Sí, se puede: Cesar Chavez Charter School Educators File Union Petition

WASHINGTON—A decisive majority of teachers at Cesar Chavez Prep Middle School in Washington, D.C., filed an official petition with the National Labor Relations Board today to hold a union election before the end of the school year.

The petition is the culmination of a two-year organizing effort at the Columbia Heights school, after teachers stood up to win more resources for kids, a real say in school decision-making, and job security. If the vote is successful, Cesar Chavez Prep would become the first unionized charter school in the District of Columbia.

Educators are organizing under the umbrella of the District of Columbia Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff, affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers.

Claudia Andrade, a sixth-grade English and language arts teacher, said: “Cesar Chavez once said, ‘Students must have initiative; they should not be mere imitators; they must learn to think and act for themselves—and be free.’ We must follow in our namesake’s footsteps and ensure that his legacy lives on. We must ensure that our students are critical thinkers who cannot only identify issues in their community but create solutions to these issues.”

Christian Herr, a sixth-grade science teacher, said: “Our school’s mission is to empower students to use public policy in their communities. We hold up examples of great community organizers like Cesar Chavez and Martin Luther King Jr., and encourage our students to follow in their footsteps in order to make their communities better. What better way to teach our scholars how to do this than to show them? We can’t wait to sit down with our administration and begin the critical collaborative work ahead of us.”

Mateo Samper, an eighth-grade English and language arts teacher, said: “Our union is not an indictment on the tremendously dedicated administrators who have guided and supported our development over this past year. We have banded together in order to serve our students better. This union is not about my colleagues, the staff or the administrators; it’s bigger than the sum of its parts.

“We are organizing to create a system of safeguards to protect our scholars and families for years to come by ensuring, regardless of who is at the helm of their school or classroom, that scholars step into a learning environment where their social or academic growth more accurately reflects the professional opinions of the teachers they work with every day.”

Washington Teachers’ Union President Elizabeth Davis said: “I became a better teacher when I joined a union. Being a union member of 40 years allowed me and my colleagues to advocate more effectively for our students and our profession. If I had not been a union member, I would not have had the courage to stand strong. I congratulate the educators at Cesar Chavez for raising their voice to win those very same rights and protections.”

AFT President Randi Weingarten said: “Educators at Cesar Chavez Prep want a union because they want a real partnership with their administration in the decisions that shape the lives of their kids, their school and themselves. Their school is named for the great labor leader who understood that the way to ensure opportunity is through joining together, which the staff is doing to secure resources and protections—like a safe and fair learning environment, and consistent and high-quality curricula—and latitude so they can provide their kids the opportunities they deserve.”

The school is named for legendary labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez, who co-founded the United Farm Workers. Chavez waged a decades-long fight for union recognition for agricultural workers in California and Florida, winning significant improvements in wages and working conditions.

The AFT represents 231 charter schools in 15 states nationwide.