Dear Teachers and Support Staff,

I know you are heartbroken, disappointed, and feel let down. I feel the same way. Coming out of this loss we need to make sure that the actions we take now are strategic and cohesive. This afternoon I met with a core team of teachers who are eager to take collective action in the wake of this weekend’s election. We are continuing to work on a strategy to rebuild from this loss in a way that is constructive and collaborative. 

The Livingston School Board will discuss "Teachers concerns and opinions after failure of proposed Tax" at their meeting on Thursday. I

Livingston teachers and school employees are overdue for a raise. This weekend, voters had the opportunity to pass a one-cent sales tax that would result in a 10% raise for LPSB employees. Despite widespread support from employees in the district, the measure failed by 1,374 votes. Out of a total of 86,400 registered voters in Livingston Parish, only about 20% cast a vote.

While the ballot measure failed, the underlying issues remain. Livingston parish teachers and school employees are paid less than those in neighboring parishes. Our best educators are being recruited by those neighboring

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.