‘Unprecedented crisis’: local educators ready for rally in capital on Monday

SAN ANTONIO — More than 500 Texas teachers will gather on the steps of the State Capitol on Monday morning for Texas American Federation of Teachers Advocacy Day.

The Texas AFT currently has about 26 bills they are supporting that focus on teacher salary increases, a 25 percent increase in support staff salaries, and a cost of living adjustment (COLA) for teachers’ pensions, among other issues.

San Antonio Alliance Executive Vice President Adrian Reyna represents teachers and educates students at SAISD. Reyna said the state’s nearly $50 billion surplus makes this a big moment for the formation of Texas.

“We are in an unprecedented crisis in public education. We have an unprecedented moment in Texas politics if you look at the amount of money that is out there,” Reyna said. “So how can we use this surplus of money to address this very real crisis in public education, including teacher retention, class sizes that are too big.”

Both the San Antonio Alliance and the Northside AFT are supporting an increase in per-student government funding to help raise teacher salaries. Reyna said aspiring teachers can earn around $56,000, but that is no longer enough to support a family due to inflation over the past few years. Teachers either work multiple jobs or leave school districts entirely in search of better options.

“You have teachers who leave because they simply don’t have a salary. They directly tell the administrators: “I love my job, I love my children, but I’m trying to feed my family, buy a house, pay for medical services.” accounts, and this job just can’t keep up,” Reyna said.

Reyna also told KENS 5 that bus drivers, food service workers and security guards are now having to decide whether to work two jobs or look elsewhere. Northside AFT President Wanda Longoria, who represents teachers at Northside ISD, said she knows many teachers who have worked two jobs, and she has worked multiple jobs for years. Both districts will continue to experience teacher retention issues until the issue of teacher pay is resolved.

Representatives of the local ISD union also said that more mental health support and more student counselors are needed.

“Everyone who is part of the public education system is saying that we absolutely need to deal with the mental health crisis that is affecting our students and our staff,” Reyna said.

Reyna told KENS that five schools are required by law to have only one counselor per 500 students. The American School Counselors Association recommends a maximum ratio of 1:250, and both representatives support this requirement.

Another problem is pensions for retired teachers. New Braunfels Retired Teachers Association president Christine Taylor told KENS 5 that teachers’ pensions have not been adjusted for a living wage for 17 years and inflation has eaten those checks since.

“That number has never even gone up a dollar,” Taylor said. “This puts us in one of the lowest paying teacher pensions in the country.”

Taylor also said pension stagnation will affect future retention as teachers consider other options.

“If you’re smart enough to teach chemistry, algebra, math, why don’t you choose a profession that provides the best pension and the best benefits while you work?” Taylor said.

The teacher unions KENS 5 spoke to are also opposed to the expansion of school vouchers currently supported by Gov. Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick. Reyna said giving every student a voucher would be a nightmare for districts as they try to set future budgets and could leave districts underfunded.

“We think this is a very blatant way to defund and destroy public education,” Reyna said. “This will affect different communities in different ways. In your larger urban areas you will see the game of “musical chairs”… in the countryside the nearest private school can be reached in 45 minutes. a group of people get the money, and everyone else bears the burden of the money leaving the system.”

Longoria told KENS 5 she expects a fierce battle over vouchers as the legislature moves forward.