Feb 10, 2022 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 10, 2022
Colorado Education Association Members Rally with Coalition
Calls on Lawmakers to Introduce Collective Bargaining Bill
DENVER – Today members of the Colorado Education Association (CEA) participated in a rally on the west steps of the State Capitol as a part of the coalition Public Workers United Colorado, calling on lawmakers to introduce a statewide collective bargaining bill. The proposed bill, sponsored by Rep. Daneya Esgar (D-HD46) and Sen. Steve Fenberg (D-SD18), would give all public employees in the state of Colorado the right to form and be recognized as a union.
“Coloradans want all of our students to thrive and succeed, and public school educators are actually the experts on how to make that happen,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. “The problem is our voices are too often dismissed and even disrespected in some circles. That’s why all K-12 educators absolutely deserve collective-bargaining rights.”
“Every single worker in Colorado deserves the right to choose a union with collective bargaining rights, especially public workers like us,” said Jennifer Muñoz, secretary and member of Jefferson County Support Professionals Association. “We are the ones working for Colorado students and parents every day, both in and out of the classroom. We are experts in our field, and can speak firsthand to the challenges Colorado students and educators currently face, and how we can all work together to overcome them.”
The bill has yet to be introduced and the CEA and its partners are continuing to work with the bill sponsors and stakeholders to introduce legislation to ensure all public workers, the very workers who have been on the frontlines in our communities, across the state are covered.
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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Jan 20, 2022 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 20, 2022
CEA Statement on Gov. Polis supplemental proposal on the Budget Stabilization Factor Buy Down
DENVER, CO – Yesterday, Gov. Jared Polis announced a proposal for an additional $104.2 million in supplemental from the previously proposed Budget Stabilization Factor buy down for the 2021-22 funding year and $214.4 million in funding for the 2022-23 funding year. This additional $300 million to the state education fund, increasing the previous Budget Stabilization Factor buy down and prioritizing buy down for future years, will help districts provide much needed resources for students and educators across Colorado. The following statement can be attributed to Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association:
“We applaud today’s announcement by the Governor, whose supplemental budget proposal will greatly reduce the Budget Stabilization Factor this year and next. We appreciate the Governor’s commitment to Colorado public schools, students and educators.
“Now more than ever, the 39,000 members of the Colorado Education Association will continue to stand for Colorado students so that they, and their dedicated educators, get the resources they need to have a high quality education, no matter what zip code they live in.”
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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Jan 13, 2022 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 13, 2022
Colorado Education Association Response to the Governor’s State of the State Address
DENVER – The following statement is a response to Gov. Polis’ State of the State address and can be attributed to Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association:
“We thank Gov. Polis and the Colorado state lawmakers for making public education a priority this legislative session. We look forward to working with the governor and the legislature on finding common sense solutions to the problems we are facing.
“Last month the Colorado Education Association released its annual State of Education report, which paints a dire picture of public education in Colorado. Our schools are under-resourced, under-staffed and with the latest onslaught of COVID-19, things don’t look to be getting any better any time soon.
“Our members will be in the halls of the Capitol this year to advocate for CEA legislative priorities like introducing and passing a statewide collective bargaining bill, increasing the funding that our schools desperately need, working toward seeing the state keep its promise to our retired PERA members and finding a common sense solution to easing the state back into its normal accountability system while we’re still in the midst of a global pandemic. It is time we right the public education system in Colorado and make it the best in the nation.”
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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Jan 11, 2022 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 11, 2022
Colorado Education Association Statement on Rep. Ed Perlmutter Retirement
DENVER – Upon hearing the news that Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CD-7) will not seek reelection, the following statement can be attributed to Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association:
“We thank Congressman Ed Perlmutter for his never ending support and advocacy for Colorado’s educators and students.
“From his time in the Colorado state Capitol to the halls of Congress, he was a tireless advocate for public school funding at the local, state and federal levels, outspoken about the importance of special education and worked hard at the federal level to upgrade technology for all schools.
“He understood families, communities and the importance of a strong public school in every neighborhood – and knew every school in his district and many of the parents, educators and students. With his wife, Nancy and sister, Cassie Perlmutter, who are both members of CEA, he was always there to fight for our members and our students.
