Philadelphia Federation of Teachers

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PFT President Jerry Jordan on the Shooting Outside of Roxborough High School

September 27, 2022 In response to the shooting outside Roxborough High School, leaving one student dead and five injured while playing football, PFT President Jerry Jordan issued the following statement: PHILADELPHIA—"I am horrified, heartbroken, and enraged by the shooting of five students this afternoon outside Roxborough High School at a football scrimmage. I am gutted to learn that one child--just fourteen years old--has died. This shooting should shake us all to our core: five teenagers playing football after school--on the purported safety of school grounds, only to have their lives, and the lives of those they know and love, forever altered. MORE

Jerry Jordan Responds to Statements About Paraprofessionals' Pay at September 22 School Board Meeting

September 22, 2022

In response to statements at Thursday evening’s board meeting regarding paraprofessionals' salaries, Jerry Jordan said the following:

"In our recent contract, we made historic gains in the salaries and working conditions of paraprofessionals. This included more than 10% salary increases for the vast majority of paraprofessional support staff. Further, we negotiated a landmark career pathway agreement, winning fully paid college tuition for paras looking to further their education to pursue a career in teaching. For the first time, no member is earning less than $15/hour. But

Yesterday evening, PFT Member Trina Dean and TAUP Member Heather Levi told their stories of student debt forgiveness and urged members to take part in the process. They shared their stories alongside Secretary Miguel Cardona, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, PFT President Jerry Jordan, AFT Pennsylvania President Arthur Steinberg, AFT - American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, and Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO President Pat Eiding, and hundreds of union members!

Student loan relief has been an absolute top priority for the AFT, and years of advocacy is yielding massive results

PFT President Jerry Jordan on Murder of Tiffany Fletcher, Ongoing Crisis of Gun Violence

September 10, 2022 In the wake of the murder of Tiffany Fletcher, killed by a stray bullet while working outside of Mill Creek Recreation Center, and the ongoing scourge of gun violence, PFT President Jerry Jordan issued the following statement: PHILADELPHIA—"We grieve for Tiffany Fletcher’s children and all of her loved ones, and for all impacted by this horrific tragedy and by the ongoing devastation of gun violence. For Ms. Fletcher’s life to be cut short because of a stray bullet while she was working at a community recreation center is just unconscionable. To Ms. Fletcher’s family, and to all that knew and loved her, I offer my deepest sympathy on behalf of the PFT. MORE

PFT Member Emmanuel Gonzalez: My 2nd-grade students are dripping in sweat. We are being ‘forgotten.’

Philadelphia Inquirer Op-Ed, September 8, 2022

PFT Member Emmanuel Gonzaelz, a second grade teachers at Ellwood Elementary, has an important Inquirer Op-Ed on the urgent need for safe and comfortable learning envrionments in every classroom of every school.

Read the entire piece right here.

PFT President Jerry Jordan shared his reflections on his most memorable teacher--and a childhood photo!-- with City and State PA:

September 6, 2022

“I can still hear Miss Alice Graham’s voice reminding my classmates and me at West Philadelphia High School that corresponding parts of congruent triangles are equal. She would tap the chalkboard, reminding us of the mnemonic device, and we'd jot ‘CPCTE’ down in our notebooks. Surely, I wasn't frantically writing down the geometry lesson because I had dreams of becoming a mathematician – I liked math well enough, but Miss Graham was teaching, and I was listening. Miss Graham offered what so many great educators do: a feeling of belonging. She made her students feel valued and