while working on materials. "The PFT offers professional development to enhance learning environments for students and educators."

The PFT represents more than 11,000 dedicated women and men working in Philadelphia public schools today

Image: PFT members and children marching. "The PFT represents more than 11,000 dedicated women and men working in Philadelphia public schools today."

The Long Walk

The Long Walk - PFT president Jerry Jordan takes shows how school closings will impact the safety of many schoolchildren

FOF Coalition: $100 Million Needed NOW for Lead, Asbestos

September 11, 2019

In response to news that a longtime Philadelphia school teacher has been diagnosed with Mesothelioma, members of the Fund Our Facilities Coalition held a press conference at the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers offices to call for an immediate $100 million investment to perform lead and damaged asbestos abatement in Philadelphia’s public schools. The figure makes up the bulk of the $170 million the Coalition has been calling for since May.

August 15, 2019

All summer long, many members have reported receiving letters and postcards from an organization called, “Free to Teach.”

Let’s be clear–Free to Teach is a project of the Commonwealth Foundation, an anti-worker, anti-public education, Koch Brothers- and DeVos family-backed “think tank” whose mission is to bust unions and feather the beds of corporate CEOs.

AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest column outlines the urgency of using our voices—our votes—in this life-changing election, when we will make a choice “between President Donald Trump, who has trafficked in chaos, fear, lies and division, and former Vice President Joe Biden, who seeks to reverse Trump’s failures on COVID-19 and the economy, and to unite and uplift the American people.” Besides the four crises we face—a pandemic, an economic crisis, racism and a climate emergency—democracy itself is on the ballot, as Trump continues to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the election.

In her September New York Times column, AFT President Randi Weingarten says that going back to school has never looked like it does now. Weingarten explains that because of President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus, which has been chaotic, contradictory and inept, and the lack of federal guidance and funding, we’re seeing a patchwork of school reopening plans across the country.

Bill raising teachers' salaries stalled

A push to raise the state's minimum teacher salary has become a bipartisan effort, but it appears to not be enough to ensure a key piece of Gov. Tom Wolf's budget proposal will make it into the final version of the spending document.

After years of declining state funding, waste and corruption, the Scranton School District has been made a "recovery district" by the state. With a recovery plan due in May, there's talk of closing schools in the financially struggling, impoverished district. But members of the Scranton Federation of Teachers have joined with community leaders to demand adequate and fair funding. Read more and sign a petition here.