“We wish Congressman Perlmutter and his family well as they begin their next chapter. We will miss his strong voice in championing public education and advocating for educators, students and families.”
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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Dec 14, 2021 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2021
Colorado Education Association Releases Annual State of Education Report
State’s Largest Union Also Releases 2022 Legislative Priorities
DENVER – Today the Colorado Education Association (CEA), with local leaders from around the state, released its annual State of Education report highlighting multiple challenges facing our state’s public education system in 2021 and beyond. The report, CEA’s first since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is based on publicly available data, news articles, cited research and surveys of CEA members from December 2020 and October 2021.
The report highlights three main problem areas that is fueling a crisis for Colorado public education:
Inadequate Funding
Colorado still ranks at/near the bottom when it comes to starting educator pay, wage competitiveness and per pupil funding. A near $10 billion shortfall via the Budget Stabilization Factor over the last 10 years is a huge hole in public education funding in Colorado.
Educator Burnout
Exponentially increasing workloads and bitter political vitriol over health, safety and history curriculum are causing intense educator burnout. An October 2021 survey of CEA members showed that more than half said that this school year is significantly or somewhat worse than last year.
Educator Shortage
The lack of funding, inadequate conditions and burnout has led to a critical educator shortage. As educators from across the state flee the profession, Colorado is struggling mightily to replace them. An October 2021 review of Colorado school districts’ websites shows that there are more than 3,300 open positions in our public schools – 1,125 licensed and 2,251 support professionals. Additionally, more than two-thirds – 67% – of CEA’s surveyed members in October indicated that they were considering leaving the profession in the near future. Alarmingly, this is a 27% increase from the 40% of members who said the same thing just last December. These educators most often point to their overwhelming workload and low pay as the reasons to leave and they are considering career changes and early retirement.
“The way we fund our public schools and value educators is unsustainable,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. “We are at a crossroads; what kind of state do we want to be? One where chronic underfunding short-changes our children and drives high quality educators to surrounding states, or even worse, out of the profession altogether? Or one that is proud of delivering an exceptional education to prepare all students in every zip code to follow their dreams and be successful?”
Today’s report also highlights CEA’s 2022 Legislative priorities:
Collective Bargaining
Collective bargaining provides a way for educators to have a genuine voice in advocating for their students and profession. The bargaining process is an opportunity for educators and school administrators to work together to identify and solve the problems and challenges facing our students, the schools they learn in and the educators who serve them. Educators’ working conditions ARE our students’ learning conditions. Colorado local public employees, no matter their service industry, should have the right to join a union and collectively bargain so they have a seat at the table and a voice in their workplaces.
Funding
Many students aren’t getting the education they deserve because teachers and support staff don’t have what they need – they’re overwhelmed with excessive class sizes, outdated textbooks, unfunded mandates and paychecks that often don’t even pay the bills. Certain politicians and wealthy special interests have balanced the state budget on the backs of Colorado students for years, creating a $1 billion deficit in public education funding over the past 10 years. We need legislators to commit to buying down the budget stabilization factor to give Colorado students and educators the resources they need.
PERA
Tens of thousands of educators have spent their careers serving students in our public pre-K through 12 education system. The Colorado Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA) helps provide every educator the dignity of retirement security.. We need a commitment from the Colorado legislature on legislation that will honor the promises made by the state to educators that will ensure the viability and sustainability of PERA for generations to come.
Accountability Bridge
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted education in many ways. A pause in the Accountability frameworks for the 2020-2021 school year was a welcome recognition of the pressures the pandemic placed on students, families and school systems. There was very little debate among stakeholders and legislators about the pause, given the collective understanding of the limited assessment data that would be available to uphold the integrity of the process. Now we must have a thoughtful transition as we move from the limited and inconsistent data of the past two years back to fully implementing the current law. Without a transition, simply turning the accountability system back on is fraught with issues that will impact the integrity of the accountability system and could cause unnecessary harm to students, schools and districts.
