This page is the location for occasional items by CFT President Joshua Pechthalt. Pechthalt was elected president in March 2011. He is the former AFT vice-president of United Teachers Los Angeles, and taught social studies for 21 years at Manual Arts High School. Pechthalt also serves as a vice president of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO. He is the co-chair of the Southern California Public Education Coalition, representing a broad spectrum of education-related unions in the Los Angeles area.
Restoring California: Tax The Rich to Fund Public Education And Services
By Joshua Pechthalt California Federation of Teachers
December 8, 2011, from California Progress Report—The California Federation of Teachers and its coalition partners Courage Campaign and California Calls have a simple proposal for the state’s voters: restore tax rates on people with incomes over one million dollars per year so that the rich pay their fair share to rebuild our schools and services. In November 2012 voters will have the opportunity to decide if this is a good idea. If current polling numbers hold up, chances are “The Millionaires Tax to Restore Funding for Education and Essential Services Act of 2012,” or simply “The Millionaires’ Tax,” will pass.
September 9, 2011—CFT president Joshua Pechthalt and state PTA president Carol Kocivar talked about parent-teacher cooperation in a jointly authored op-ed in today's Sacramento Bee. Click here to read it.
Diastat legislation needs a veto
September 7, 2011—CFT president Joshua Pechthalt and school nurse Pat Christie analyze SB 161 and its passage by the state Legislature, and call on Governor Brown to veto it in a post on the California Progress Report blog.
Pechthalt talks about "parent trigger" on radio
September 4, 2011—In a radio appearance on KPFA, CFT President Joshua Pechthalt and Compton Council of Classified Employees president Carolyn Richie discuss "parent trigger" and the need for parents, teachers, and parents to work together on real school reform. Pechthalt and Richie are interviewed by labor journalist David Bacon. Click here to listen to the broadcast.
By Joshua Pechthalt