The AFT Michigan Administrative Board has created five working groups to help push forward our work in priority areas that cut across our constituency groups and we are looking for members to add your expertise and passion to the groups (listed below, with target constituencies we will seek to involve):
- Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline (all constituencies)
- Increasing the Number of Black Educators in Michigan (all constituencies)
- Support Staff-to-Teacher Pathways (PreK-12 Support Staff, Teachers, Special Ed/ISD)
- Converting Part-time to Full-time Faculty (Nontenure-track Faculty, Tenure-track Faculty)
- New Deal for Higher Ed: Fighting Back Against Austerity Budgeting (Grads, Nontenure-Track Faculty, Tenure-track Faculty & Academic Staff)
Each group will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. An interest form is linked in each group description below. Please fill out the form to share what you think you could bring to the effort; we will work with local presidents and the leaders of our constituency committees to develop a diverse and representative membership of each group.
Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline Working Group
The Issue
Black, Indigenous, and other students of color have historically been marginalized, pushed out, and harmed by policing and the punitive systems within public education. Black students are disproportionately impacted by punitive practices including behavioral interventions, dress codes, suspensions and expulsions, and police presence on campuses. The consequences they face because of biased and unjust systems are far reaching and impact not only their educational outcomes, but their life trajectories as well.
Our Stance
As educators who interact daily with students in PreK-12 classrooms and higher education campuses across Michigan, we should play a role in disrupting and dismantling the policies, structures, and day-to-day interactions that lead to the criminalization of students and replacing it with a “cradle to college” pipeline that maximizes successful outcomes for all children and communities. We need changes at multiple levels–from individual members learning about and interrupting their biases, to school districts, colleges and universities changing policies, to state government changing legislation.
Our Work
Our goal is to complete concrete projects that will help educators work to increase racial equity in our education system. The working group will build out paths for advocacy and resources that help support educators and school communities taking action at the state, institution, and member level. We will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Potential directions are documented in the chart below:
| Assessment Phase (Research and Evaluation of Existing Programs & Policies) | Action Phase (Recommendations to AFT Michigan Ad Board) | |
| State Level | Survey proposed legislation, policies, etc. from allies (e.g. Student Advocacy Center Expulsion Prevention bills, NAACP, 482Forward) and other states | Support for legislation (e.g. SB 634, SB 635, SB 636) Funding for pilot programs to launch restorative justice programs |
| Institution Level | Identify effective restorative programs (via research and outreach to union leaders across the country) | Revising punitive policies Developing and advocating for restorative justice programs |
| Member Level | Identify anti-racist/anti-bias pedagogical approaches that educators find relevant and useful (via survey of members) | Trainings and resources on classroom restorative practices Workshops to support member education on social justice topics |
Who should Join?
Members from across our AFT Michigan constituency groups (PreK-12 support staff, PreK-12 teachers, Special Ed/ISD, graduate employees, nontenure-track faculty, tenure-track faculty and academic staff) can become involved with these projects in various ways, including reviewing and giving feedback on draft documents, supporting organizing and logistical work, and building out research and development. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. Interested in joining? Complete this form.
AFT Michigan Staff Point People: Jenell Mansfield, Meenakshi Mukherjee, Nate Walker and John Ware
Increasing the Number of Black Educators (Pre-K through College) in Michigan Working Group
The Issue
Like every state, Michigan struggles to develop and retain Black educators. A recent report from Education Policy Innovation Collaborative noted only 5.8% of Michigan teachers identify as Black, showing that educators are far less diverse than the students we serve. Research has found that Black students exposed to at least one Black teacher between grades 3-5 are less likely to drop out of high school and more likely to aspire to attend a four-year college or university (non-Black students also benefit from having Black teachers as they learn to communicate and work across differences). Once they get to college, only 5% of tenured faculty and 7% of nontenure-track faculty nationally are Black. Many studies of colleges and universities have shown that a lack of Black faculty/staff leads to feelings of isolation among Black students, inhibiting their learning/growth and identification with the institution.
