K-12 divisional meeting: Professional development as a powerful union-builder

The AFT Teachers divisional meeting opened with a lively panel, "The Power of Professional Issues to Activate, Mobilize and Build Power," emceed by Toledo Federation of Teachers President and AFT K-12 program and policy council Co-chair Kevin Dalton.

Panelists shared the connection- and morale-building magic of AFT Professional Learning programs (and their own unions' professional development initiatives). Their common theme: Professional development is a great way to turn disengaged or skeptical members into energized union stalwarts.

St. Thomas-St. John Federation of Teachers President Leontyne Jones related how a new teacher who felt "despondent about her job" experienced a turnaround when Jones enrolled her in the AFT Teacher Leaders Program. It was transformational. She told Jones, "I was wondering, is this union for me?" These days, Jones says, "Every time I see her, she's smiling." Jones has now recruited her for the AFT's Train the Trainer program.

Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson described PD's vital importance in the fourth year of a hostile state takeover of her school district. Due to mass teacher resignations spurred by harsh conditions under the takeover, most Houston teachers now possess less than one year of teaching experience, Anderson noted. So the union "did what the district wasn't doing," she said; it began helping new teachers gain certification and pedagogical skills, including a "Meeting the Moment" weekly PD group that's forged a terrific support community for newbies.

Maria Elena Guzman is director of pedagogy for the National Academy for AI Instruction, (launched by the AFT and other partners in 2025 to empower educators in how artificial intelligence is integrated into the classroom). "AI is here to stay," she said, "[But] these tools mean nothing if [educators] don't have input." Dalton added: "AI is a union issue."

Boston Teachers Union President Erik Berg described the BTU's collaboration with Educators Thriving, a Harvard-founded program aimed at improving educator retention, morale and well-being. The program is turning once-disillusioned educators into powerful, energized advocates for what students need, he said.

Berg said he knew the idea had potential when a predicted eight-person turnout for the initial exploratory meeting drew 80 attendees. "We realized we were going to need a bigger room," he joked. The partnership is living proof, he said, that, "Our union is strongest when we are part of our members' work lives."

Next came presentations highlighting two cutting-edge, research-based, highly user-friendly AFT partnerships to support literacy and English language learners: Reading Universe and Colorín Colorado.

Winding up, AFT political action and legislation deputy director Charles Johnson called on delegates to volunteer in the midterms, including serving as AFT "Democracy Defenders" to protect the vote at ballot boxes across the country in November. "What's at stake is the country that we love," he said.

[Christina Bartolomeo/Photo credit: Suzannah Hoover]