UPDATE: The board of Benjamin Franklin High School unanimously voted to ratify the contract with the United Teachers of New Orleans. Here is a link to the contract that has now been ratified by teachers and the board.

NEW ORLEANS (March 18, 2015) –Benjamin Franklin High School and the United Teachers of New Orleans announce a tentative agreement on an initial three-year contract.  This bargaining agreement is a promising start to a stronger relationship and improved communication between the faculty, the administration and the school board, reinforcing the school’s mission of preparing students of high academic achievement to be successful in life

LFT President Steve Monaghan says, “It is obscene to say that we can’t meet the obligations we have at the same time that we are giving away billions in tax exemptions.”

(New Orleans – March 2, 2015) Teachers at Morris Jeff Community School today petitioned their administration and board to recognize the United Teachers of New Orleans as their representative and to begin negotiations on a collective bargaining agreement.

(Baton Rouge – February 5, 2015) A rising movement calling for parents to opt their children out of taking high-stakes tests is just the latest sign of chaos in the Baton Rouge education bureaucracy, and a signal that the state education board must take decisive action and give parents, teachers, and local school districts a sense of direction, according to the Louisiana Federation of Teachers.

The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools has ranked Louisiana as the second highest of all the states, based on how our state’s charter school law aligns with the organization’s model law. Their rankings reward states for making charter schools less accountable to local voters and taxpayers.

BESE defers expensive teacher retirement study

In a rare move, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education overruled a recommendation by one of its own committees to fund an expensive study of the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana’s Unfunded Accrued Liability.

In a recent editorial, The Advocate noted that the Supreme Court’s reversal of a lower court ruling that Act 1 of 2012 violated the constitutional prohibition on bundling multiple objects into a single bill is troubling.

(Baton Rouge – December 16, 2014) Funding for public education’s Minimum Foundation Program will increase by some $75 million next year if a plan approved by the state’s MFP task Force today is adopted by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Legislature.

“We started an important conversation today about the choices Louisiana must make for the future of our children,” said Louisiana Federation of Teachers President Steve Monaghan.

United Teachers of New Orleans President Larry Carter recognized several public school students from their outstanding achievements at the Louisiana Federation of Teachers’ 50th Annual Convention on November 23-25.

Click here for more coverage of the LFT 50th Anniversary!

Speaking to more than 200 delegates and guests at the Louisiana Federation of Teachers’ 50th Annual Convention, LFT President Steve Monaghan called for reclaiming the promise of public education and returning the joy to teaching and learning.