“The last 21 months have been crushing for our educators and students and there seems to be no end in sight,” said Baca-Oehlert. “Our 39,000 members are ready to stand up and fight for the schools our students and educators deserve. Our voices will be the loudest at the Capitol come January as our students, educators and communities deserve nothing less.”
For the full report and for CEA’s 2022 Legislative priorities, please go to the CEA State of Education website.
CEA has set up a number of dates for the media to interview CEA President Amie Baca-Oehlert about the 2022 Legislative Session. Please contact Frank Valdez, CEA’s Director of Communications for any questions.
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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Nov 15, 2021 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 15, 2021
American Education Week 2021
Honoring Colorado Educators in challenging times
DENVER – This week, Nov. 15 – 19, is American Education Week where we honor the team of people who work in our state’s public schools, everyone from the bus driver and classroom teacher to the cafeteria worker, administrative staff, and countless others. It is also a time to honor the families of public school students for their partnership in making sure Colorado students have exceptional public schools.
“The public education experience really is a team effort,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. “Our educators, administrative staff, support staff and parents work in concert to always give the best to our students so that they can be successful.”
This year’s version of American Education Week is marred by the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, educator shortages and burnout and a hyper-political climate, which places Colorado educators directly in the middle of some very challenging times.
“This is about as tough a time for educators as we’ve ever seen,” said Baca-Oehlert. “It is great to celebrate one week out of the year, but we must come together to find solutions to the problems facing educators, students and public education that affect them every day of the year.”
The American Education Week schedule is as follows:
- Monday – Kick Off Day
Across the country, schools will celebrate excellence in education by hosting kickoff events and activities.
- Tuesday – Family Day
On this day, schools across the nation invite parents into the classroom to experience what the day is like for their child.
- Wednesday – Education Support Professionals (ESP) Day
On Wednesday we’ll honor ESPs, who go well beyond anything we have seen before as they work to meet the needs of our school communities in the midst of a pandemic, like ensuring students were fed though schools were closed.
- Thursday – Educator for a Day
This year, having community members come into the classroom is not an option for many schools as they implement their distance learning or building reopening plans.
- Friday – Substitute Educators Day
Substitute educators play a vital role in the maintenance and continuity of daily education and we honor their willingness to help classrooms continue to function.
“Whether it’s recognizing every educators’ right to have a voice on the job, tackling Colorado’s school funding issues, or providing access to mental health resources, it’s clear there’s a lot our legislators and decision makers can do to really show their support of our educators, students, and public schools,” said Baca-Oehlert.
About American Education Week
The National Education Association was one of the creators and original sponsors of American Education Week.
Distressed that 25 percent of the country’s World War I draftees were illiterate and 9 percent were physically unfit, representatives of the NEA and the American Legion met in 1919 to seek ways to generate public support for education.
The conventions of both organizations subsequently adopted resolutions of support for a national effort to raise public awareness of the importance of education. In 1921, the NEA Representative Assembly in Des Moines, Iowa, called for a designation of one week each year to spotlight education. In its resolution, the NEA called for: “An educational week … observed in all communities annually for the purpose of informing the public of the accomplishments and needs of the public schools and to secure the cooperation and support of the public in meeting those needs.”
The first observance of American Education Week occurred December 4-10, 1921, with the NEA and American Legion as the cosponsors. A year later, the then U.S. Office of Education joined the effort as a cosponsor, and the PTA followed in 1938.
Other co-sponsors are the U.S. Department of Education and national organizations including the National PTA, the American Legion, the American Legion Auxiliary, the American Association of School Administrators, the National School Boards Association, the American Federation of Teachers, the American School Counselor Association, the Council of Chief State School Officers, the National School Public Relations Association, the National Association of State Boards of Education, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
American Education Week is always celebrated the week prior to the week of Thanksgiving.
About the Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is the voice of 39,000 educators, working together in a strong union to ensure all students get the exceptional public schools they deserve, in every neighborhood across the state. As Colorado’s largest labor union, CEA works collectively with all education stakeholders to ensure Colorado’s standing as an excellent state in which to learn, live, work, and raise a family.
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