Our Stance
School communities are made stronger when the staff is reflective of the students we serve and the broader diversity of our state. We support diversifying Michigan’s education workforce to reflect our students across many dimensions, focusing first on addressing the underrepresentation of Black educators in our schools and colleges.
Our Work
The working group will bring together members to build out paths for advocacy and resources that help support educators and school communities taking action at the state, institution, and member level. Our goal is to complete concrete projects that will help increase the number of Black educators in the classroom. We will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Potential directions are documented in the chart below:
| Assessment Phase (Research and Evaluation of Existing Programs & Policies) | Action Phase (Recommendations to AFT Michigan Ad Board) | |
| State Level | Identify and assess targeted teacher recruitment programs | Statewide data trackingTargeted mentorship programs |
| Institution Level | Identify effective recruitment, retention, and mentorship programs | Targeted retention programs based on improving institutional culture and structure Ensuring para-to-teacher pathway programs actively encourage Black participation |
| Member Level | Assess union-led mentorship and affinity space models | Creating affinity spaces for Black educators in AFT Michigan |
Who Should Join?
Members from across our AFT Michigan constituency groups (paraprofessional & school related personnel, PreK-12 teachers, Special Ed/ISD, graduate employees, nontenure-track faculty, tenure-track faculty and academic staff) can become involved with these projects in various ways including reviewing and giving feedback on drafts, supporting organizing and logistical work, and building out research and development. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. Interested in joining? Complete this form.
AFT Michigan Staff Point People: Jenell Mansfield, Meenakshi Mukherjee and Johnny Mickles
Paraprofessional-to-Teacher Pathways Working Group
AFT Michigan’s Proposed Scope of Work
The Issue
Michigan is facing a worsening teacher shortage and struggling to develop teachers reflective of the diversity of our students. Paraprofessionals support students every day in schools across our state and creating pathways for them to attain teacher certification can help build a responsive and diverse teaching force.
Our Stance
Paraprofessionals are instrumental in our school communities and should be supported and given opportunities for career advancement that include financial and professional support. Barriers to certification disproportionately impact BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and other people of color) educators who are underrepresented as teachers in our classrooms statewide. By building career ladders that support and fund a paraprofessional certification and development pipeline we can increase the BIPOC educators in classrooms around Michigan and help districts stabilize their workforce.
Our Work
The working group will bring together members to build out paths for advocacy and resources that help support educators and school communities taking action at the state, institution, and member level. Our goal is to complete concrete projects that will help other educators work to increase racial equity in our education system. We will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Potential directions are documented in the chart below:
| Assessment Phase (Research and Evaluation of Existing Programs & Policies) | Action Phase (Recommendations to AFT Michigan Ad Board) | |
| State Level | Survey proposed legislation, policies, etc. from allies and other states. | Support for HB 4369. |
| Institution Level | Identify and assess initiatives and programs around pathway programs. | Support for District level initiatives and programs for paraprofessional pathways. |
| Member Level | Identify and assess mentorship programs to support paraprofessional pathway programs. Survey members arounds wants and needs for pathway programs. | Member Mentorship Programs to support paraprofessionals interested in becoming teachers. |
Who Should Join?
Members from our paraprofessional & school-related personnel (PSRP), Special Ed/ISD, and preK-12 teacher constituency groups can become involved with these projects in various ways including reviewing and giving feedback on drafts, supporting organizing and logistical work, and building out research and development. Members who have experience with pathway programs and PSRPs who have become teachers are especially encouraged to join. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. Interested in joining? Complete this form.
AFT Michigan Staff Point People: Agatha Dier, Jenell Mansfield and Meenakshi Mukherjee
Converting Part-time to Full-time Faculty Working Group
The Issue
The higher education workforce has undergone a dramatic transformation in recent decades, flipping from three-quarters of classes taught by full-time faculty, generally with reasonable job security, a voice in campus decisions, and solid middle-class compensation, to three-quarters taught by contingent faculty, with much lower pay and benefits and little to no job security. Some part-time faculty hold other non-academic jobs to support themselves while others are “freeway flyers” piecing together classes at a number of institutions to make ends meet.
