Teacher union leader Randi Weingarten on America's education crisis: 'Teachers are now first responders to everything'
As president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and its 1.7 million members in more than 3,000 local affiliates across the country — only after years of leading the New York City teachers’ union and of being a high school educator herself — Randi Weingarten knows a thing or two about teachers.
Serving as such a powerful leader has, of course, made her a political lightning rod, including through her ongoing, public battle with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos (the U.S. Department of Education did not respond to Yahoo Lifestyle’s request for comment).
Still, in light of the sheer number of teachers represented by the AFT, with a mission to champion “fairness; democracy; economic opportunity; and high-quality public education, healthcare and public services for students, their families and communities,” Yahoo Lifestyle checked in with Weingarten about what appears to be a full-blown U.S. teacher crisis, pushing educators out of the field in record numbers due to stressors that have stretched them to the breaking point — not only financially, but physically and mentally.
Here’s how Weingarten — ever the optimist — sees it. CONTINUE READING: Randi Weingarten on America's education crisis