April 6, 2022

We are so grateful to PFT's amazing paraprofessionals for their tireless work each and every day. Paraprofessionals are a critical part of our school communities, and an integral part of our union.

April 7, 2022

PHILADELPHIA--"I am simply thrilled that the US Senate has voted to confirm a remarkable jurist, Justice-designate Ketanji Brown Jackson, as the next justice of the United States Supreme Court. Our country will be better off with Justice Brown Jackson on the bench of the Supreme Court.

"Justice-designate Brown Jackson is immensely qualified, and her confirmation represents an historic moment. Representation matters, and diversity is strength.

"For so many Black Americans, particularly women, this day, when the first Black woman is confirmed to the Supreme Court, is especially

April 5, 2022

This afternoon, Representative Elizabeth Fiedler hosted a policy committee hearing on the topic of Toxic Schools. The hearing took place at the Seafarers Union Hall in Rep. Fiedler's 184th District.

PFT environmental scientist Jerry Roseman presented testimony on the ongoing facilities crisis. He joined Dr. Akira Drake Rodriguez, Assistant Professor, University of Pennslyvania Weitzman School of Design; Iggy Fletcher, Instructor, ATEI IBEW Local 98; and Edy Lai, 9th grader at Furness High School.

Prepared testimony can be accessed here.

Read a thread from the hearing right here.

Durin

April 5, 2022

In response to the murder of 15-year-old Juan Carlos Robles-Corana, and the separate shooting that critically injured a 13 year old, PFT President Jerry Jordan issued the following statement:

PHILADELPHIA—"My heart breaks for the Duckrey school community, and especially for the family and loved ones of Juan Carlos Robles-Corana, just 15 years old, who was killed on his way home from school. Our students, our families, and our communities deserve so much more than to live with the constant fear of gun violence. I would be remiss not to include that a 13 year old boy remains in

Dr. King’s assassination while he was in Memphis supporting striking AFSCME workers is an event that is forever etched in my mind as a devastating example of the injustices that Black people have faced in this country for our entire lives.

So on this somber day, let us remember– beyond today, beyond tomorrow– what we must do as a society to truly live up to the legacy of Dr. King.

Let us remember all he fought for, all he accomplished, and what we must all do to carry on that legacy.

In thinking about this legacy and how his work is so intertwined with our ongoing work towards education justice