Our Stance
Our colleges and universities must restore a more equitable and stable faculty workforce if we are to have any hope of meeting the many needs facing our institutions of higher education in the 21st century. In the short term, we should create pay equity between part-time and full-time faculty. In the medium-term, we should hire more full-time faculty (utilizing conversion of current part-timers as much as possible).
Our Work
We will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Potential directions are documented in the chart below:
| Assessment Phase (Research and Evaluation of Existing Programs & Policies) | Action Phase (Recommendations to AFT Michigan Ad Board) | |
| State Level | Document what other states have done to promote an increase in full-time faculty positions | Budgeting tied to increasing the percentage of classes taught by full-time faculty on campuses |
| Institution Level | Explore “teaching-focused faculty” models for tenure at research-focused universities | Promote the inclusion of nontenure-track faculty in campus/department governance Numerical institutional goals for increasing the percentage of classes taught by full-time faculty |
| Member Level | Survey part-time members to determine how many would be interested in full-time positions | Mentorship and support for part-time members seeking full-time positions |
Who Should Join?
This working group will bring together members from two of our higher education constituency groups. Members from our nontenure-track faculty and tenure-track faculty & academic staff constituency groups can become involved with these projects in various ways including reviewing and giving feedback on drafts, supporting organizing and logistical work, and building out research and development. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. Interested in joining? Complete this form.
AFT Michigan Staff Point People: Sonya Alvarado and Dave Dobbie
New Deal for Higher Ed/Anti-Austerity Working Group
The Issue
Higher education in the United States is in crisis. Decades of draconian cuts to public funding for colleges and universities have shifted the burden of paying for higher education from the broader public to the individual student. This abandonment of higher education as a common good has led to crushing levels of student debt, the replacement of a full-time faculty by an exploited contingent teaching corps, and a reduction in academic experts bringing their skills to bear for the public good. The challenges of the twenty-first century–emerging diseases, racial inequality, climate change, food insecurity, and others–require a reinvestment in our system of higher education.
Our Stance
Higher education unions need to join together to fight austerity measures, share strategy & tactics, and envision how to use the New Deal for Higher Education as a frame for organizing on our campuses and across the state.
Our Work
To reflect our membership across Michigan community colleges and universities, this working group will bring together members from each AFT Michigan higher ed constituency group. We will begin with an Assessment Phase before moving toward recommending action steps to the AFT Michigan Administrative Board. Potential directions are documented in the chart below:
| Assessment Phase (Research and Evaluation of Existing Programs & Policies) | Action Phase (Recommendations to AFT Michigan Ad Board) | |
| State Level | Document state disinvestment in higher education in Michigan Collect & disseminate documented austerity measures proposed or implemented in community colleges/universities Collect and compare institutional financial data from across the state | Increasing access (e.g. free community college, bridges between 2 and 4-year institutions, apprenticeship models) Revamp state funding model to reflect student needs |
| Institution Level | Document austerity measures proposed in colleges and universities as well as effective strategies of resistance Defending threatened programs (e.g. liberal arts) | Wraparound supports for BIPOC and underserved students Campus anti-austerity coalition-building toolkits Vision for well-rounded and inclusive education |
| Member Level | Survey members about their feelings on the relative importance of different areas/departments Survey members on their awareness of austerity cuts or proposed cuts in their units | Student debt workshops Inter-local solidarity between members in currently-favored departments (e.g. professional schools) and those facing disinvestment (e.g. languages) |
Who Should Join?
Members from our graduate employee, nontenure-track faculty, and tenure-track faculty and academic staff constituency groups can become involved with these projects in various ways including reviewing and giving feedback on drafts, supporting organizing and logistical work, and building out research and development. Time commitments are flexible and will vary depending on the project and timeline. Interested in joining? Complete this form.
AFT Michigan Staff Point People: Erin Lavin, Dave Dobbie and Jenell Mansfield
