Add your voice to those of hundreds of other school employees working for quality education and improved pay and benefits.

If you have questions about the AFT Disaster Relief Fund or would like to request an application form, please send an e-mail to StormAid@lft-aft.org. Be sure to include your name, address, contact information and the name of your school district.

Click here for access to more information about the aftermath of the storms.

 UTNO is honoring the commitment of the people who teach in New Orleans’ public schools by introducing several of these professionals to parents and the public during its "I am UTNO" media campaign. The campaign was launched this month, and it will feature several teachers in advertisements that will appear on Orleans Parish bus shelters and in the Gambit Weekly newspaper.

"The teachers and other professionals who work in our schools are a humble group of people," said UTNO President Larry Carter. "They don’t seek publicity or applause. Their reward is seeing their students learn and grow into adults who will have a real future ahead of them."  Click the links below to see samples of the advertisements:

• Sample ad one
• Sample ad two
• Sample ad three
• Sample ad four

Carter added, "Regardless of where they work, these professionals are going the extra mile to help make our city’s public schools a source of pride. We want to put a face on these dedicated professionals. We want the public to know they are driven and dedicated individuals."

Newspaper and bus shelter ads are scheduled to run through the month of November. Carter emphasized that UTNO will continue its outreach to and collaboration with parent and community groups. The "I am UTNO" bus shelter ads are appearing in diverse neighborhoods of the city at or near the following intersections:

• N. Carrollton Avenue at Canal Street
• St. Charles Avenue at Napoleon Avenue
• Elysian Fields Avenue at Gentilly Blvd.
• Canal Street at S. Peters Street
• General De Gaulle at Westbend Parkway

August 11- Over 1,000 parents and their children came down to Willie Hall Park last Saturday to get free school supplies and information, and enjoy the music, food and entertainment at Schools Fair 2008, UTNO’s second annual back to school event. This year’s event was put on in collaboration with the Urban League of Greater New Orleans.

July 25- On Thursday, July 24 a group of visiting teachers and education professionals painted walls and put the finishing touches on a mural at Bauduit Elementary, wrapping up this year’s Union Summer volunteer work. Over the course of four weeks, more than four dozen AFT members came to New Orleans with the Union Summer program to paint schools, build houses, help renovate a classroom and perform other work.

July 22- On July 13, former UTNO President Nat LaCour stepped down from his post as Secretary-Treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers, ending a brilliant career that spanned more than thirty years with UTNO and the AFT. LaCour's career as a national AFT leader included positions as a vice president, executive vice president and secretary-treasurer. However, in New Orleans, he is remembered for far more. Mr. LaCour lead UTNO through two strikes, oversaw the merger of a white NEA local and AFT local 527 to create United Teachers of New Orleans in 1972, and lead UTNO to victory in winning the first contract for teachers in the Deep South in 1974.

July 22- UTNO leadership and members celebrated the passage of all four millage renewals on Saturday, July 19 as both a step in the right direction for educational funding and a sign that public education in New Orleans has broad support.

June 28- A lawsuit has been filed against the Orleans Parish School Board, claiming that the School Board’s termination of over 7,000 permanent, tenured employees following Katrina violated Louisiana tenure laws and school board policies.