By Adam Pagnucco.
The Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA), which represents MCPS teachers, has announced its launch of a multimedia public awareness campaign to supplement its negotiations with the school district. This is the latest development in a rocky relationship between labor and management which has included a 2021 no confidence vote in MCPS’s reopening plan, a follow-up rally for safe schools, a threatened unfair labor practice charge for failure to bargain and criticism of the superintendent’s most recent recommended budget. MCEA President Jennifer Martin discussed many issues facing her members in our November interview.
MCEA’s press release and ads appear below.
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For Immediate Release
Thursday, February 16th, 2023
Media Contact: Dalbin Osorio, mceapress@mceanea.org
MoCo Educators Demand Better School Funding, a Fair Contract, in New Phase of Multimedia Campaign
Rockville, MD – This week, dozens of outdoor ads on buses and bus shelters across Montgomery County are going live, as part of MCEA’s “We Love Our Public Schools” public awareness campaign.
MCEA President Jennifer Martin highlighted how “Montgomery County once prided itself on hiring the best educators and paying us what we are worth. Nowadays, we hear overwhelming frustration and concern because MCPS has chosen to allow educators to suffer from years of neglect and abuse. They continue to be dismissive at the bargaining table as we struggle to give students the education they deserve.”
The multimedia campaign includes a petition, a website, and outdoor ads that feature educators sharing what public education means to them. The ads underscore an aspirational call to MCPS to fund schools and provide a fair contract for educators.
After four months of negotiations, MCPS has yet to bargain substantially on proposals that address critical staffing shortages and ratios, safety concerns, and the constant underfunding of our schools.
Educators in Montgomery County are fighting for:
- Competitive wages to recruit and retain educators and staff.
- Adequate student-to-teacher ratios.
- Creative learning time to address students’ whole well-being.
- Equitable funding for every school.
The key sticking points in bargaining are wages, staffing, and more planning time. MCEA has also presented student-centered proposals for universal free lunches and food pantries in schools located in high-need areas.
Last year, 1,100 educators left the school system, and many vacancies remain. Educators are getting paid less than they were in 2008, as wages for educators are not keeping pace with inflation. MCPS’ per-pupil funding has also not kept up with inflation. Our public schools are being funded at a lower rate than they were in 2009. Montgomery County Public Schools now receive less funding than Prince George’s County Public Schools, Howard County Public Schools, Baltimore County Public Schools, Baltimore City Public Schools, and D.C. Public Schools.
“We love our public schools. We also love our students and our jobs, but our schools are understaffed, and we are overworked and underpaid,” said Georgene Fountain, a music teacher at Daly Elementary School. “Fewer teachers mean higher class sizes. Counselors, and mental health and special education educators have impossible caseloads. We are fighting to bring back a well-rounded education and support students in every grade to make sure they reach their full potential. We are fighting for strong public schools in every community.”
